Tag: Veterans Benefits

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Atascadero Lake, CaliforniaTampa, Florida, Brewton, Alabama, Deptford, New Jersey, Austin, Texas, Asheville, North Carolina, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Plainville, Connecticut, and San Diego, California.

Secretary Shinseki Addresses Veteran Homelessness On Thursday, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan appeared before the U.S. Senate to talk about Veteran homelessness. Secretary Shinseki also addressed the issue recently in this short video.

From The VA American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was signed into law by President Obama on February 17th, 2009. ...

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Tehachapi, California, Green Bay, Wisconsin, Oak Lawn, Illinois, North Canton, Ohio, Knoxville, Tennessee, Rocky Hill, Connecticut, Winston Salem, North Carolina, Riverside, California, and Virginia Beach, Virginia.

At a sun-splashed commencement ceremony on the University Green before a crowd of more than 10,000, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki told the largest and most diverse graduating class in the history of the University of Vermont that what the world needs most is for them to make caring for others a personal devotion on a level that goes well beyond the traditional definition of volunteerism.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Ashland, Nebraska, Saratoga Springs, New York, Spokane, Washington, Broken Bow, Nebraska, Fort Wayne, Indiana, MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, Sacramento, California, Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Holmes, Pennsylvania.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Boulder, Colorado, Lillington, North Carolina, Cold Spring, Minnesota, Laconia, New Hampshire, Rancho, Cucamonga, California, Jacksonville, Florida, Pharr, Texas, Billings, Montana, Martinsburg, and West Virginia.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Oceanside, California, Omaha, Nebraska, Parkersburg, Iowa, Redding, California, Washiongton, DC, Dover, Wisconsin, Somers Point, New Jersey, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Medford, Oregon.

Did you know “old is the new green”? Re-using historic buildings is a sustainable practice – in fact, it’s the ultimate in recycling. As good stewards of its resources, both man-made and natural, the Office of Asset Enterprise Management has successfully “recycled” a number of historic buildings the VA no longer needs. Through Enhanced Use Leases (EUL), VA transfers underutilized space and maintenance responsibilities to public or private-sector entities, saving both money and energy.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Jackson, Mississippi, El Paso, Texas, Bayonne, New Jersey, Roanoke, Virginia, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Emmanok, Alaska, Arlington, Texas, Trenton, New Jersey, and Racine, Wisconsin.

It looks like U.S. Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) got some pretty speedy action from the Veterans Administration in response to a letter he sent yesterday questioning the continued listing of the nonprofit U.S. Navy Veterans Association in an online directory maintained by the agency of Veterans Service Organizations.

Springfield, Missouri, Shreveport, Louisiana, Seattle, Washington, Kenmore, New York, Council Bluffs, Iowa, San Bernardino, California, Wrightstown, New Jersey, Hartford, Connecticut, Missoula, Montana, and San Francisco, California.

VA’s 2010 VA Energy Champion is Rick Hart, energy manager for the VA North Texas Health Care System based in Dallas, Texas. Rick leads an energy management team that has significantly reduced VA’s energy intensity, environmental impact, system vulnerability, and annual energy costs.

As Memorial Day approaches, thousands will make the pilgrimage to pay honor to loved ones lost to war. Some do not have to travel far. Others will make it an honorable effort to visit many cemeteries that bear the names and are home to our fallen military men and women.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Bellevue, Nebraska, Portland, Oregon, New York City, New York, Green, Ohio, Tyler, Texas, Chicago, Illinois, Bridgeport, Connecticut, Oakland, California, Newton, Massachusetts, Green, Ohio, and Madison, Wisconsin.

VA was ranked as one of the top five of 30 agencies responding in the 2010 DiversityInc Top Federal Agencies for Diversity! VA ranked second among agencies with more than 100,000 employees. The results were unveiled March 10 at a two-day event in Washington, DC by DiversityInc, recognized as the leading publication on diversity and business. This is the second year that Federal agencies were asked to participate and the first time VA applied. DiversityInc’s Federal-agency survey was sent to more than 500 agencies and focused on four key areas: Leadership Commitment, Human Capital, Communications and Supplier Diversity.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Fresno, California, Gadsden, Alabama, Trenton, New Jersey, Richmond, Virginia, Charlotte, North Carolina, Allouez, Wisconsin, Hartford, Connecticut, Bremerton, Washington, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Tulsa, Oklahoma.

This past week, Secretary Shinseki spoke to National Public Radio about the obligation VA has to Veterans. He touched on topics ranging from wait times for claims to the GI Bill.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Corinth, New York, Nipton, California, Manville, New Jersey, Seattle, Washington, Dayton, Ohio, Taunton, Massachusetts, Dearborn, Michigan, Brownsville, Texas, Burns, Oregon, and Meridian, Idaho.

In order to be in the Army Luther had to pass the various medical and psychological examinations, so his condition couldn’t possibly be pre-existing. He was kept in an isolation chamber for one month, where he was treated worse than a prisoner, until he agreed to sign a pre-existing PD discharge. The Army’s officials found a way to get away with misdiagnosing him and he was denied treatment for his disabilities. The Army’s Chapter 5-13 says that any soldier with pre-existing PD should be discharged from the army with no medical benefits.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Greeley, Colorado, Salisbury, Maryland, Norman, Oklahoma, Topeka Kansas, Fort Wayne, Indiana, St Louis, Missouri, Anchorage, Alaska, Edinburg, Texas, and Prescott, Arizona.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Chico, California, Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Rector, Arkansas, Stockton, California, Portland, North Dakota, Danville, North Carolina, Billings, Montana, San Jose, California, and Eugene, Oregon.

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy designated May 15 as Peace Officers' Memorial Day, and the week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. On behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs I proudly recognize and thank the men and women of the VA Police force who stand firm as the first line of our protection at VA facilities, working to insure the safety and security of each of us – employee, Veteran and visitor-- and make it possible for us to carry out our mission at every facility and office throughout our Department.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Barre, Vermont, Alexandria, Louisiana, Anchorage, Alaska, Little Rock, Arkansas, Tampa, Florida, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Poughkeepsie, New York, Lincoln, Nebraska, and Lindale, Texas.

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.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Gadsden, Alabama, Austin, Texas, San Diego, California, York, Pennsylvania, Atlanta, Georgia, Boyne City, Michigan, Billings, Montana, Dade City, Florida, and Charlevoix, Michigan.

VA’s “Top Cop” for 2010 leads a police force of 44 officers who protect the safety of employees, Veterans and visitors at facilities of the VA Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System. Chief of Police Dennis Moore, based at the Omaha VA Medical Center, received the VA Police Services “Chief of the Year” award at the Police Services annual awards banquet last month.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Fernley, Nevada, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Amarillo, Texas, Fresno, California, Deland, Florida, Asheville, North Carolina, East Brunswick, New Jersey, Cheyenne, Wyoming, and San Jose, California.

More than 1,700 historic properties under the VA’s stewardship are a tangible connection between today’s heroes and the men and women of past generations who served our country. During the midst of the Civil War in 1862, Congress authorized President Abraham Lincoln to purchase land to be used as national cemeteries "for soldiers who shall have died in the service of the country."

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Corvallis, Oregon, Youngstown, Ohio, Arlington, Virginia, Oceanside, California, Port Charlotte, Florida, Morristown, New York, Eugene, Oregon, Danbury, Connecticut, North Platte, Nebraska, and Tampa, Florida.

A team of exceptional athletes, many of whom are wounded Iraq and Afghanistan veterans representing all military branches, will depart from the Golden Gate Bridge on Saturday, May 22 for World T.E.A.M. Sports’ inaugural bike trek across America called Sea to Shining Sea. The goal of Sea to Shining Sea is to honor the courage of our service men and women, recognize the strength of the American spirit and challenge perceptions of how we view athletes. The ride will conclude in Virginia Beach on July 24.

Shell shock, battle fatigue, operational exhaustion, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder are all reiterations of the same condition which has been scientifically recognized since World War I. The issue itself may not be new, but we are only now realizing the extent of its influence. A recent explosion of such cases has many worried that not enough resources exist to help the returning heroes.

In this centennial year of her death, nurses around the world recognize Florence nightingale as the founder of modern nursing and as a visionary who emphasized that nursing practice should be measured by outcomes through evidence-based practice and that nurses should be “educated,” not “trained.”

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Camden, New Jersey, Louisville, Kentucky, Sacramento, California, Anchorage, Alaska, Kittery, Maine, Salt Lake City, Utah, Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Gilmer, Texas, Roanoke, Virginia, and Urbana, Illinois.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Amarillo, Texas, Cincinnati, Ohio, Hagerstown, Maryland, Rockford, Illinois, Durant, Oklahoma, Lakeland, Florida, Panama City, Florida, Dayton, Ohio, Kankakee, Illinois, and Lebanon, Oregon.

Sixty-five years after the May 8, 1945, liberation of the Ebensee concentration camp in Austria, the images remain fresh in Heslop's mind. Even if they were not, they have been secured, for posterity, in his photographs.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Demopolis, Alabama, Palo Alto, California, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Bristol, Tennessee, Pleasanton, California, Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Columbus, Ohio, Vinton, Iowa, Cape Coral, Florida, and Saginaw, Michigan.

VA has shown that health information technology provides improved quality of health care and substantial cost savings, according to a study in the public health journal Health Affairs. The use of technology lowered costs while producing improvements in quality, safety and patient satisfaction. The study covered a 10-year period between 1997 and 2007 and found that VA’s health IT investment during the period was $4 billion, while savings were more than $7 billion.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from

National Nurses Week (May 6-12) reminds us of the important contributions made every day by VA nurses. Talented VA nurses meet Veterans’ needs with compassion and skill in a time of rapid changes in technology, knowledge, and approaches to health care. This year’s Nurses Week theme, Nurses: Caring Today for a Healthier Tomorrow describes the excellence and the mission of more than 77,000 VA nursing staff, across the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Conroe, Texas, Shreveport, Louisiana, Hillsboro, Illinois, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Yakima, Washington, Mason City, Iowa, Las Vegas, Nevada, Yakima, Washington, Bristol, Connecticut, and Amarillo, Texas.

From The VA VA has conducted studies evaluating the potential use of renewable fuels in energy plants supplying 38 VA medical centers around the...