What’s Inside Today’s Local News for Veterans
1. Amid Loud Opposition, Obama Considering Private Insurance For Veterans.
2. Obama, Shinseki Celebrate VA Anniversary.
3. Shinseki Concerned About Last-Minute Changes To New GI Bill.
4. Shinseki: VA Will Monitor Burn-Pit Exposure Data.
5. VA Clinic In Florida Using MRI For First Time.
6. Sexual Assault Cases Up In US Military.
7. Vets Continue March For New VA Hospital In Texas.
8. VA Hospital In Arkansas To Expand.
9. GAO: VA, DOD Making Progress But Information-Sharing Challenges Remain.
10. Cheerios Boxes Feature Disabled Vet.
1. Amid Loud Opposition, Obama Considering Private Insurance For Veterans. In continuing coverage, McClatchy (3/17) reported, "The Obama administration is considering making veterans use private insurance to pay for treatment of combat and service-related injuries," but that "would be an about-face on what veterans believe is a longstanding pledge by the government to pay for health care costs that result from their military service." However, in a meeting at the White House on Monday, "veterans groups apparently failed to persuade President Barack Obama to take the plan off the table." Few "details about the plan have been available and a VA spokesman did not provide additional information," but the "reaction on Capitol Hill to the idea has been swift and harsh." Lawmakers indicated during a recent hearing of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee that they will not support it after VA Secretary Eric Shinseki "acknowledged that the VA’s proposed budget for next year included the plan."
The Washington Post (3/18, A4, Tyson) says the proposal "has prompted veterans groups to condemn the idea as unethical and powerful lawmakers on Capitol Hill to promise their opposition. Nevertheless, the White House confirmed" Tuesday "that the idea remains under consideration, and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and leaders of veterans groups are scheduled to meet" Thursday "to discuss it further." Lawmakers, however, "explicitly ruled out the proposal" Tuesday "in budget recommendations from the Senate and House veterans’ affairs committees." The Los Angeles Times (3/18) publishes a shortened version of this story.
In a follow-up to its earlier story, McClatchy (3/18, Goldstein) reports, "Angry advocates for veterans will return to the White House on Thursday to try to talk the Obama administration" out of making "veterans use private insurance to pay for treatment of combat injuries and other service-related health problems. The controversial plan has ignited a firestorm in the veterans community, and a meeting Monday with President Barack Obama failed to tamp it down. The same veterans groups that met with Obama have been asked to go back to meet" with Emanuel "for more discussions. Several veterans advocates suggested that the White House was unprepared for the backlash to its plan from veterans and their supporters on Capitol Hill and might be looking for a graceful exit."
The Washington Times (3/18, Lengell) reports, "The administration publicly has been reticent on the issue. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs did not dispute that the plan was floated, but said Tuesday that no decisions have been made." Gibbs "said Mr. Obama ‘understands any concerns’ the veterans groups have but also told them that his budget increases overall spending for veterans by 11 percent."
The Hill (3/18, Tiron) says Emanuel "is expected to meet with veterans groups this week amid consternation" over the private insurance plan. The White House "appears to have little political capital on this issue" because the "veterans community is united against the plan and senior Democrats in the Senate and House have voiced their opposition." In fact, US Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) "told VA Secretary Eric Shinseki last week that if such a plan were to come up on Capitol Hill, it would be ‘dead on arrival.’"
CQ (3/18, Johnson) reports, "Veterans’ groups are scheduled to meet again Thursday with President Obama to lobby against his plan," which "has been met with stiff resistance on Capitol Hill." CQ says the "proposed provision could be a bargaining chip to get the groups to agree to budget cuts. Several veterans’ group leaders said Obama told them" earlier this week that "he would listen to any alternative proposal as
long as it saved about $540 million." But when asked "whether the groups were drafting an alternative plan, Joseph A. Violante, the legislative director of Disabled American Veterans, said it was not his or any other group’s place to do so."
On its website, CNN (3/17, Levine) reported, "Leaders of the country’s most prominent veterans groups met Monday…with Obama," Shinseki, Emanuel, "and Steven Kosiak, the director in charge of defense spending for the Office of Management and Budget. Some of the veterans groups were caught off guard when the president said the administration is still thinking about the idea as a way of generating" savings for the VA. The groups "and some members of Congress have been very vocal in opposing" that idea. The message, "according to some of the people in the room, was that if the groups do not like this idea, they need to come back with another way of saving or raising revenue for the VA." But Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Daniel Akaka (D-HI) "vowed Tuesday that the plan would never gain the panel’s approval."
The Fox News (3/17) website said Obama’s plan "has infuriated veterans groups who say the government is morally obligated to pay for service-related medical care. Calling it a ‘desperate search for money at any cost,’ Craig Roberts, media relations manager for the American Legion, told FOXNews.com on Tuesday that the president will ‘wish away so much political capital on this issue’ if he continues to insist on private coverage for service-related injuries." Roberts "said that 11 veterans service organizations were told to come up with another plan if they didn’t like this one." Roberts said, "What we’ve been tasked with now is to raise this money through alternative means and we’re supposed to have a conference call in two or three days … with Rahm Emanuel. So the implication was … you guys come up with a better idea or this is what’s going to happen,’ Roberts said." But White House spokesman Robert Gibbs "said Tuesday that no plans have been enumerated yet about veterans health care."
The Boston Globe’s (3/17, Rhee) "Political Intelligence" blog, meanwhile, reported, "The administration says that the private insurers are getting a free ride, but vets groups say the change could tap out private insurance benefits that vets’ families also need. ‘It became apparent during our discussion today that the President intends to move forward with this unreasonable plan,’ Commander David K. Rehbein of the American Legion said in a statement after" Monday’s White House meeting. The Globe added, "In his proposed budget, Obama has called for adding $25 billion to the VA budget over five years to help expand healthcare to serve an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013 and fund a new GI bill. The Vietnam Veterans of America praised Obama’s budget, but also blasted the insurance proposal."
Wisconsin Veterans Leaders Also Upset About Plan. The New Richmond (WI) News (3/17, Bautch) reported, "State veterans leaders are upset with an Obama administration budget proposal that would charge some veterans for their service-connected injuries" at Veterans Affairs hospitals. Steve Lawrence, adjutant of the Wisconsin Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), stated, "I think it is unconscionable that the government would even propose such a thing." Lawrence "says the VFW is trying to get the word out to their members in Wisconsin and that they have contacted members of the Wisconsin Congressional delegation about the proposal. Veterans worry that if the proposal were enacted it would increase the cost of out-of-pocket premiums and make it hard for vets and their families to get private insurance."
Legion Commander Criticizes Plan. In a related Wall Street Journal (3/18) op-ed, American Legion Commander David K. Rehbein says the proposal "would not only be unfair," it "would have an adverse impact on service-connected disabled veterans and their families. Depending on the severity of the medical conditions involved, maximum insurance coverage limits could be reached through treatment of the veteran’s condition alone," which "would leave the rest of the family without health-care benefits." But perhaps "nobody would be hit harder by the…proposal than the thousands of veterans who own small businesses. Not only will their private insurance premiums be drastically" elevated, "many will be forced to cut staff as a result." Meanwhile, other businesses may avoid hiring veterans "for fear of the impact they would have on insurance rates."
More Commentary. In his syndicated GateHouse News Service (3/18) column, Bruce Coulter asked, "Hey, G.I., is that a gun in your pocket, or is it just Obama and company reaching for your insurance card?" As "reported by CNN last week," VA Secretary Eric Shinseki "confirmed the Obama administration is considering a plan to make veterans pay for treatment of service-related injuries with private insurance. I have two words for this proposal, only one of which I can use: bull."
2. Obama, Shinseki Celebrate VA Anniversary. In continuing coverage, Ed O’Keefe noted in his "Federal Eye" blog for the Washington Post (3/17) that "President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Biden have made several visits to agencies and departments," including Veterans Affairs, where the President helped celebrate "20 years since the VA’s ascension to the Cabinet with Secretary Shinseki on March 16." O’Keefe also noted this story in an earlier "Federal Eye" post (3/17), which published part of a Washington Post (3/17, A6, Rucker) story that ran in Tuesday’s paper.
In Letter, Shinseki Says VA Has "Solemn Responsibility." In the second item for her Clarksville (TN) Leaf Chronicle (3/18) column, Stacey Hopwood writes, "This week I…wanted to share some excerpts from an open letter written by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki to all veterans." In his message, when can be "read…in its entirety at www.va.gov," Shinseki says the VA "has a solemn responsibility to all of you, today and in the future, as more veterans join our ranks and enroll to secure the benefits and services they have earned." The Secretary continues, "I look forward to working together with all VA employees to transform our department into an organization that reflects the change and commitment our country expects and our veterans deserve." Hopwood adds, "Encouraging words from the top. Let’s hope he follows through."
3. Shinseki Concerned About Last-Minute Changes To New GI Bill. The Air Force Times (3/18, Maze) reports, "Of the many challenges facing Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, one of the most urgent may be stopping Congress from engaging in last-minute tinkering with the Post-9/11 GI Bill in a way that could scuttle the Aug. 1 launch of the sweeping new benefit. Powerful lawmakers, including" US Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, "are being pressed by state education officials to revise the plan to reimburse full tuition plus fees at public colleges and universities." But any "changes along the lines of what Filner is talking about, Shinseki said, would put current plans for launching the program at risk." Filner, however, "said he recognizes that any change would have to be made quickly if it is to take effect this year."
4. Shinseki: VA Will Monitor Burn-Pit Exposure Data. The Air Force Times (3/18) reports, "The Veterans Affairs Department is gathering data to monitor potential health problems among troops who say they were made ill by exposure to smoke from open-air burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said in a March 13 letter to Congress. Responding to a letter sent in early February" by US Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY) "and several other House lawmakers, Shinseki said data on exposure to burning trash and waste is already a part of a large, ongoing population-based study comparing the health of 30,000 veterans deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with the health of 30,000 non-deployed veterans." Shinseki "also said VA will work with the Defense Department to obtain ‘all relevant exposure data’" on Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.
5. VA Clinic In Florida Using MRI For First Time. On its website, WJHG-TV Panama City, FL (3/18) said the Joint Ambulatory Care Center (JACC) , a "Community Based Outpatient Clinic within" the Veterans Affairs Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System, now has its own MRI. Dr. Thomas Brown, the clinic’s chief medical officer, noted that use of the MRI, which increases the facility’s capability, "falls directly in line with VA Secretary Eric Shinseki’s vision of transforming VA into an organization that is people-centric, results-driven and forward-looking."
6. Some Disabled Vets To Receive $250. On its website, KNDU-TV Yakima, WA (3/17) reported, "As part of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, some disabled veterans will be getting a one-time $250 check in the mail." The "Federal Veterans Affairs Department says disabled veterans who receive compensation and pension benefits will automatically receive the payment." According to the state VA, "payments should show up sometime around June."
7. Vets Continue March For New VA Hospital In Texas. In continuing coverage, the KIII-TV Corpus Christi, TX (3/17, De La Rosa) website reported, "If you were in the Jim Wells County area" Tuesday, you "probably noticed dozens of military veterans hitting the streets marching towards San Antonio. Their goal? To get" a Veterans Affairs hospital built in the Rio Grande Valley. The veterans "started marching last Saturday from Edinburg" and they "hope to reach San Antonio by Friday." The veterans "said they plan to go" to Washington, DC, "next week to lobby" Congress for a hospital.
8. VA Hospital In Arkansas To Expand. Arkansas’ Weekly Vista (3/18, Lookadoo) reports, "Groundbreaking took place Friday on a planned 146,000 square-foot clinical addition and renovation to the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center at 1100 N. College Ave. Within a decade, new patients have more than tripled at the VA Medical Center Fayetteville and its outpatient clinics, and the expansion is needed, said Doris Cassidy, associate director, Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks," US Department of Veterans Affairs.
9. GAO: VA, DOD Making Progress But Information-Sharing Challenges Remain. In continuing coverage, Government Computer News (3/14) reported, "The nation’s two largest health care providers, the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments, have been working for more than a decade to develop interoperable systems for sharing data on patients, but they still have a long way to go to achieve that goal, the Government Accountability Office told" the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies last Thursday. The "departments have developed an interface between separate data repositories and are using it to share pharmacy and drug-allergy data on more than 27,000 shared patients," according to Valerie C. Melvin, GAO director of Information Management and Human Capital Issues, but "legacy systems at DOD and slowly emerging national standards for interoperability complicate the sharing process."
10. Cheerios Boxes Feature Disabled Vet. In continuing coverage, the Mobile (AL) Press-Register (3/17, Hayes) said disabled veteran "Patrick Peterson – a three-time gold medal winner in weightlifting and wheel chair racing – is featured on 3 million boxes of Cheerios cereal. General Mills, however, got Peterson’s hometown wrong," listing "it as Fairhope, Alaska, not Alabama." But the "mild-mannered Peterson," who won three gold medals at the 2008 National Veterans Wheelchair Games "is not discouraged easily," saying, "For me to call and fuss and have them take me completely off," was not necessary. The AP (3/17), which published a similar story, noted that the cereal boxes "will be sold at military commissaries, canteens" and Veterans Affairs hospitals.
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