Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

From the VA:

Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

1.      Veterans Courts Operating In Minnesota, California. The Minneapolis Star Tribune (9/28, Brunswick, 319K) reports, “Patterned after similar courts emerging across the country,” a veterans court in Hennepin County is “Minnesota’s first and has brought together parties from the criminal justice system and the Department of Veterans Affairs to focus on the specific needs of veterans.” According to the Star Tribune, veterans courts are a “response to the realization that veterans may benefit from specific interventions and plans, and that their military experiences may be contributing factors for why they are in court.”
     The KALW-FM San Francisco, CA (9/27, Shanafelt) website said a veterans court in San Jose, California, was started “two years ago, to try to make sure the new vets coming back from Afghanistan and Iraq have a better chance of making the transition” home. While critics “of the court argue against giving preferential treatment” to vets, “VA Re-entry and Justice Services coordinator Joel Rosenthal says vet court participants aren’t given priority in VA programs – it’s more that they get extra encouragement to take advantage of them.” The San Francisco Chronicle (9/28, 245K) runs the same story in a blog.

 2.      American Urological Association Concerned About Urotrauma Injuries. The AP (9/28) reports that while “post-traumatic stress disorder and brain injuries are the signature wounds of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, some soldiers are also surviving with serious, debilitating injuries to the genitals or urinary system.” The American Urological Association, which is “concerned that medical personnel may not be properly trained to handle” such urotrauma injuries, “wants a national commission to investigate the injuries, find better treatments and design better body armor to protect against roadside bombs.” According to the AP, US Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) “has introduced a bill in Congress to create a commission.”

 3.      Jindal Administration Accused Of Reneging On Promise About Medal Ceremonies. In a front page story, the Baton Rouge (LA) Advocate (9/28, A1, Millhollon) reports, “Lawmakers accused the Jindal administration Monday of reneging on a promise to allow military veterans to receive a medal by mail rather than in a publicized ceremony” with the governor of Louisiana. The “issue led to a heated exchange between state Veterans Affairs Secretary Lane Carson,” a “member of the governor’s cabinet,” and “legislators at a meeting of the Select Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs.”

 4.      Schwartz Named First Woman President Of State VA Directors Association. In continuing coverage, the Hartford (CT) Courant (9/28, Falcone) reports, “Linda Schwartz, commissioner of the state Department of Veterans Affairs” in Connecticut, “has been named president of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans’ Affairs,” which is “involved in the development, analysis and implementation of state and federal legislation that relates to veterans.” Schwartz is the “first woman and the first person from Connecticut to hold the position in the organization’s 65-year history.”

 5.      Rhode Island AG Candidate Planning To Focus On Vets’ Issues. The Providence (RI) Journal (9/28, Mulvaney) reports, “Peter F. Kilmartin, the Democrat running for attorney general” of Rhode Island, “says he will focus on veterans’ issues, if elected. Kilmartin said in a recent announcement that he would assign ‘a deputy attorney general for veterans’ affairs advocacy.’ The deputy’s responsibilities would include protecting veterans and reservists against housing and employment discrimination; helping veterans address credit and foreclosure issues; and coordinating with other governmental and private agencies to maximize veterans’ benefits.”

 6.      New Jersey To Develop Retained Asset Account Rules. In continuing coverage, National Underwriter Life And Health Insurance News (9/28, Bell) magazine reports, “The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance says it will be developing retained asset account (RAA) rules” that will focus on disclosure statements. Thomas Considine, the “New Jersey banking and insurance commissioner, has talked about the upcoming RAA rules in a preamble to Order Number A10-119, which relates to RAAs used by life insurers.” After noting that an RAA is a “method of paying life insurance benefits through a vehicle that resembles a checking account rather than sending the beneficiary a check for the whole amount,” the magazine says the US Department of Veterans Affairs “recently worked with Prudential to come up with new guidelines for use of RAAs.”

 7.      Wisconsin VA To Host Women Veterans Conference. The Fon Du Lac (WI) Reporter (9/28, 14K) reports, “Women veterans from all branches of service are invited to attend” the “fourth annual Wisconsin Women Veterans Conference,” which is scheduled to run from October 22nd to October 24th. The “statewide conference, hosted by the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs,” will include lectures on post-traumatic stress disorder, “suicide prevention and changes to women’s health care through” the US VA.

 8.      GAO Finds Inconsistencies In VA Efforts To Procure Medical Supplies. The Federal News Radio (9/27, Kubota) website said that while medical centers “run by Veterans Affairs are expected to follow a certain set of rules when procuring expendable and reusable medical supplies so that equipment is easily tracked and maintained,” a recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) “found inconsistencies” in this area. Auditors “say that resulted in unnecessary equipment purchases and put patients at risk of infectious diseases.” Dr. Debra Draper, a director of GAO’s healthcare team, “said…VA is developing a new inventory management system ‘that officials hope will help improve their ability to track information about expendable medical supplies and reusable medical equipment across the VA medical centers.'”

9.      VHA Developing Programs To Improve Abnormal Lab Result Follow-Ups. In its “The Informed Patient” column, the Wall Street Journal (9/28, D1, Landro, 2.09M) notes that medical insurers and healthcare providers are analyzing malpractice cases in order to develop programs that will avert future mistakes. According to the Journal, studies by the Department of Veterans Affairs have found that doctors are often overwhelmed by test result alerts and may not follow up on them. The Journal adds, however, that the Veterans Health Administration, is developing programs to help doctors more closely follow up on abnormal lab results.

 10.    VA Doctor Co-Authors Study On Wider Use Of Statins. Science Daily (9/28) reports, “A new analysis suggests that broader statin use among adult patients may be a cost-effective way to prevent heart attack and stroke.” The study, “published online Sept. 27 in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association,” was co-authored by Dr. Douglas Owens, an “investigator at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System.”