Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

From the VA:

1.      Study Led By VA Researcher Warns Of Risk For Early Dialysis. HealthDay (11/9, Reinberg) reports, “Putting people on dialysis early, while their kidneys still have adequate function, may increase the chances that they’ll die in the year after the procedure is started, a new study suggests.” The lead researcher on the study, which is “published online Nov. 8 in Archives of Internal Medicine,” is Dr. Steven J. Rosansky, a “senior research fellow at the Dorn Research Institute” of the William Jennings Bryan Dorn Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Columbia, South Carolina. HealthDay adds, “Doctors and patients need to discuses dialysis, including when it would provide the most benefit…said” Dr. Kirsten L. Johansen of the San Francisco VA Medical Center, “who wrote an editorial that accompanied publication of the study.”

 2.      Survey, VA Doctor Highlight Importance Of Knowing Family’s Medical Health History. According to the AP (11/9), a government survey by the Cleveland Clinic’s Genomic Medicine Institute that compared “which method best uncovered an increased risk of cancer helps confirm the value of what’s called a family health history.” The survey, however, “estimated less than a third of families have one – and time-crunched doctors seldom push their patients to remedy that.” The AP adds, “‘Family history remains the best genetic tool we have, but health care providers are not taking advantage’ of it, says Dr. Maren Scheuner of the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in Los Angeles, who is leading a pilot project to add family cancer histories to…VA’s electronic medical records at two area clinics.”

 3.      Wisconsin VA Secretary Scheduled To Speak At Veterans Day Ceremony. The Madison (WI) Capital Times (11/9, Novak) says Thursday is a “day of remembrance and thanks,” as the “nation honors all who have served in America’s military. Veterans Day ceremonies are planned around the state, including ceremonies at the State Capitol in Madison and the 47th annual parade in Milwaukee, according to a news release from the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. The Veterans Day observance at the Capitol will begin at 10 a.m.,” with Wisconsin Veterans Affairs Secretary Kenneth Black “scheduled to speak.”

 4.      Board: Federal Career Intern Program Being Used To Circumvent Vets’ Preference Statute. In his “Federal Diary” column for the Washington Post (11/9, 605K), Joe Davidson writes that the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) has “sharply undercut a federal hiring program, saying it violates the employment preference Uncle Sam gives to those who have served in uniform.” The decision is a “victory for organized labor, which has long complained that some agencies use the Federal Career Intern Program to circumvent the statutory preference given veterans seeking US government employment.” Davidson adds that Department of Veterans Affairs file clerk, Larry Evans, brought a “case against…VA,” which helped lead the “MSPB to find ‘a violation of appellants’ veterans’ preference rights’ in the operation of the intern program.”

5.      Federal Agencies Turn To Connect-Powered HIEs For Sophisticated Clinical Information Sharing. Government Health IT (11/9, Mosquera) reports, “Federal agencies are forging what some experts call ‘industrial-strength health information exchanges,’ high-level, standards-based HIEs that will provide public- and private-sector healthcare providers the tools necessary for sophisticated clinical information sharing.” A group of 26 health agencies, including MedVirginia, HealthBridge and Regenstrief Institute, “have developed increasingly detailed versions” of Connect powered HIEs, which “are now up and running between the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments.” The Connect program is also being employed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services “to gauge the changes in the health of patients as they move across chronic-care settings, such as from a hospital to a skilled nursing facility and back to the nursing home.”

 6.      Couple Accused Of Defrauding VA. The AP (11/9, Olsen, 363K) reports, “Joe B. Phillips, a 71-year-old Houston lawyer and former VA employee, now stands accused of stealing more than $2 million from at least 28 Texas veterans and hiding those thefts with faked bank statements, padded expenses and even imaginary accounts verified with forged signatures, according to dozens of civil suits and a 2010 federal court indictment.” After noting that Phillip’s “70-year-old wife and legal assistant, Dorothy Phillips, faces identical charges,” the Chronicle adds, “The fraud appears to be the largest ever detected” in Veterans Affairs’ “enormous guardianship program.” The Chronicle notes that a spokesperson for the Houston VA Regional said it is “fully cooperating” with an investigation by the US Attorney’s Office and VA’s Office of Inspector General.

 7.      VA Reps To Speak At Town Hall Event. Near the end of a story on local events for veterans, the Grass Valley (CA) Union (11/8, 16K) reported, “Comfort Keepers is hosting a Veterans Town Hall from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 18, at the Yuba County Board of Supervisors Chambers, 915 8th St., Suite 109, Marysville.” Guest speakers, including “members from Veterans Administration Benefits Division Oakland, VA Health Division Sacramento, National Cemetery Services and California Department of Veteran Services,” will address the topic of “Presumptive Diseases related to Military Service.”

 8.      Conflict Between Medical Marijuana Laws “Largely Resolved” By VA. USA Today (11/9, Dorell, 1.83M) says many “patients with cancer, chronic pain and other maladies who say smoking marijuana helps their condition” are “trapped between state laws that allow medical pot smoking and federal laws that do not.” The US Department of Veterans Affairs, however, has “largely resolved the conflict at its hospitals and pain clinics” by allowing “veterans in states where marijuana is approved for medical use” to “submit documentation showing they have legal access to pot, which means a patient who tests positive will not be denied treatment.”

9.      Vet Center Reps To Present At Conference For Vets And Their Families. According to the Wilkes-Barre (PA) Times-Leader (11/8), Family Service Association of Wyoming Valley will “present a conference, ‘When Families Reunite: Overcoming Trauma after Military Service,’ honoring veterans and their families from 12:30-7:30 p.m. Nov. 17 at Genetti Hotel and Conference Center, East Market Street.” The Times-Leader goes on to say that among those presenting at the conference will be David Ulkowski and Karen Lenchitsky of the Scranton Vet Center.

 10.    VA Expecting More Than 150,000 Vets To Submit Agent Orange Claims In Near Future. In continuing coverage, the Times Of Northwest Indiana (11/8, List, 86K) noted that Vietnam vet Gene Burkat and “many more like” him have “submitted claims and are waiting for a decision” from the US Department of Veterans Affairs, which recently “began distributing disability benefits to veterans exposed to Agent Orange based on an expanded list of health conditions.” The Times went on to say VA “said it expects more than 150,000 veterans to submit Agent Orange claims within the next 12 to 18 months.”