Archive for March, 2010
Dems: Health Reform Threat to Tricare Overblown
Republican lawmakers raised the specter of military families and survivors of veterans seeing health care costs rise as a result of the national health reform law that President Obama signed March 23.
But the threat was never more than a notion and it is fading away. That’s the consensus among most military associations and veterans groups, as reinforced by statements from the secretaries of defense and veterans affairs, the White House and chairmen of key congressional committees. …more
Fairfax Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day Proclamation on March 23rd
This is a reminder about the issuance of the Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day Proclamation by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on March 23 at the Government Center in Fairfax. Please note that the reception remains at 0830 but the Board has moved the presentation of this proclamation and 9 others to 0930. The reception will be in the Forum at the bottom of the lobby stairs.
For more details, contact Bruce Waxman at bruce_waxman@vva227.org
Putting the Concerns of Our Veterans and Our Troops to Rest
As Assistant Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, a constant concern for me is having our Veterans dragged into partisan politics. Unfortunately the debate over health reform has seen that happen far too many times, and at the VA we often have to correct misinformation and assure Veterans that the care they rely on will not be taken away from them.
One of the concerns we are hearing the most now is whether health reform will affect the care Veterans receive under the VA system.
Let me be unambiguous: The healthcare that Veterans receive through the VA system, including dependents of certain veterans enrolled in the CHAMPVA program, will be safe and sound under health reform. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs would continue to maintain sole authority over the system and for enhancing the quality and access for all eligible Veterans. …more
Veterans Campaign Workshop April 24th at GW University
Veterans Campaign is pleased to announce our second veterans campaign training workshop. It will be held on April 24th in Washington, D.C., and is generously being hosted by the George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management.
This non-partisan, non-ideological one-day campaign training event will be provided free-of-charge to a select group of veterans; if you or someone you know is interested in applying for this opportunity, please visit or direct the interested parties to our online application.
Even if you applied in the past, we would like you to provide us with some additional information (there is a space on the application to reference previous applications). While Veterans Campaign was originally founded on a first-come-first-serve basis of enrolling participants, the large volume of interested veterans has driven us to shift to an application process.
If you are an alumnus/ae of our September 2009 workshop at Princeton, the event will feature similar content, however we will keep you posted on future alumni events which we are excitedly planning for!
Please consult our website to learn more about our curriculum, frequently asked questions, or to see Veterans Campaign in the news.
Also to find out more information in the future and to connect with like-minded veterans, find us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn pages.
If you have any enrollment questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact us at apply@veteranscampaign.org.
VA/DOD Expand Electronic Health Information Pilot to Eastern Virginia
The Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense today announced the next phase of the Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record (VLER) Health Communities Program. This initiative improves care and services to our nation’s heroes by sharing health information using the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) developed under the leadership of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
DoD and VA selected the Virginia/Tidewater area of Southeastern Virginia as the next area to partner with due to its high concentration of veterans, military retirees, members of the guard and reserve, and active duty service members and their dependents.
In the Virginia/Tidewater area, VA and DoD will partner with private sector hospitals who have joined a regional health information exchange in this area. The Virginia/Tidewater pilot builds on the continuing success of the first pilot in San Diego with Kaiser Permanente.
Service members and veterans in the Virginia/Tidewater area will be invited to participate in this health data exchange program scheduled to launch this year. Individuals who choose to participate will authorize their public and private sector health care providers and doctors to share specific health information electronically, safely, securely and privately.
The program, through policy and technology, places the highest priority on patient privacy and data security. No exchange of information will occur without the appropriate permissions of the individual patients. Access to care will not be affected by a decision not to participate. …more
VA to Review Gulf War Veterans’ Claims
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has agreed to re-examine the disability claims for what could turn out to be thousands of veterans of the Gulf War. The development is the result of intense lobbying by veterans’ advocacy group Veterans for Common Sense (VCS).
In response to the group’s efforts, as many as 210,000 Gulf War veterans suffer from multi-symptom illnesses, and VA Secretary Eric Shineski said in a special interview with The Associated Press that he promises to review Gulf War veterans’ disability claims. The claims may cover suffering from ailments that veterans blame on their war service.
Shineski announced that the department’s Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force has nearly completed a comprehensive report that will redefine how the VA addresses the pain and suffering of ill veterans who deployed during the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has agreed to re-examine the disability claims for what could turn out to be thousands of veterans of the Gulf War.The development is the result of intense lobbying by veterans’ advocacy group Veterans for Common Sense (VCS).
In response to the group’s efforts, as many as 210,000 Gulf War veterans suffer from multi-symptom illnesses, and VA Secretary Eric Shineski said in a special interview with The Associated Press that he promises to review Gulf War veterans’ disability claims. The claims may cover suffering from ailments that veterans blame on their war service.
Shineski announced that the department’s Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses Task Force has nearly completed a comprehensive report that will redefine how the VA addresses the pain and suffering of ill veterans who deployed during the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991. …more