New GI Bill Signed into Law!
7/2/08 - A new GI Bill has become law as the President signed the Supplemental Appropriations Bill funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan well into 2009. The President and congressional leaders agreed to war funding with no restrictions in exchange for including the new GI Bill benefit and extending unemployment benefits in the bill. The estimate of the cost of this new GI Bill benefit over the next 10 years is $62 billion.

The Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act (S 22), introduced by Senator Jim Webb (D-VA), was added into the Senate's 2008 Supplemental Appropriations bill back in May. Webb's bill was co-sponsored by Virginia’s other Senator, John Warner (R-VA), as well as Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), pre-sumptive Democratic candidate for President, and 56 other Senators. The House followed suit and included its companion bill in its Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill.

GI bill benefits will be raised to a level similar to those received by WWII vets, according to Sen. Webb. The maximum benefit would cover tuition for up to 4 years at the in-state public university level (averaging about $1,900 a month now). The current Montgomery GI Bill maximum benefit is just $1,100 a month. The bill includes a living expenses stipend equal to the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) of a married E-5. The benefits amount received would be tied to length of service, requiring at least 3 years of active service before eligibility for the maximum benefit level. Provisions allowing the transfer of the benefit to spouses and children of veterans, tied to longer terms of service, were added to address concerns that such a generous GI bill would hurt retention.

“There are going to be a lot of veterans in the United States who are going to be happy with the United States Senate,” said Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) about his bill.

Hearing Loss is War’s Signature Disability
5/08 - Hearing damage is the number one disability experienced in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the VA, nearly 70,000 of the more than 1.3 million troops who have served in the two war zones have been diagnosed with tinnitus (a potentially debilitating ringing in the ears) and more than 58,000 are collecting disability for hearing loss.

VA Budget Gets $3.7 Billion Boost
1/08 - President Bush released an additional $3.7 billion in VA funding by invoking the emergency designation required by the Consolidated Appro-priations Act of 2008 (the omnibus spending bill). Most of the additional funding is for VA health or medical services, administration, facilities and research. The White House had no objection to the $3.7 billion Congress wanted to spend on top of the President’s VA budget request, but wanted the funds offset with reductions in other spending. Congress refused, keeping the funds outside the budget caps and passing the decision back to the President on whether to spend the money by invoking the necessary emergency designation, which needed to be done by Jan. 18.

NAUS had urged the President to do so and authorize the additional VA funding in a letter to President Bush sent on Tuesday, Jan. 8th.  Many NAUS members followed suit, responding to our NAUS CapWiz alert, and sent emails urging the President to release the funds.

Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission Report The Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission (VDBC), of which NAUS President Bill Matz was a member, released its report in Oct. 2007. (Read the NAUS news release about the VDBC report.) The report includes 113 recommend-ations, including a list of several that should be implemented immediately. The Commission also recommends Congress establish an executive oversight group to ensure timely and effective implementation of the recommendations. Some of the recommendations include:

• Update the rating schedule
• Allow concurrent receipt
• Develop PTSD-specific rating criteria and improve treatment
• Compensate for loss of quality of life
• Simplify and expedite the processing of disability claims and appeals

The entire report (562 pages) is available here and on the Commission's website. Or read the Executive Summary here.

VA Wait Times Wrong
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Inspector General found that the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) falsely reported to Congress that nearly all of its appointments – about 95% – were scheduled within 30 days of a patient's req-uested date. In fact, only three in four veterans, or 75%, received such timely appointments. Of the veterans kept waiting more than 30 days, 27% of them had more serious service-connected disabilities, such as amputations and chronic problems including frequent panic attacks. Under VHA policy, such veterans must be scheduled for care within 30 days of their desired appointment date. "This is simply not acceptable," said Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), who chairs the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. He said the report showed the VA was "skewing" its performance on veterans’ health care and that the VA was not taking responsibility. The report is available online here.

Taking Care of Today’s Veterans
The 2007 report of the Interagency Task Force on Returning Global War On Terror (GWOT) Heroes includes 25 recommendations to improve delivery of services, focusing on increasing awareness of available benefits among servicemembers, veterans and their families, and improving the processes for receiving them. Read the Executive Summary here.

Can Virtual Reality Really Heal PTSD?
New treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are being tested: virtual realities that simulate wartime conditions. These programs seek to relieve PTSD by allowing the veterans to vividly – but safely – experience the origins of their trauma. Many psychologists believe this type of treatment will be more effective than traditional counseling and drug therapy.

NAUS Supports WWII Merchant Mariners Act
5/7/08 - NAUS submitted a written statement for the record in support of S. 961, The Belated Thank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act, to the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee for its hearing. NAUS expects the committee to vote on this measure in June. To make your feelings known on this bill, please see the NAUS Action Alert here.

Bleak Job Market Greets Returning Vets
4/08 - According to data from a survey of nearly 2,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who left the service in 2005/2006, employment rates and wages are lower for these vets than their civilian peers. 18% are unemployed, and of those employed since leaving the military, half of the veterans aged 20-24 earn less than $25,000 a year. Protective services (security and police work) and facilities and maintenance repair work were the most popular occupations held by former enlisted personnel, many of who have trouble finding a job that matches their military occupation. Nearly half (48.4%) took advantage of their GI Bill benefits, but the study did not find that using the GI Bill benefit led to higher paying or better jobs. The study is available online, and is still being reviewed by the VA. The report says the transition “back into employment, education and/or training after completing military service can be challenging for some military personnel.”

Number of Homeless Vets Down
3/27/08 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that the number of homeless veterans has declined about 21% in the past 2 years – down to about 154,000 from nearly 200,000 in 2006. The VA cites increased services for homeless veterans and improved coordination of federal, state and local efforts; a decline in the number of living World War II, Korean and Vietnam veterans; and an improvement in the way the annual estimate was taken (so fewer people were double-counted) as factors in the decline. Another factor is the significant reduction in the number of poor veterans -- from 3 million in 1990 to 1.8 million in 2000. The announcement came as Secretary of Veterans Affairs (and NAUS Member) Dr. James B. Peake was elected to chair the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (the coordinating entity within the federal government charged with developing partner-ships across all levels of government with the private sector to fight homelessness). “We are seeing significant progress in the fight against homelessness,” said Peake. “This success should encourage all those concerned about homeless veterans, for it shows we can make a difference in the lives of these veterans through our services and with our community partners.”

GAO Says Wounded Warrior Care at Walter Reed, Other MTFs Better
2/27/08 – John Pendleton, acting Director of Health Care for the Government Accountability Office (GAO), told the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Governmental Reform that the Army has significantly improved its support for war veterans and service-members undergoing medical treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other military hospitals, but still faces staff shortages and other issues. "Challenges remain, but the trend is in the right direction," he said. 

Certain Disabled Veterans Payments Ruled Tax-free
2/1/08 - Payments under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) Program are no longer taxable, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) ruled. Disabled veterans who paid taxes on CWT benefits in 2004, 2005 or 2006 can claim refunds by filing an amended tax return using IRS Form 1040X. An estimated 19,000 veterans received CWT payments in 2007, and the VA will not be issuing Form 1099s for the 2007 payments. The CWT Program provides assistance to veterans unable to work and support themselves through VA contracts with private and public sector employers for work by these veterans.

2008 VA Compensation & Pension Rate Tables Online The 2008 rates for VA disability pay, DIC and others went into effect December 1st, 2007.

Veterans Employment Benefits Update
A recent change in the laws for Veterans Employment benefits now means that more people who served in the armed forces are eligible for Veterans Employment benefits. Anyone who served on active duty at least 180 consecutive days, unless those days were for training, and those days started on or after September 11, 2001, is eligible for Veterans Employment benefits.

If your discharge is anything but Dishonorable and you served on active duty in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized, you also are entitled to Veterans Preference even if you don’t have the 180 days of consecutive service. Any Armed Forces Expeditionary or campaign badge qualifies you for the preference. For more information visit OPM's Veterans Employment Information page.

VA Helps Vets Save $$ on Generic Drugs
The Department of Veterans Affairs is helping some veterans get generic prescriptions for half the VA co-payment by allowing VA providers to write prescriptions that can be filled at any private-sector pharmacy. This allows veterans in health care priority categories 4 through 8, who normally must make an $8 co-pay for drugs from the VA, to take advantage of generic drugs that might be available at the $4 rate being offered by Wal-Mart and Target. Review the $4 drug lists of Wal-Mart and Target.

VA Urged to Change How It Handles PTSD
A 2007 federally-funded study by the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council urges sweeping changes on how veterans are diagnosed with and compensated for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The report says the Department of Veterans Affairs needs to replace its narrowly defined and unevenly applied criteria for PTSD screening with broader standards based on the latest knowledge about psychiatry. The report also suggests replacement of the VA’s rating scale for disability payments with a system of fixed, long-term benefits. Read executive summary.

Veterans More Likely To Commit Suicide
Male U.S. veterans are twice as likely to commit suicide as men with no military service and are more likely to kill themselves with a gun than others who commit suicide, researchers said in a study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health in June 2007. The study tracked 320,890 American men, about a third of whom served in the U.S. military between 1917 and 1994. The rest had no military background. Those who had served in the military committed suicide at a rate 2.13 times that of the other men, the study found. The veterans did not have a higher risk of dying from disease, accidental causes or murder.

A new national suicide hotline enables veterans to seek help for mental-health crises 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) said. The hotline number: 1.800.273.TALK (8255).