Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 10-02-09

What’s Inside Today’s Local News for Veterans

1. Lawmaker Spotlights Emergency GI Bill Payments. 
2. Shinseki Said To Have Made PTSD A Priority For VA. 
3. Service Organizations, Key Lawmakers Supporting Automatic VA Enrollment Bill. 
4. Advocates Displeased With Failure To Pass VA Budget On Time. 
5. VHA Seen As Evidence That Government Can Provide Quality Care. 
6. Nevada Public Works Board Refusing To Comply With VA Rule.
7. Land Donation Offered To Santa Fe National Cemetery. 
8. Family Says Goodbye To Long-Missing Vietnam Vet.
9. Project Will Honor Women Vets, Including Tammy Duckworth. 
10. Numerous Bids May Have Been Made On Proposed VA Clinic.

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POST 911 GI BILL TUITION REIMBURSEMENT

Go to AdvancePay GI Bill site

Information on Emergency Payments for Veterans Awaiting VA Educational Benefits

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki has authorized advance payments up to $3,000 for Veterans who applied for VA educational benefits and who have not yet received their monthly education payments. 

If you are a Veteran who has applied for one of VA’s education programs and have not yet received your monthly benefit payment for the Fall 2009 term, you can request advance payment through this website, www.advancepay.gibill.va.gov. 

Advance payments will be issued by the U. S. Treasury within 3 workdays (Monday through Friday) following submission of this request. Payments will be in the form of a check sent through the U.S. mail. You should therefore anticipate an additional 3 days (excluding Sundays) for the U.S. Postal Service to deliver your check. 

You can also visit one of VA’s 57 regional offices across the country to immediately receive an advance payment. You will need to bring a government-issued photo ID and your course schedule when you visit the regional office. A list of VA’s regional offices is available at www.vba.va.gov/VBA/benefits/offices.asp. 

Starting on October 2, regional offices will be open from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm on weekdays for advance payments. Regional offices will also be open on Saturday, October 3, from 8:00 am to 12:00 noon. 

The advance payments will be reconciled with future education payments owed to you. 

Advanced Payment Questions and Answers.

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1.      Lawmaker Spotlights Emergency GI Bill Payments.  US Rep. Suzanne Kosmas (D-FL) "announced help…for Central Florida veterans struggling to get their GI benefits to pay for their education. Kosmas says many veterans are not getting their money due to a vast backlog. As a result," beginning on Friday, the Department of Veterans Affairs "will begin offering emergency payments for students." The emergency payments were also noted in reports aired by various other local TV stations in different parts of the country, including WTKR-TV Norfolk, VA (10/1, 5:06 p.m. ET) and WJET-TV (10/1, 5:05 p.m. ET), and KMSB-TV Tucson, AZ (10/1, 5:07 a.m. MT). Florida Today (10/2, Moody) reports Kosmas "had called on the VA to take steps to help veterans who were waiting for their benefits. ‘The emergency payments combined with the new online application are vital and important to ensure Central Florida’s veterans receive in a timely manner the full benefits they have earned,’" the lawmaker said.
      The sixth item in the Needles (CA) Desert Star‘s (10/2) "Needles In Brief" column noted that VA Secretary Eric Shinseki recently "announced the department has authorized checks for up to $3,000 for students who have applied for educational benefits and have not yet received their government payments." Ed O’Keefe also noted the emergency payments in his "Federal Eye" blog for the Washington Post (10/1).
      VA Efforts Earn Praise For Shinseki.  The Waynesville (MO) Daily Guide (10/2) reports Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander Thomas J. Tradewell Sr. "has voiced support of the secretary’s decision. ‘We are extremely pleased with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki’s announcement that VA is moving positively in response to recent reports of veterans experiencing financial difficulty or problems enrolling for college classes since the implementation of the Post-9/11 GI Bill,’ said…Tradewell," who added, "This clearly demonstrates Secretary Shinseki’s concern and willingness to take action on behalf of the student veteran community."
      The Ontario (OR) Argus Observer (10/1) noted, "’It is heartening to see’" Secretary Shinseki "’and his department responding so swiftly and decisively to this unfortunate situation,’ The American Legion National Commander Clarence E. Hill said. ‘This is a brand new benefits program, instituted just weeks ago, so some startup glitches are to be expected, but the VA’s willingness to rectify the problem should be applauded.’"
      The Ogden (UT) Standard Examiner (10/1. Shaw) reported, "’It’s a very aggressive program,’ said Terry Schow, executive director of the Utah Department of Veterans Affairs, of the post 9/11 GI Bill. ‘And sadly, there is a backlog to get these payments out,’" but Secretary Shinseki "has really stepped up to the plate to help these vets get the money they need."
      The Springfield (MO) News-Leader (10/1) also took note of the emergency payments, as did the Killeen (TX) Daily Herald (10/1, LaFlure), which reported, "The VA was just not prepared. There’s no way they could be,’ said Barbara Merlo, spokeswoman for Central Texas College," who added, "They were writing
the rules while trying to implement the program. It doubled their caseload overnight."
      The St. Cloud (MN) Times (10/1, Marohn) noted, "Media outlets have been reporting that thousands of veterans attending college are having to take out loans, put off textbook purchases and dip into savings because of delayed benefit checks." Kathie Goenner, the "veterans affairs certifying official" for St. Cloud State University, "said a few students have contacted her about delayed payments. Most are aware that the funding can be slow and have savings they can use in the meantime, she said."
      The West Virginia Public Broadcasting (10/2, Adducchio) website reports, "Thousands of veterans are expected to wait in long lines for their checks at 57 regional offices starting Friday. Some West Virginia vets are anxiously waiting for the financial help," and Skip Gebhart, the administrator of the Office of Veterans Programs at the State Higher Education Policy Commission, "thinks $3,000 is sufficient. ‘I think by the time the VA gets the payments processed, that’s about what they would owe most students in West Virginia anyway,’ he said."
      The Lawrence (KS) Journal-World (10/1, Hyland) noted that Felix Zacharias, president of the Kansas University (KU) Collegiate Veterans Association, "said he understood that the VA was swamped, but appreciated the availability of the upcoming emergency funds." He also "said that he…had heard from a number of KU veterans facing eviction or are unable to pay monthly bills."
      Groups Warn VA’s Initial "Fumbling" Could "Ruin" Its Reputation Among Newest Vets.  The Houston Chronicle (10/2, Wise) reports, "Payment delays represent a major setback for a program that launched with great fanfare Aug. 1." And now, "veterans groups warn the VA’s fumbling of the new GI Bill could ruin the agency’s reputation among America’s newest generation of veterans."
      The KPBS-TV San Diego, CA (10/1, St. John) website, meanwhile, reported, "San Diego Congressman Bob Filner said the VA has known about the deadline for months. He said it’s a bureaucratic problem. ‘We’re going to try to get emergency money in the hands of students immediately,’" and "then fix this problem so that everybody — the universities and the students — get their checks on time."
      Milwaukee One Of 57 VA Regional Offices Distributing Checks.  The Wisconsin State Journal (10/2, Ziff) reports, "The Milwaukee office of the Department of Veterans Affairs will be handing out emergency checks Friday and Saturday to students who are eligible for benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill but have not yet received them. The VA has a backlog of about 25,000 claims nationwide, said Thomas Braun, with the Milwaukee VA regional office." Braun "didn’t know how many in Wisconsin are awaiting benefits." Milwaukee "is one of 57 VA regional offices nationwide distributing checks to eligible students."
  

2.      Shinseki Said To Have Made PTSD A Priority For VA.  In a web exclusive, Newsweek (10/1, Reno) reports, "By one estimate, more than 300,000 of the nearly 2 million" US "servicemen and -women deployed since 9/11 suffer from the often-debilitating condition" of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The "number of cases is expected to climb as the war in Afghanistan continues, and could ultimately exceed 500,000, according to a new study by researchers at Stanford University." The Department of Veterans Affairs "has struggled to address this mental-health crisis, and thousands of veterans have suffered as a result. Now," however, "thanks to new leadership and a new openness to collaboration, things appear to be changing at the VA, if slowly. Veterans still often face insufferably long waits for treatment and steep bureaucratic hurdles when filing disability claims," but "there is a new sense of urgency under" VA Secretary Eric Shinseki "to change the culture within the 77-year-old" department. Shinseki "has made PTSD a priority, with efforts underway to address concerns from the way claims are processed to the development of new, more effective treatments. ‘Brain injuries and the psychological consequences of battle are not new to combat,’ Shinseki tells NEWSWEEK. ‘We know from past wars that with early diagnosis and treatment, people can get better.’" Newsweek adds, however, "Most veterans interviewed for this" story "agree…that the VA has a long way to go."
      Iraq Vet Suffering From PTSD Says VA Failed To Warm Him About Drug’s Side Effects.  The KOAA-TV Colorado Springs, CO (10/1, Vandeputte) website reported, "A local Iraq war veteran says a drug, used to fight depression and PTSD, made him have homicidal fantasies. He’s come forward to News First 5 in hopes of giving out a warning," one which "he says he never got. He wanted to remain anonymous," so "we call him ‘Brad.’ Last "February, he says he was diagnosed with PTSD by doctors at the VA clinic in Colorado Springs," who "put him on Effexor, an anti-depressant. Brad says, ‘I just noticed that I started to have, I felt violent. … I felt like I wanted to hurt somebody.’" Brad "says he stopped taking Effexor. According to the drug-maker Wyeth, some of Effexor’s side effects include hallucinations, aggressiveness, and bizarre behavior," but Brad "says, ‘The VA never mentioned anything about any of those.’" However, in a statement, Jordan Schupbach, the public affairs officer for the VA Eastern Colorado Health System in Denver "said, ‘It is the policy of the VA to include detailed information regarding dosage instructions and possible side effects with every prescription filled. It is also the general practice of our providers to discuss these matters with our patients at the time the prescription is written.’"  

3.      Service Organizations, Key Lawmakers Supporting Automatic VA Enrollment Bill.  The Air Force Times (10/2, Maze) reports, "A bill to automatically enroll returning combat veterans" in the Veterans Affairs "health care system is gaining some key support. The nation’s largest veterans service organization, the American Legion, has endorsed the bill, HR 3441, as has Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America." Also "on board" are US Rep.
Bob Filner (D-CA), chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and US Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA), the "first Iraq veteran elected to Congress, who is now a member of the House Armed Services Committee." The Times notes that US Rep. Michael Arcuri (D-NY), the "chief sponsor of the bill," argued in favor of the legislation during a meeting Thursday of the House Veterans Affairs Committee.  

Video by Tom Maleport.  Visit his Video Channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/TunesNorth

4.      Advocates Displeased With Failure To Pass VA Budget On Time.  The Army Times (10/2, Maze) reports, "The new fiscal year did not get off to a happy start Thursday for veterans groups as Congress failed for the 20th time in the past 23 years to pass a Veterans Affairs Department budget on time. ‘This is completely unacceptable,’ said Paul Reickhoff, executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America," who added, "A late VA budget means Congress is failing veterans." David Gorman of Disabled American Veterans also commented on the situation, saying, "The failure, once again, to pass VA’s budget on time is the latest evidence of a broken funding system crying out for reform," although he did note that a continuing resolution (CR) recently passed by Congress includes a budget increase for the VA. The Times adds, "Advance funding is the top priority of all of the major veterans groups who testified before Congress this year."
      Report: CRs Cause Inefficiencies, Limit Management Options.  Government Executive (10/2, Newell) says CRs, "while commonplace, almost uniformly cause inefficiencies at the agency level and limit management options, according to a Government Accountability Office report released on Thursday." The "watchdog used six agencies as case studies to assess the effects of continuing resolutions: the Administration for Children and Families, Bureau of Prisons, the FBI, Food and Drug Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration and Veterans Health Administration. All reported that operating under stopgap spending measures resulted in inefficiencies, the most common being delays of activities" like hiring. Agencies "also reported that continuing resolutions forced employees to engage in repetitive work such as issuing multiple grants or contracts for the same service." 

5.      VHA Seen As Evidence That Government Can Provide Quality Care.  Bloomberg News (10/2, Jensen) reports, "As Congress considers changing Americans’ access" to healthcare, the Veterans Health Administration, "whose projected budget this year is $45 billion, is evidence that the government can provide care favored by patients that may offer savings when compared with private insurers. Researchers publishing in the New England Journal of Medicine, the British Medical Journal and the Annals of Internal Medicine in recent years have endorsed the system," but "a May 2008 Harvard School of Public Health survey found that three out of five Americans don’t believe Iraq War veterans get high-quality care. Stories of long waits are common, and some connect the department to the moldy, rodent-infested housing exposed in 2007 at Washington’s Walter Reed Army Medical Center, a
facility run by the Defense Department, not Veterans Affairs." Patients, however, "routinely rank the veterans system above the alternatives, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index."  

6.      Nevada Public Works Board Refusing To Comply With VA Rule.  At the end of a story on a state audit in Nevada, the Las Vegas Sun (10/1, Ryan) reported, "A proposed $800,000 expansion" of the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery "in Fernley is threatened by a new Veterans Affairs Department rule requiring that private companies, and not state agencies, administer and manage such construction projects. The state Public Works Board," however, "is digging in its heels, citing state law that places that responsibility with the board. The board is refusing to grant an exemption to allow the state’s Office of Veterans Services to hire a private contractor for the project." The Sun noted that the cemetery "has run out of space for burial of single veterans and has started to use a section" of the facility "reserved for the burial of family members."
      The Nevada Appeal (10/1, Dornan) said the Public Works Board’s exemption decision "could kill the project that would develop 900 burial spots for veterans and their spouses on four acres the cemetery owns." Veterans Services Executive Director Tim Tetz "said the $655,000 estimated cost is 100 percent federally funded – including construction management services as long as those services are provided by a private company."
  

7.      Land Donation Offered To Santa Fe National Cemetery.  The Santa Fe New Mexican (9/30, Grimm) reported, "Santa Fe National Cemetery would grow by about 5 acres" if the Federal "government accepts a city of Santa Fe land donation that is finally moving toward completion." Without the "land donation, director Cliff Shields estimates, the cemetery has only enough space to last until 2018. The donation could stretch the site’s life for another 10 to 12 years beyond that, depending on how the new land is used, he said. A plat map and quit-claim deed for the area that the City Council wants to give the cemetery was filed last week with the Santa Fe County clerk and is on its way" to Washington, DC, "where the National Cemetery Administration will begin its ‘due diligence’ on the transaction." 8.      Family Says Goodbye To Long-Missing Vietnam Vet.  On its website, KTVB-TV Boise, ID (10/1) noted that on Thursday, "an Idaho family finally laid their loved one to rest. Chief Warrant Officer Jesse Donald Phelps," who had been missing in action for 44 years after the "enemy shot down" his helicopter in Vietnam, "came home this week," and on Thursday morning, "his family said their final goodbyes at a memorial service in Meridian." The KBCI-TV Boise, ID (10/1, Rodriguez) website noted that Phelps "was buried with full military honors in the state veterans cemetery." KIVI-TV Boise, ID (10/1, 10:00 p.m. CT) also aired a report on Phelps’ burial, which was also covered by the Idaho Statesman (10/2, Kreller). 
 

9.      Project Will Honor Women Vets, Including Tammy Duckworth.  The third item in the Chicago Tribune‘s (10/2) "Notes" column reports, "The 21st Star Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution will meet at 11:30 a.m. Oct. 10 in Park Ridge County Club, 636 N. Prospect Ave.," where "Illinois State Regent, NSDAR, Luanne Bruckner will present her project ‘The Spirit of DAR in Illinois.’" The project "honors all veterans, particularly women, with a life-size statue of Molly Pitcher, who fought beside her husband during the American Revolution, on one side and Tammy Duckworth, assistant secretary for veterans affairs, on the other." 

10.    Numerous Bids May Have Been Made On Proposed VA Clinic.  The Minneapolis Star Tribune (10/2, Levy) reports, "While Anoka and Sherburne counties compete for a new veterans clinic in the northwestern suburbs, it’s possible that dozens of developers also submitted bids without consulting officials from Anoka, Ramsey and Elk River — cities most often mentioned as the clinic’s likely destination." Veterans Affairs "contractor Lee Wiech, addressing county and city officials and concerned veterans at the Elk River American Legion Post on Thursday, said government restrictions prevented him from revealing which cities and developers have entered bids. But he said developers can make multiple bids within one city, hinting that the competition for the clinic stretches far beyond county lines." The meeting was "initiated by US Rep. Michele Bachmann."