Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 12-18-08

1. Judge Rejects Attempt To Force Quicker Disability Claims Handling.  
2. VA Said To Be Showing Signs Of Improvement.  
3. Salute Now Allowed For Veterans, Active-Duty Military During National Anthem.  
4. Some Democrats Back Openly Gay Candidate For Naval Secretary     
5. National Guard Developing System To Track Soldiers Exposed To Blasts In Iraq, Afghanistan.  
6. Face Transplant Surgery Discussed As A Possibility For Severely Burned Veterans.  
7. Company Developing Online Health Information Network.  
8. Nurses’ Aides Alleged To Have Stolen From Veterans.  
9. Louisiana National Guard Soldiers Pay Holiday Visit To VA Hospital.  
10. Kentucky Teenager Accused Of Poisoning Her Grandfather.  

HAVE YOU HEARD? VA Awards $75.8 Million for Hospital Modernization

Peake: Contract Honors VA’s Commitment to Veterans. – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded a $75.8 million contract to P.J. Dick Inc. for the construction of a major five-story building that will provide outpatient services and 78 secure, private psychiatric beds for the VA Pittsburgh Health Care System.  “This contract honors our commitment to provide the best possible health care for veterans in Pennsylvania,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake.  “This major construction project will enhance both behavioral health and ambulatory care services by turning a three-division health care system into two divisions.”

Called the Consolidation Building, the new facility will also include an education center.  By co-locating medical and behavioral care, it will streamline patient care and improve patient safety.  The new facility will enhance patient privacy and create a home-like environment for veterans in recovery-based treatment.

1.      Judge Rejects Attempt To Force Quicker Disability Claims Handling.   The AP (12/18) reports, "A federal judge on Wednesday rejected a bid by veterans groups to force the Veterans Affairs Department to speed up handling of its disability claims, saying it was not the court’s role to impose quicker deadlines." Vietnam Veterans of America and Veterans of Modern Warfare "had filed the lawsuit asking" that "the VA process initial disability claims within 90 days and resolve appeals within 180 days. If the VA failed to do so, the two groups were seeking interim payments of roughly $350 a month. At a court hearing Wednesday," US District Judge Reggie Walton "said that setting a blanket rule of 90 days for processing claims was a role for Congress and the VA secretary to decide." The AP adds, "President-elect Barack Obama has pledged to ‘fix the benefits bureaucracy’ at the VA. Earlier this month, he named retired Gen. Eric K. Shinseki, a former Army chief of staff, to be the next VA secretary." The Washington Post (12/18, A9) and the New York Times (12/18, A24) both publish similar versions of this story in their Thursday print editions.                                                                      

2.      VA Said To Be Showing Signs Of Improvement.   The Walla Walla (WA) Union-Bulletin (12/18) editorializes, "We, as well as veterans in this region, have been frustrated with leadership" of the US VA, but "we have found reason to be optimistic in recent months. In November it was announced that $71.4 million has been preliminarily approved to fund design and construction of a new veterans outpatient clinic in Walla Walla." James B. Peake, "the latest VA secretary appointed by President Bush, has done a far better job than his recent predecessors," and "we expect that veterans will see even stronger leadership under…Shinseki." The Union-Bulletin adds, "It is our hope that Shinseki will visit Walla Walla in the near future to tour the Wainwright facility," because such a trip would be "invaluable as he works to improve the VA."
      Unlike Some Other Obama Appointees, Shinseki Did Not Donate To Presidential Candidates.   At the end of a story noting that several of "Obama’s Cabinet appointments and advisers contributed to his rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), during the Democratic presidential nomination primary," The Hill (12/18, Tiron) reported that some "Cabinet picks, including…Shinseki," did "not donate to any campaign."

3.      Salute Now Allowed For Veterans, Active-Duty Military During National Anthem.   The syndicated "Sgt. Shaft" column, appearing in the Washington Times (12/18, Fales) notes, "Veterans and active-duty military not in uniform can now render the military-style hand salute during the playing of the national anthem, thanks to changes in federal law that took effect this month. ‘The military salute is a unique gesture of respect that marks those who have served in our nation’s armed forces,’ said" Veterans Affairs Secretary "James B. Peake. ‘This provision allows the application of that honor in all events involving our nation’s flag.’"

4       Some Democrats Back Openly Gay Candidate For Naval Secretary.   The Washington Times (12/18, Dinan, 83K) reports some "top retired military leaders and some Democrats in Congress are backing William White, chief operating officer of the Intrepid Museum Foundation, to be the next secretary of the Navy – a move that would put the first openly gay person at the top of one of the services." The secretary’s job "is a civilian position, so it would not run afoul of the ban on gays serving in the military, but it would renew focus on the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy as President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take office." Ret. Gen. Hugh Shelton said, "He would be phenomenal." The Times adds others "are in consideration, such as Juan Garcia, a former naval aviator who was defeated for re-election to his seat in the Texas House. Mr. Garcia is friends with Mr. Obama from their Harvard Law School days and was chairman of Mr. Obama’s Texas campaign."

5.      National Guard Developing System To Track Soldiers Exposed To Blasts In Iraq, Afghanistan.   In the lead story in his Craig (CO) Daily Press (12/18) column, Bill Harding reports, "The National Guard is developing a method to track soldiers who have been exposed to blasts in Iraq or Afghanistan." Lt. Col. Maureen Weigl, project officer for the program, "said she was asked by Lt. Gen. Clyde Vaughn, Army Guard director, to visit Iraq and review the current method of recording soldiers who are exposed to a blast. If nothing is available, something will be created." Harding adds, "The new system is being briefed to surgeons and sergeant majors. It is possible the data will help with future research of traumatic brain injuries and treatment." And for the service member, the system "could help prove that problems suffered years later are related to his or her service, which could result" in Veterans Affairs "benefits that otherwise would go unclaimed."

6       VA Renews $23.4 Million Contract With QuadraMed.   Healthcare IT News (12/17, Merrill) reported, "The Department of Veterans Affairs has renewed a $23.4 million contract with Reston Va. -based QuadraMed to enhance workflow at all VA medical centers." The renewal of the contract "includes the term license for QuadraMed’s Encoder Product Suite (EPS), a comprehensive VistA-integrated health information management and revenue cycle management solution, and for related training services for all VA medical centers nationwide during the government’s 2009 fiscal year." VA officials "say QuadraMed’s EPS solution will serve to integrate key clinical elements through the VA’s clinical packages and computerized patient record system."

7.      Company Developing Online Health Information Network.   The Tennessean (12/18, Peterson) reports, "Harris Corp. in Melbourne, Fla., is developing a computer network to make medical records available" online "in an instant. ‘It’s a little like the Internet, although this will have a lot more protection than the Internet,’ said Dr. Bart Harmon," the "chief medical officer for Harris Healthcare Solutions. The first version of the company’s Nationwide Health Information Network-Connect includes more than two-dozen government agencies or institutes involved in health care." When "implemented in early 2009, the network will allow electronic health records to flow between the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Indian Health Service and several civilian health organizations."

8.      Nurses’ Aides Alleged To Have Stolen From Veterans.   In continuing coverage, the Philadelphia Daily News (12/18, Tales) reports, "Two nurses’ aides were arrested Monday" at the Veterans Community Living Center "in University City, where they are alleged to have stolen a total of $2,000 from seven patients, some of whom are wheelchair-bound, said Dale Warman, spokesman for the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center. ‘This is a terrible situation and there’s an investigation that is ongoing,’ he said." The Daily News notes that 46-year-old Ginger Hendrickson and 51-year-old Laura Bell allegedly "stole…cash and credit cards," which "they used to make hundreds of dollars in purchases in Philadelphia and Delaware, police said." The aides "face third-degree felony charges, including criminal conspiracy, theft," and forgery.

9.      Louisiana National Guard Soldiers Pay Holiday Visit To VA Hospital.   In a story submitted by Staff Sgt. Rachel A. Hall, the 199th Leadership Regiment Unit Public Affairs Representative, the Alexandria (LA) Town Talk (12/17) reported, "Soldiers from the Louisiana National Guard’s 199th Leadership Regiment Officer Candidate School recently filled the halls with holiday cheer and song" at the Veterans Affairs medical center in Pineville. The "officer candidates visited the hospital Dec. 6 as part of a community action project required for their August 2009 graduation from OCS."

10.    Kentucky Teenager Accused Of Poisoning Her Grandfather.   In continuing coverage, the AP (12/18) reports, "A grand jury has indicted" 19-year-old Brittany Ann Miller, a resident of Kentucky, "accusing her with lacing her grandfather’s coffee with automotive antifreeze." Miller "faces a charge of criminal attempt to commit murder. WLEX-TV in Lexington reported Leonard Walls went to the" Veterans Affairs hospital "in Lexington, where he told a security officer he suspected his granddaughter was trying to kill him so she could inherit his money." The "grand jury in Liberty returned the indictment" against Miller "on Friday."