Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s New

From the VA:

Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s New

1.      During Pearl Harbor Event, Shinseki Praises WWII Vets. The AP (9/3, McAvoy) notes that Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki “delivered the keynote address” during a Thursday ceremony to mark the “65th anniversary of the end” World War II. While delivered his speech at the USS Missouri, a WWII battleship that is “now a museum moored in Pearl Harbor,” Shinseki “hailed the sacrifices of those who fought on Pacific atolls, European forests and manned supply depots and refueling stations.” The AP notes that US Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), a WWII vet “who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism in Italy,” also spoke at Thursday’s event, as did the KHON-TV Honolulu, HI (9/2, Mangieri) website, called Shinseki and Inouye two of “Hawaii’s most distinguished soldiers-turned-statesmen.” The fifth “Briefing” item for the St. Paul (MN) Pioneer-Press (9/3) publishes a similar story to the one run by the AP. KGMB-TV Honolulu, HI (9/2, 6:08 p.m. HT) also aired a report on this story.

2.      Lawmakers Praise VA For Expanding Agent Orange Benefits. In continuing coverage, the Westchester (NY) Journal News (9/3, Easley) notes that the US Department of Veterans Affairs “has added three new diseases to the list of conditions considered to be associated with Agent Orange, a herbicide widely used during the Vietnam War that is believed to have caused severe health effects in those exposed to it. The change will allow Vietnam War veterans suffering from Parkinson’s disease, chronic b-cell leukemia and ischemic heart disease to claim benefits and health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, said” US Rep. John Hall (D-NY) “at a press conference to announce the new regulations. ‘This is a huge step,’ said Hall,” chairman of the Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance, who added, “Those who had feet on the ground in Vietnam are now covered.” The Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record (9/3, Randall, 63K), meanwhile, notes that Hall “said adding these three diseases could open the door to benefits for up to 150,000 veterans.”
     A Staten Island (NY) Advance (9/1) ran a story mainly focused on US Rep. Michael McMahon (D-NY) expressing “optimism” about this week’s peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The Advance added, however, that “on the veterans’ front, McMahon hailed this week’s announcement by US Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki to expand the medical conditions allowable for Vietnam veterans to receive health care and disability payments for exposure to the herbicide Agent Orange.”
     Age Adjustment Impacting Cost Estimate For New Benefits. The syndicated “Military Update” column, appearing in the New Bern (NC) Sun Journal (9/3, Philpott, 16K), says VA has “revealed that the price tag for adding…diseases to its Agent Orange presumptive list could be at least 50 percent higher, over the next 10 years, than the $42.2 billion” estimate it has been using, due to an age adjustment issue raised by US Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. The “higher cost projection is sure to be raised at a Sept. 23 hearing” of Akaka’s panel, which will “examine…whether a finding by scientists of ‘limited or suggestive association’ between these diseases and herbicide exposure is sufficient evidence to award disability compensation to any ailing Vietnam veteran. To stop payments,” a resolution passed by Congress would have to be signed by President Obama, whose “own Office of Management and Budget spent the past two months studying the VA rule before finally approving it,” which, according to the column, means VA officials are “preparing to make payments.”
     Blue Water Vet Attempting To Secure Agent Orange Benefits For His Former Shipmates. The WCMH-TV Columbus, OH (9/2, Bowersock) website said, “After years of denying…claims” from Vietnam vets exposed to Agent Orange, the Federal government is “stepping forward and taking care of…ill troops,” announcing a new rule this week that will provide benefits to more such vets. The “blue water battle,” however, is a “growing issue for sailors” like Dennis Agin, an Ohio vet who “was on the USS. Newport News, a cruiser” in the Gulf of Tonkin, “from 1967 through 1969.” After stating that blue water vets have been “denied Agent Orange claims because they were on ships, not on land and actually” in Vietnam, even “though they showered in or drank water that may have contained the defoliant,” WCMH pointed out that Agin “spends his days” making phone calls and filling out paperwork to help his former shipmates “get the benefits they feel they’ve earned.”
     JunkScience.com Publisher, Rep. Hall Differ On Simpson Comments. In an op-ed for “Congress,” a blog for The Hill (9/3, 21K), Steve Milloy, who “publishes JunkScience.com and is the author of ‘Green Hell: How Environmentalists Plan to Control Your Life and What You Can Do to Stop Them,'” says he agrees with “White House fiscal commission member Sen. Alan Simpson,” who is “drawing fire from veterans groups for objecting to the Obama administration decision to expand Agent Orange benefits to Vietnam vets.” According to Milloy, there “really is no firm science indicating that any vet has ever suffered from Agent Orange exposure; yet we have historically given vets the benefit of the doubt because we honor their service.” Milloy argues that a “cash-strapped government can no longer afford to be so generous without good reason.”
     But in a separate op-ed “Congress,” the same blog for The Hill (9/3, 21K), Rep. Hall says VA’s recent “announcement that it is expanding eligibility for disability compensation to veterans suffering from three diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange” corrects a “long running injustice.” Halls goes on to say that if Simpson “thinks the way to balance the budget is to cut health care benefits for disabled veterans whose diseases were caused by exposure to toxic chemical during service they were drafted into, then I call for President Obama to replace Mr. Simpson” on the President’s deficit reduction panel “with someone better capable to serve…the nation.”
     The Hendersonville (NC) Times-News (9/2, 15K), however, said in an editorial, that “veterans who happened to be in Vietnam when Agent Orange was used and now suffer from common ailments that have not been shown to be linked to Agent Orange should not get the same level of support” as those who “were hurt fighting for our nation.” And, according to the Times-News, “such veterans are receiving disability checks.”

3.      State Bar Of Texas Assisting Vets. The San Antonio (TX) Express-News (9/3, Huddleston) reports, “Despite trailing other cities in forming a veterans court, San Antonio is at the forefront in providing free legal services to low-income veterans. As officials prepare today to announce plans for a new veterans court in Bexar County, the statewide ‘Texas Lawyers for Texas Veterans’ legal services program is already thriving in San Antonio, State Bar of Texas president Terry Tottenham said. Last month, the state bar’s program,” which has “helped veterans with disability benefits claims,” was “honored by the Texas Veterans Commission for providing pro bono representation, mostly on civil issues, with a mix of minor criminal offenses and outstanding warrants.”

4.      Alabama Governor: Grant Will Allow Vets Home Construction To Begin This Year. In continuing coverage, the St. Clair (AL) Times (9/3, Heath) says a “packed house of veterans, local leadership and state officials dignitaries visited Jefferson State Community College’s Pell City campus Wednesday to hear” Alabama Gov. Bob Riley “announce a $15 million grant that will allow construction to begin this year on a Veterans Affairs nursing home.” Estimated “cost for the facility,” which will be built on the college’s campus, is “$50 million, all told. According to numbers from the governor’s office, the federal government will kick in 65 percent, $33 million, through…VA in 2011. The remaining $17 million will come from the state.”
     According to the Montgomery (AL) Advertiser (9/2, Rowell, 37K), opening a fourth state veterans home “has been a priority for the Alabama” VA “for years, and the project now is back on schedule thanks to a $15 million grant” from the Federal. The grant “was announced Wednesday in Pell City, where the home will be located.” The facility “will be…the largest” veterans home “in the state and one of the first in the country to implement the new neighborhood concept” developed by the Federal VA.
     Paper Says Facility Will Benefit “Entire Central Alabama Region.” An editorial in the Talladega (AL) Daily Home (9/2, 10K) said the home will allow the “entire central Alabama region” to “take pride in providing the highest quality care for the men and women who have provided for our security through service in the military.”

5.      Iowa Mowing Companies Appeal VA Contract Decision. The WHO-TV Des Moines, IA (9/2, Towne) website noted that last week, the Veterans Affairs Central Iowa Health Care System “announced the winning bid for grounds maintenance in Knoxville.” Now, however, Iowa moving companies are appealing VA’s decision, claiming that when the agency selected Crossroads Hall, it chose a company that did not submit the lowest bid and does not even specialize in ground maintenance. The website said Dave Lovell, “owner of Dave & the Boys mowing service,” has “filed a protest with…VA.” KDSM-TV Des Moines, IA (9/2, 9:03 p.m. CT) aired a similar report, as did KCCI-TV Des Moines, IA (9/2, 6:04 p.m. CT), which broadcast, “The VA Central Iowa Health Care System says since a protest has been filed, the case will now go to litigation.”

6.      Missouri State Veterans Cemetery To Be Dedicated On Monday. The Waynesville (MO) Daily Guide (9/3, 2K) reports, “The dedication ceremony for the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery at Fort Leonard Wood will be 1 p.m. Monday Sept. 13, 2010.” Guest “speakers include” US Rep. Ike Skelton (D-MO) and “Veterans Affairs Cemetery Grants Service Director Frank Salvas.” Construction of the cemetery “was funded by a $ 7.5 million federal grant from the Department of Veterans Affairs.”

7.      VA Drops In Employees’ Rankings Of Best Places To Work. In a story headlined, “VA, SEC Drop In Employees’ Rankings Of Best Places To Work,” the Federal Times (9/2, Losey, 40K) reports, “The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Government Accountability Office once again top the list of Best Places to Work in the federal government, according to a new report” from the Partnership for Public Service. Some agencies, however, such as the Veterans Affairs Department, “saw steep drops in their rankings from the Partnership for Public Service’s previous study in 2009.” After noting that VA “dropped from 12th among large agencies to 21st,”the Federal Times points out that VA spokeswoman Jo Schuda “said the department believes significant operational changes – such as enacting the Post-9/11 GI Bill and Secretary Eric Shinseki’s push to reduce the claims backlog – have stressed employees and contributed to its ranking decline,” although she emphasized that such “change has to happen” if VA is “going to be able to meet” its “significant challenges.”

8.      Duckworth, Isakson Tour Norwood VAMC. In a front page story, the Fort Gordon (GA) Signal (9/3, A1, Brackett) notes that on Monday, Tammy Duckworth, the “Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs for the Department of Veterans Affairs,” toured the Charlie Norwood Veterans Affairs Medical Center with US Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA), who said, “What’s happening” between the Norwood VAMC and the Eisenhower Army Medical Center at Fort Gordon is a “template for others to follow.” After noting that Isakson “first told Duckworth about the two hospitals and the partnership between Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs not long after her appointment” to VA, the Signal says that at a luncheon held Monday at the Norwood VAMC, Duckworth “wanted to know what…VA was doing right so it could be duplicated” in other places and what it was doing wrong. At the same luncheon, Duckworth “apologized for making family members cry” by getting them to talk about how well they have been treated while seeking care for their injured loved ones.

 9.      Rapid Response Team Sharply Reduces Rate Of Cardiac Arrests At VA Hospital. HealthDay (9/3) reports, “Having a rapid response team manage hospital patients whose condition is rapidly deteriorating sharply reduced the rate of cardiac arrests at a US hospital, a new study found.” Researchers working on the study, which “appears in the September issue of the journal Anesthesia & Analgesia,” looked at a “rapid response team, known as the eTeam, created” at the Veterans Affairs hospital “in Palo Alto, Calif., in 2005.” HealthDay adds, “‘Our results suggest that further reductions in morbidity can be realized by expansion of rapid response systems throughout the Veterans Affairs network,’ wrote Dr. Geoffrey K. Lighthall of the VA Medical Center in Palo Alto in a journal news release.”

10.    VA, CMS Kick Off Personal Health Records Projects. NextGov (9/2, Brewin) says the Veterans Affairs Department and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services(CMS) “kicked off projects this week that could lead to the creation of personal health records for almost a third” of the US population. On August 29th, VA “posted on the MyHealtheVet website” what it “labeled the…Blue Button feature,” which, according to NextGov, “allows veterans to download personal information such as blood pressure, weight, heart rate, emergency contact information, lab results, and family and military medical histories to a personal health record.” NextGov, which says CMS “plans to post a similar button that would allow Medicare and Medicaid patients to download personal medical information,” adds, “CMS and VA…are working together to improve service to beneficiaries.”
     The “Veteran Veritas” blog for the Tucson (AZ) Citizen (9/3, Bewer) also covers this story, as did Federal Computer Week (9/2, Lipowicz, 90K), which said VA and CMS are “scheduled to officially launch blue-button programs in early October. The programs were developed in collaboration with the Defense Department and the Markle Foundation’s Consumer Engagement Workgroup,” which was “one of 46 organizations that asked the Obama administration to include the download capabilities as a requirement for provider-operated and personal electronic health record systems.”
     HealthLeaders Media (9/3, Simmons) notes that the “idea of a blue button was given some credence in a speech to military veterans last month by President Obama. In his talk,” Obama “said that for the first time ever, veterans will be able to go to the Department of Veterans Affairs website, ‘click a simple blue button, and download or print your personal health records so you have them when you need them, and can share them with your doctors outside of the VA.'”
     Health Data Management (9/3, Goedert) says a “new policy paper from the New York-based Markle Foundation, recommends a number of privacy and security practices that the federal agencies and other holders of patient information should take when offering similar Blue Button services.” Forty-six “industry stakeholder organizations representing consumers, providers, insurers, vendors and employers have endorsed the recommendations.”