Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

From The VA
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Message for
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

During May, a month of renewal and promise, we celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month to honor the great amalgam of nationalities and cultures represented by more than 16 million Americans who trace their roots back to Asia and the Pacific. Their contributions have helped renew America for many generations. Their vitality and energy underscore America’s promise of continued freedom and leadership throughout the 21st Century.

Too long relegated to the footnotes of American history, the accomplishments of Asian Pacific Americans are today widely recognized in all segments of American life – cultural, economic, political — and in an area I am personally familiar with, military service.

I grew up with stories of heroism and dedication of Asian American soldiers who fought tyranny during World War II while fear and prejudice at home plagued their families. These men were and are my heroes and what they did during and after military service helped push this Nation to the understanding that diversity is one of its core strengths and a cherished American value.

Today there are more than 340,000 Veterans of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage and some 90,000 Asian and Pacific Americans serving in our armed forces—on active duty and in the National Guard and Reserves—with the same dedication and commitment as those who served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

It is with great pride that I join the Department of Veterans Affairs in honoring these Veterans, and all our citizens of Asian American and Pacific Island descent, including some 17,500 VA employees, during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.

Eric K. Shinseki

Top Veterans Stories in Today’s News

1. Senate Panel To Take Up War-Funding Bill Thursday Washington – A key Senate panel Thursday is to consider a roughly $60 billion spending bill that would meet President Barack Obama’s request for additional funds to pay for the expanded military effort in Afghanistan.
2. Disabled Vets Strain Overburdened VA System “The Department of Veterans Affairs is struggling to cope with tens of thousands of veterans filing for disability benefits. Because there are applicants from two current wars — plus a new wave from the first Gulf War and Vietnam — thousands are now stuck in the clogged pipeline.” Although there are differing estimates of how many, “everyone agrees that way too many vets are waiting way too long to get benefits.
3. Vets lobby Congress for repeal of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ Over a hundred U.S. military veterans gathered Tuesday on Capitol Hill to press Congress for quick repeal of the law banning gays from serving in the military. Gay, lesbian and straight veterans and supporters converged on steps of the U.S. Capitol for a group photograph with Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Connecticut, who is the main sponsor of a bill that would officially repeal the law, known as “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
4. Vets group cites errors reported by VA IG At a conference designed to help veterans service organizations better understand the issues their clients face, Paul Sullivan of Veterans for Common Sense tried to tie it up in a one-page document of new data from the Veterans Affairs Department:
5. Veterans Blast Georgia Bill to Put PTSD Diagnosis on Driver’s Licenses Veterans groups are blasting Georgia lawmakers for passing legislation that would allow a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder to appear on driver’s licenses. The legislation, which awaits Gov. Sonny Purdue’s signature, would permit servicemembers and veterans to request a PTSD denotation, which would appear on their driver’s licenses as a specific health problem, much like poor eyesight.
6. U.S. Justice Department joins probe into stolen Mojave cross U.S. Justice Department officials said Tuesday they are working to find whoever tore down and stole an 8-foot-high cross that stood as a war memorial in Mojave National Preserve and which prompted a lengthy legal battle culminating in a U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing the cross to remain on federal land.
7. Michelle Obama calls for more help for military families. Transcript Mrs. Obama: Thank you. Thank you, everyone. Thank you all so much. (Applause.) Please, thank you. You know I get embarrassed by too much clapping. Thank you. I am thrilled to be here. And I want to start by thanking Mary for that very kind introduction and for her life of service, more than 30 years as an Army spouse, proud mother to six children — you would never know — (laughter) — and all six of whom serve in the Armed Services, and now, your leadership as chair of the National Military Family Association. We are just grateful for your work.
8. Message from Secretary Eric K. Shinseki on National Nurses Week 2010 As we celebrate National Nurses Week 2010, we mark the 80th anniversary of VA nursing. During those 80 years, VA nurses have shaped their profession as leaders, innovators and visionaries; and in doing so, they changed the face of VA health care.
9. Food Allergies Often Misdiagnosed Food allergies are common, especially among children, but it is not clear just how common they are because there is no generally accepted definition for them, a review of past studies finds. Researchers say the lack of an accepted definition and evidence-based guidelines for diagnosing food allergies has hindered efforts to determine their prevalence and evaluate new treatments.
10. Prevention Program Spares Seniors More Falls Elderly individuals who had fallen and then taken part in an intensive program to prevent falls were much less likely to fall again, a new study shows. But proving something works is often a far cry from actually seeing it implemented, one expert noted. “People have been proposing intervention programs like this for a long time,” said S. Jay Olshansky, a professor of public health and senior research scientist at the Center on Aging at the University of Illinois at Chicago. “We know that they work. The question is how much all of this costs,” he added.