Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 11-18-09

What’s Inside Today’s Local News for Veterans

1. Disability Evaluation System To Be Implemented At Six New Locations.
2. Suicides In US Army Expected To Reach New High.
3. Coburn Offers Amendment To Omnibus Veterans Healthcare Bill.
4. Phoenix VA Serving More Veterans.
5. Report: Over $98 Billion Wasted By Government Agencies, Including VA.
6. VA, US Olympic Committee To Expand Paralympics Sport Programs.
7. First, Second Ladies To Celebrate Women In The Military.
8. Analysis: Despite "National Focus," Surgical Errors Continue.
9. "Bad" Cholesterol Down In US Adults, But Screening Target Not Met.
10. Facility To Undergo Multiple Renovation, Construction Projects.

---

HAVE YOU HEARD?

Finding a job these can be tough, especially if you have been employed for a number of years. That’s why the Bay Pines VA Medical Center started its Job Club. Over a year ago, Bay Pines VA Healthcare System expanded its Employment Reentry Services (ERS) program to help get veterans back into the workforce by creating the Bay Pines Job Club. The Job Club is divided into two groups: Job Club I meets on four consecutive Fridays conducting classes on organizing job searches and networking, completing applications — paper and on-line — and developing knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs) for federal employment, resume and cover letter writing, and practicing interviewing skills. Job Club II is held in a computer lab where members become familiar with Internet job search tools and submit job applications on-line. The computer lab experience is particularly useful since most Veterans are unfamiliar with using the computer to search and apply for jobs. The Job Club also established a collaborative partnership with Abilities, a local nonprofit organization that assists Veterans with employment. In late September, the Club held a job fair inviting veteran-friendly employers to meet with prospective Veteran employees.  Sponsored by HireVeterans.com

---

 

1.      Disability Evaluation System To Be Implemented At Six New Locations. In continuing coverage, the Kansas City infoZine (11/18) reports, "The Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that beginning in January 2010, the Disability Evaluation System (DES) pilot will expand to an additional six" US installations. The "new locations will include: Fort Benning, Ga.; Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Hood, Texas; Fort Lewis, Wash.; Fort Riley, Kan.; and Portsmouth Naval Medical Center, Va. This expansion brings the total number of military facilities using the pilot to 27." To "date, more than 5,431 service members have participated in the pilot since November 2007. ‘Streamlining our disability claims system and working closely with DoD to care for today’s generation of heroes are among VA’s top priorities,’ said" VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki.  

2.      Suicides In US Army Expected To Reach New High. McClatchy (11/18, Youssef) reports, "Suicides in the Army are expected to reach a new high this year, with 140 suspected cases among active-duty soldiers so far, Army officials said Tuesday. This will be the fifth year in a row that grim statistic rose despite an aggressive military campaign to tackle the mental health stigma in the Army," whose vice chief of staff, Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, "said that the military wasn’t seeing any trends that explained the rise." McClatchy adds, "The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan often have demanded that soldiers serve multiple tours. Coupled" with the recent "shootings at Fort Hood, concerns are rising about stress on the force, particularly" as the Obama Administration "considers sending more troops to Afghanistan."
     The Washington Post (11/18, A2, Tyson, 684K) notes that during a Tuesday "Pentagon news conference," Chiarelli "called the Army’s record suicide rate this year ‘horrible’ and said the problem of soldiers taking their own lives is the toughest he has faced in his 37 years in service." However, Chiarelli, "who has made suicide prevention a priority, said that despite the high total, the monthly suicide rate has largely declined since March."
     Despite "Grim Totals," Statistics Indicate Possible Progress In Stemming Suicides. The AP (11/18, Jelinek) reports, "Soldier suicides this year are almost sure to top last year’s grim totals, but a recent decline in the pace of such incidents could mean the Army is starting to make progress in stemming them, officials said Tuesday." But, the AP adds, "The true incidence of suicide among military veterans is not known, according to a report last year by the Congressional Research Service. Based on numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," the Department of Veterans Affairs "estimates that 18 veterans a day – or 6,500 a year – take their lives, but that number includes vets from all previous wars."
     Army Reaching Out To Employers Concerned About Vets With "Invisible Wounds." The AP (11/18, Roberts) reports US Army officials "say many new veterans suffering" from post-traumatic stress disorder and brain injuries have difficulty finding and keeping a civilian job. Advocates "say many employers don’t know how to accommodate veterans with these ‘invisible wounds’ and worry that they cannot do the job and might even ‘go postal’ someday." But the "Army’s Wounded Warrior Program, which helps veterans adjust to civilian life, has been reaching out to employers to educate them and encourage them to hire former
soldiers with invisible wounds." The program "conducts briefings to brace potential employers for soldiers who might not be able to work regular hours or might startle too easily, suffer outbursts or require time off for counseling. About 90 severely wounded veterans have found work with the help" of the program "since it began offering job assistance last year, though the Army does not break that down by injury type." 

3.      Coburn Offers Amendment To Omnibus Veterans Healthcare Bill. In continuing coverage, CQ (11/18, Oliveri) reports, "The Senate could pass as early as Wednesday an omnibus" healthcare "bill that focuses on caregivers of….severely injured" Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Movement "on the bill came after" US Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), "who had been holding up the measure, provided the text of an amendment to the bill’s manager," US Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI), chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Coburn "objected to the bill (S 1963) because it would authorize about $3.7 billion in new spending that would not be offset." His amendment "would order the State Department to transfer an amount, which would cover the cost of the bill, from funds appropriated for contributions to international organizations and peacekeeping activities. It would also expand the reach of the bill to all veterans, beyond those affected since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks." The amendment, however, is "expected to be rejected."
     House Subcommittee To Mark Up Bill Dealing With Veterans’ Appeals. CQ‘s (11/18) "Today at a Glance" column notes that on Wednesday, the "Senate is expected to…debate" the particulars of S 1963. In the House, meanwhile, the Veterans Affairs Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee is scheduled, at 10 a.m. in 334 Cannon, to mark "up a draft bill on veterans’ appeals improvement and modernization." 

4.      Phoenix VA Serving More Veterans. The Arizona Republic (11/18, Zlomek, 393K) reports, "Troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, coupled with a host of veterans who have lost their jobs and health benefits, have led to sharp traffic increases to metro Phoenix’s four Veterans Affairs health-care clinics, the centers’ director said." The "patient increase is especially severe at the department’s Northwest Valley clinic in Sun City, which is close to Luke Air Force Base." The clinic, however, "will be moved to the larger Ancona Professional Plaza, near Grand Avenue and Mountain View Road, by next summer." The Republic adds, "The new facility will be able to accommodate 10,000 patients annually compared with 6,200 patients at the old center, which is at capacity, said Gabriel Perez, medical center director of the Phoenix VA Health Care System."  

5.      Report: Over $98 Billion Wasted By Government Agencies, Including VA. The AP (11/18) reports, "More than $98 billion in taxpayer dollars spent by government agencies was wasted, much of it on questionable claims for tax credits and Medicare benefits, representing an increase of $26 billion from the previous year. In all, about 5 percent of spending in federal programs in fiscal year 2009 was improper, according to new details of a
government financial report that were released Tuesday." Among the "reported waste," Veterans Affairs spent "$1.2 billion, or 2.7 percent. That included improper payments in the pension and other compensation programs." The AP adds, "President Barack Obama is expected to sign an executive order within the next week aimed at cracking down on government waste and fraud." 

 6.      VA, US Olympic Committee To Expand Paralympics Sport Programs. The American Forces Press Service (11/18, Cardin) reports, "A recent initiative launched by the Veterans Affairs Department" and the US Olympic Committee "is giving disabled veterans a chance to rediscover their potential through athletics and competition. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the two organizations Oct. 21 to expand Paralympics sport programs to wounded warriors rehabilitating at community-level recreational facilities. Before the memorandum, Paralympics programs were offered primarily through warrior transition units at facilities such as Walter Reed Army Medical Center" in Washington, DC, the "National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., and VA rehabilitation centers. Through the agreement, the Paralympics division of the US Olympic Committee and VA hope to ensure disabled veterans can be physically active when they return home, Charlie Huebner, the Paralympic division’s chief, said in a recent telephone interview with American Forces Press Service." 

7.      First, Second Ladies To Celebrate Women In The Military. The Washington Post (11/18, A19, 684K) reports in its "What to Watch" column that Wednesday will be "a day for the first and second ladies to focus on the White House’s military families project," with Jill Biden set to speak "at the first ‘USO Care Package for Women’ party" before "she and the first lady…host a gathering at the White House celebrating women in the military. Veterans and current servicewomen will be joined there by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. James Cartwright, members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and their wives, and other military and administration officials."  

8.      Analysis: Despite "National Focus," Surgical Errors Continue. In continuing coverage, Science Daily (11/18) reports, "Despite a national focus on reducing surgical errors, surgery-related adverse events continue to occur both inside and outside the operating room, according to an analysis of events at Veterans Health Administration Medical Centers published in the November issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals." The "results indicate that communication problems often occur early in surgical procedures, and interventions such as a final ‘time-out’ moments before incision may occur too late to correct them." After noting that the analysis recommends "earlier communication based on crew resource management to prevent surgical adverse events," Science Daily says the VHA "’developed and implemented a pilot program to reduce the risk of incorrect surgical events in April 2002, which resulted in the dissemination of a national directive in January 2003,’ the authors write." Modern Healthcare (11/18, DerGurahian) runs a similar story.
  

9.      "Bad" Cholesterol Down In US Adults, But Screening Target Not Met. Bloomberg News (11/18, Ostrow) reports, "Levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol in the US fell by one-third from 1999 to 2006 as more people took cholesterol-lowering drugs, US researchers reported" in a study published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Among "all risk groups, the proportion of people screened for high cholesterol remained less than 70 percent during the study periods, below the 80 percent target set by Healthy People 2010," a national health promotion and disease prevention initiative. An "editorial accompanying the study called the 70 percent screening rate ‘disappointing.’ ‘We still have a lot of room to go identifying people who should be treated and treating them appropriately,’" said Veterans Affairs cardiologist J. Michael Gaziano, "who wrote the editorial. During a "telephone interview" on Tuesday, Gaziano "blamed the screening rate on the complexity of guidelines that doctors use to determine when patients should be checked and treated." 

10.    Facility To Undergo Multiple Renovation, Construction Projects. The Philadelphia Daily News (11/18, Gambacorta, 93K) says the Philadelphia VAMC "is about to undergo a huge face-lift — and quite a few nips and tucks, too. About 40 renovation and construction projects totaling $40 million are scheduled to unfold at the West Philadelphia center, on University Avenue near Baltimore Avenue, during the next 18 months, said Dale Warman, a spokesman for the Philadelphia VA. Chief among the projects is a $6 million remodel" of the hospital’s "emergency department, which is being funded" by the Federal stimulus package.