Senator Bernie Sanders talks about veterans

Every week Senator Bernie Sanders is on with Thom Hartmann. Senator Sanders is the new Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. No matter what side you are on, we all need to pay attention because it is the job of Congress to do for or to the veterans. This is from the program that just ended.

Watch live streaming video from thomhartmann at livestream.com

Open letter to Senate Veterans Affairs Committee

Dear Senator Sanders, The House and Senate have failed our troops and our veterans!


More and more leave military service while both houses refuse to hold anyone accountable for what is done to them while they are in. You guys hold hearings while families hold dead veterans in their arms screaming "why" when these men and women survived combat but could not find one reason to live one more day.

These are the facts

Comprehensive Solider Fitness increased suicide warning ignored by the DOD and Congress held no on accountable. The program passed off as Resilience Training, which replaced Battlemind failed these men and women. Each year we read headlines of the rise in suicides at the same time we read leaders saying they were doing something about it. The Congress turned around, renewed contracts, funded research that was passed off as new without ever once acknowledging the studies were already done in the last 40 years and never once asked for the money back when the results were this deplorable.

Just because OEF OIF Veterans, the first internet generation of war fighters have made the news, that does not mean any of this is new. Look up the records of what veterans all the up to the Gulf War came back to and finally learn the truth.

Has Congress ever once noticed that with the implementation of the Suicide Prevention reporting an increase in calls, no one asked why with all the other things the government has been doing in "preventing" PTSD? What about Suicide Prevention Fund had a surplus?

Or that this is the kind of "training" they have been doing?

Staff Sgt. Victoria Gettman, a lab technician instructor at Fort Sam Houston, told The Huffington Post that she was among 800 soldiers from the 264th Medical Battalion undergoing resilience training on Sept. 26. Almost all of the soldiers were fresh out of boot camp and in training for their first job in the Army.

After a 45-minute talk on how to cope with stress, the officer in charge turned the stage over to a chaplain for the sometimes controversial "spiritual fitness" part of the session.

No one was held to account for any of this.

When will Congress once and for all ask what works? When will all of you take a look at how we ended up with this?

Veterans 7% of population 22% of suicides yet we are expected to believe our government has been addressing it?

Senator Sanders I know you just took over as Chairman, but you have to get your staff to actually learn about what is real, what works, what is a waste of money and what families are going through if you are ever going to do anything meaningful to save their lives!

Care for him who shall have borne the battle

Care for him who shall have borne the battle
by Kathie Costos
Wounded Times Blog
February 2, 2013

This morning I opened an email about the number of military suicides and in the email a friend named Les added the thoughts that it is our job to "care for him who shall have borne the battle" and I responded adding in that while we talk about those numbers, we never seem to talk about the families left behind.

Did you know that a lot of family members end up with PTSD because of veterans coming home from combat? Did you know that family members suffer from the trauma, not from war, but from what the war did? Don't feel ashamed you didn't know. As bad as it is that we don't talk about our veterans or the troops, we talk about the families even less. Veterans are committing suicide with an average of almost one every hour.

Why? Because politicians and political zealots have taken sides and neither side is standing by the side of those who risk their lives.

Some want to blame President Obama while some still blame President Bush. The truth is, while the person in the Oval Office sets the agenda, it is members of congress writing and funding the bills including the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs.

The other ugly truth is, while Republicans claim to be pro-military, they are pro-military-contrators and have done a lousy job of taking care of the men and women serving in the military. The Democrats have been more pro-servicemen and women and less pro-contractos, but even with that, they have not been much better at doing things that will come close to getting this right for the sake of those who serve.

VA won't say how many veterans die waiting for disability benefits

President Lincoln said on March 4, 1865

“With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

In 2007 I put up this video onto YouTube. In 2009, I moved it onto Great Americans. I want you to watch it for a very important reason. The numbers. What we knew they were dealing with and then compare those numbers to what has been released recently as if any of his was new.

The truth is, many want to pretend this is all new. That way they can think something will actually be done to help all our veterans. The ugly truth is, nothing will really change until the Congress stops pretending they are doing something about all of this.

What did the news report on last month as if it was really "news" and new?

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder cases overwhelm Veteran Affairs

There is yet another ugly truth no one seems to be tracking. When PTSD veterans are shot and killed by police. These are just some of the reports from January on Wounded Times.

Navy Medic Iraq veteran with PTSD shot by police in Arizona

Police shooting of PTSD soldier captured on video in Honolulu

While some get reported in newspapers around the country, some are kept quiet. That is the biggest thing we need to remember. For all the stories you read on Wounded Times, there are many, many more we do not read about. More suffering than you will ever know. Congress however knows more than any of us will know. After all, it is their job to know. The committees in the House and Senate cannot use the excuse they didn't know because it is their jobs to find out what is going on and figure out what to do about it.

These are the members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee right now.

Independent
Bernard Sanders, VT
Chairman

Democrat
John D. Rockefeller IV, WV
Patty Murray, WA
Sherrod Brown, OH
Jon Tester, MT
Mark Begich, AK
Richard Blumenthal, CT
Mazie Hirono, HI

Republican
Richard Burr, NC
Ranking Member

Johnny Isakson, GA
Mike Johanns, NE
Jerry Moran, KS
John Boozman, AR
Dean Heller, NV

House Veterans Affairs Committee

Republicans
Jeff Miller (FL), Chairman
Doug Lamborn (CO)
Gus M. Bilirakis (FL), Vice Chairman
David P. Roe (TN)
Bill Flores (TX)
Jeff Denham (CA)
Jon Runyan (NJ)
Dan Benishek (MI)
Tim Huelskamp (KS)
Mike Coffman (CO)
Mark E. Amodei (NV)
Brad Wenstrup (OH)
Paul Cook (CA)
Jackie Walorski (IN)

Democrats
Michael H. Michaud (ME), Democratic Ranking Member
Corrine Brown ( FL)
Mark Takano (CA)
Julia Brownley (CA)
Dina Titus (NV)
Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ)
Raul Ruiz (CA)
Gloria Negrete McLeod (CA)
Ann McLane Kuster (NH)
Beto O'Rourke (TX)
Tim Walz (MN)

They are the people in charge during the 113th Congress and we need to hold them accountable because we didn't hold anyone accountable before this and that is how we ended up where we are when it comes to taking "care of of him who shall have borne the battle."

Suicide Prevention? No amount of money can fix what failed already

With the posting of Senator Baucus Sponsored another Suicide Prevention Bill it is a good time to look back at other things our elected officials tried to do over the years. When you think of the millions of dollars spent repeating the same things over and over again yet discovering such deplorable results as increased military suicides along with attempted suicides, you should really be wondering when they will get a clue no amount of money can fix what has already failed.

The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act

H.R. 327 would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop and implement a comprehensive program designed to reduce the incidence of suicide among veterans. Detailed Summary

(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on September 27, 2007. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) suicide among veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious problem; and (2) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in developing and implementing the comprehensive program outlined in this Act, should take into consideration the special needs of such veterans and of elderly veterans who are at high risk for depression and experience high rates of suicide.

Directs the Secretary to develop and carry out a comprehensive program designed to reduce the incidence of suicide among veterans. Requires the program to include: (1) mandatory training for appropriate staff and contractors of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) who interact with veterans; (2) mental health assessments of veterans; (3) designation of a suicide prevention counselor at each Department medical facility; (4) research on best practices for suicide prevention; (5) mental health care for veterans who have experienced sexual trauma while in military service; (6) 24-hour veterans' mental health care availability; (7) a toll-free hotline; and (8) outreach and education for veterans and their families.

Authorizes the Secretary to develop and carry a peer support counseling program as part of such program.

Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the program.

Status of the Legislation

Latest Major Action: 10/24/2007: Presented to President.

Omission of Bean bill described as baffling
Holt and East Brunswick family vow to continue fight for improved veterans’ services
BY LAUREN CIRAULO Staff Writer

EAST BRUNSWICK — A bill named for a Middlesex County veteran and intended to strengthen treatment resources for returning soldiers will not be funded this year.

The bill’s sudden removal from the federal Defense Authorization Act of 2011 has angered a local family as well as Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ), who introduced the legislation in honor of East Brunswick native, U.S. Army Sgt. Coleman Bean.

According to Holt, it was Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Ranking Member U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) who yanked the measure, believing it to be unnecessary.

A call to McCain’s office requesting comment was not immediately returned.

“When I learned that Sen. McCain removed this provision at the last minute, I was furious,” Holt said. “A serious gap exists in military suicide prevention efforts — a gap that needlessly cost the life of one young central New Jersey resident.”

Coleman Bean took his life on Sept. 6, 2008, at the age of 25, a few months after returning from his second tour in Iraq. He had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after his first tour, but Bean had limited access to veterans services as a member of the U.S. Army’s Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) and was called back to duty without receiving treatment.

Armed Forces Suicide Prevention Act of 2011

For Immediate Release August 31, 2012
Fact Sheet: President Obama Signs Executive Order to Improve Access to Mental Health Services for Veterans, Service Members, and Military Families

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Obama will sign an Executive Order directing key federal departments to expand suicide prevention strategies and take steps to meet the current and future demand for mental health and substance abuse treatment services for veterans, service members, and their families.

Ensuring that all veterans, Active, Guard, and Reserve service members and their families receive the support they deserve is a top priority for the Obama Administration. Since September 11, 2001, more than two million service members have deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan with unprecedented duration and frequency. Long deployments and intense combat conditions require optimal support for the emotional and mental health needs of our service members and their families. The Obama Administration has consistently expanded efforts to ensure our troops, veterans and their families receive the benefits they have earned and deserve, including providing timely mental health service. The Executive Order signed today builds on these efforts.

President Obama’s Executive Order

The Executive Order signed by President Obama:

Strengthens suicide prevention efforts across the Force and in the veteran community: The Executive Order directs the VA to increase the VA veteran crisis line capacity by 50% by the end of the year.

Under the Executive Order, VA will ensure that any veteran identifying him or herself as being in crisis connects with a mental health professional or trained mental health worker within 24 hours or less.

VA will work with the Department of Defense to develop and implement a national 12 month suicide prevention campaign focused on connecting veterans to mental health services.

Enhances access to mental health care by building partnerships between VA and community providers:

In service areas where VA has faced challenges in hiring and placing mental health service providers and continues to have unfilled vacancies or long wait times, the Executive Order Directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to work with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish at least 15 pilot sites. In pilot sites, VA will contract with community health centers, community mental health clinics, community substance abuse treatment facilities and other HHS grantees and community resources to help reduce VA mental health waiting lists. Under the Executive Order, HHS and VA will develop a plan for a rural mental health recruitment initiative to promote opportunities for VA and rural communities to share mental health providers when demand is insufficient for either to support a full-time provider.

Increases the number of VA mental health providers serving our veterans:

Under the Executive Order, VA will hire 800 peer-to-peer support counselors to empower veterans to support other veterans and help ensure that their mental health care and overall service needs are met. VA has launched an effort to hire 1,600 new mental health professionals to serve veterans. The Executive Order directs VA to use its pay-setting authorities, loan repayment and scholarships, partnerships with health care workforce training programs, and collaborative arrangements with community-based providers to recruit, hire, and place 1,600 mental health professionals by June, 2013. Since, 2009, the VA has expanded its mental health programs, hiring more than 3,500 mental health professionals since 2009.

Promotes mental health research and development of more effective treatment methodologies:

The Executive Order directs the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education to develop a National Research Action Plan that will include strategies to improve early diagnosis and treatment effectiveness for TBI and PTSD.

The Executive Order further directs the Department of Defense and Department of Health and Human Services to conduct a comprehensive mental health study with an emphasis on PTSD, TBI, and related injuries to develop better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment options.

Launch a government-wide collaborative effort to address these issues through a Military and Veterans Mental Health Interagency Task Force:

The Executive Order establishes an Interagency Task Force, including the Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Education, the Domestic Policy Council, National Security Staff, the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Office of National Drug Control Policy, which will make recommendations to the President on additional strategies to improve mental health and substance abuse treatment services for veterans, service members, and their families.

Supporting our Military, Veterans, and their Families
The President has taken key steps to protect and strengthen the health of our military, veterans and their families here at home. Many of these initiatives are supported by agencies across the federal government and collaborative partnerships with states and communities.

Health Care
For the first time ever, 135 medical schools have committed to exchanging leading research on PTSD and TBI and will also train future physicians to better understand veteran health needs. More than 150 state and national nursing organizations and over 650 nursing schools have committed to ensure our nation’s 3 million nurses are prepared to meet the unique health needs of veterans and their families by educating the current and future nurses of America to have a better understanding of PTSD and TBI.

President Obama signed the “caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010”, into law which helps our most seriously injured post-9/11 veterans and their family caregivers with a monthly stipend; access to health insurance; mental health services and counseling; and comprehensive VA caregiver training and respite care. The Department of Labor has proposed new regulations for the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to support military families and caregivers. This rule would implement statutory changes to the FMLA, expanding leave to family members caring for veterans who have suffered a serious injury or illness.

In July 2010, the VA published a historic change to its rules, streamlining the process and paperwork needed by combat veterans to pursue a claim for disability pay for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The VA expanded its workforce by over 2,600 people to handle applications for disability pay. The VA is also using technology and new approaches to help veterans get their benefits by accepting online applications for initial disability benefits, initiating an innovation competition, launching pilot initiatives, and investing over $128 million in a paperless Veterans Benefits Management System.

The administration is utilizing partnerships to reduce the stigma associated with seeking treatment for behavioral health issues. Make the Connection, a campaign launched by the Department of Veterans Affairs, is creating ways for veterans and their family members to connect with the experiences of other veterans and access the information and resources to help these families confront the challenges of transitioning from service to daily civilian life.

Licensing and Credentials
Nearly 35 percent of military spouses in the labor force require licenses or certification for their profession. Many military spouses hold occupational licenses and routinely move across state lines, causing licensing requirements to disproportionately affect the military spouse population. The First Lady and Dr. Biden encouraged all 50 governors to pass legislation by 2014 to reduce the financial and administrative strains that 100,000 military spouses incur from trying to get their state licenses or certification credentials to transfer from state to state as they move. Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden encouraged governors to take Action in February 2012 when only 11 states had legislation on the books. 26 states now have measures in place to support military spouses and the initiative is on-track to meet the 2014 goal.

Education
The Department of Defense has awarded $180 million in grants to support military-connected public school districts. These grants support improved academic programs for military children. More than 400,000 students from military families across all grade levels are impacted by these grant projects.

The Department of Defense has awarded approximately $25 million to military-connected Local Education Agencies (LEAs) this summer to focus on increasing student achievement and easing transitions through research-based academic and support programs.

The Department of Defense, in collaboration with the Council of State Governments' (CSG) National Center for Interstate Compacts developed the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children (the Compact) to address the educational transition issues of children of military families. The Compact covers transition issues including class placement, records transfer, immunization requirements, course placement, graduation requirements, exit testing, and extra-curricular opportunities. States adopt the Compact through legislation, and as a result, join the Military Interstate Children’s Compact Commission (MIC3). To date, 39 states have approved the Compact and these states are home to 89 percent of school age children whose active duty parents are assigned to military installations in the United States. We will continue to work with leaders to encourage the 11 remaining states approve the Compact and become members of MIC3.

VA eased the Post-9/11 GI Bill application process within the eBenefits portal, including transferability to spouses or children for service members with over six years of service. Servicemembers can now apply on-line to transfer the benefits of their Post-9/11 GI Bill to eligible beneficiaries.

Housing
On top of the historic settlements completed by the Federal government and 49 state Attorneys General, major mortgage servicers will be providing relief to thousands of service member and veteran households. A review will be conducted of every service member household foreclosed upon since 2006. Those wrongly foreclosed upon will be compensated equal to a minimum of lost equity, plus interest and a refund for money lost because they were wrongfully denied the opportunity to reduce their mortgage payments. Additionally, these organizations will pay $10 million into a VA fund that guarantees loans on favorable terms for veterans.

The Administration is working to end veteran homelessness through leveraging broad support at Federal, State, and local levels in both the public and private sectors. Working with over 4,000 community agencies, the VA and HUD have successfully placed more than 37,000 veterans in permanent housing with dedicated case managers and access to high-quality VA health care since 2009. To ensure we reach out to our homeless veterans, the VA created a National Registry for Homeless Veterans and established a National Homeless Hotline. Veteran homelessness was reduced by nearly 12 percent between January 2010 and January 2011.

In 2011, VA helped save 72,391 Veteran and military borrowers with VA-guaranteed loans from foreclosure, a 10% increase from the prior year. VA has helped nearly 59,000 borrowers avoid foreclosure so far in 2012. The home loan guaranty program helps Veterans and their families purchase homes, often with no down payment required. The program expects to guaranty the 20 millionth loan in early November 2012.

Using their Interest Rate Reduction Refinancing Loan, also known as the Streamline Refinance, VA refinances existing VA loans into new loans with lower interest rates, or adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) into fixed rate mortgages. In 2011, this program saved an average of $202 per month in individual payment reductions and 1.42% in interest rates. This equates to saving military and veterans $24 million a month and $293 million per year.

Financial Readiness
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Financial Education and Financial Access has helped military families identify predatory lending practices. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) established an office of service member affairs to ensure that the CFPB addresses the financial challenges that confront military families and strengthens protections against abusive financial practices.

Senators vote no on paying vets to get VA care

Thank God this failed but too bad the Senator failed the veterans in the first place. Now they think paying veterans to get care will get them "cured"?? They don't understand PTSD any more than they understand veterans.

Senators vote no on paying vets to get VA care
By Rick Maze
Staff writer
Army Times
Posted : Wednesday Sep 12, 2012

The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee rejected a novel idea on Wednesday that would pay veterans to go to all of their mental health counseling and appointments.

The proposal failed on an 8-7 vote.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, the panel’s ranking Republican, said he was trying to prompt a shift in focus at the Veterans Affairs Department: from paying and supporting not just people with disabilities, but also people trying to get better.

“Let’s be creative,” he said.

Burr wanted a three-year pilot program in three of VA’s 22 regions. “There is nobody on this committee who doesn’t believe VA mental health is broken,” he said. “Let’s try something different. We cannot affect the outcome, but we can make sure they get the treatment.”

Under Burr’s plan, veterans who attend all of their VA-prescribed mental health counseling and treatment would get a stipend as long as they keep their appointments, and would continue to be paid when treatment is over if they remain disabled. The stipend would be determined by VA.

Burr’s proposal, offered as an amendment to S 3340, a veterans’ mental health bill, comes as a response to long-term complaints that under VA’s system, veterans with mental health issues rarely seem to get better after they are diagnosed with a service-connected condition and start receiving disability pay.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the committee chairwoman, said she agreed veterans need to be encouraged to get the treatment they are ordered to receive, but she didn’t see how Burr’s proposal would resolve a problem that comes from not having enough mental health professionals to treat veterans.
read more here

Having to not wait in line would have been a good place to start back in 2001 when the troops were sent into Afghanistan and Vietnam veterans were already waiting in line along with Gulf War veterans. Having proven programs to address living with Combat PTSD would have been great too. But then again making sure PTSD soldiers were not being discharged with "other then honorable" but getting treatment would have worked too. For all they got wrong, they are still trying to blame the veterans?

VA chief asked to stop reprisals against doctor working on PTSD

VA chief asked to stop reprisals against doctor
12:32 AM, Aug 2, 2012
Written by
William H. McMichael
The News Journal

U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki needs to take “immediate action” to end what a union claims are continued reprisals against a Wilmington VA Medical Center psychologist who testified before Congress last fall about understaffing and questionable accounting.

The charges, levied by the American Federation of Government Employees, are this: Michelle Washington had her job performance appraisal lowered, job duties altered and job title changed as a result of her Nov. 30 appearance at a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing in Washington.

The Wilmington facility declines to publicly discuss Washington’s situation, citing employee privacy rights.

The union’s national secretary-treasurer wants a face-to-face discussion with Shinseki.
read more here

Manager at VA said "we don't want to know or we'll have to treat it"

Veterans Affairs' mental-health system denounced at hearing
Wednesday's hearing before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs followed the release of an inspector general's report Monday that found the VA has greatly overstated how quickly it provides mental-health care for veterans.
By Steve Vogel
The Washington Post

One manager directed the staff to focus only on the immediate reason for an appointment and not to ask the veteran about any other problems because "we don't want to know or we'll have to treat it," according to Tolentino.

WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs' mental-health-care system suffers from a culture where managers give more importance to meeting meaningless performance goals than helping veterans, according to testimony before a Senate committee Wednesday.

The hearing before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs followed the release of an inspector general's report Monday that found the VA has greatly overstated how quickly it provides mental-health care for veterans.

"They need a culture change," Linda Halliday, the VA's assistant inspector general for audits and evaluations, told the committee.

"They need to hold facility directors accountable for integrity of the data."

VA practices "greatly distorted" the waiting time for appointments, Halliday said, enabling the department to claim that 95 percent of first-time patients received an evaluation within 14 days when, in reality, fewer than half were seen in that time.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., chairman of the committee, said the findings show a "rampant gaming of the system."

Nicholas Tolentino, a former mental-health administrative officer at the VA Medical Center in Manchester, N.H., told the committee that managers pressed the staff to see as many veterans as possible while providing the most minimal services possible.
read more here

National Coalition for Homeless Veterans Senate hearing

U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
“Ending Homelessness Among Veterans: VA’s Progress on its Five-Year Plan”
March 14, 2012

Testimony provided by:

Reverend Scott Rogers
Executive Director
Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry
30 Cumberland Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
www.abccm.org

Chairman Patty Murray, Ranking Member Richard Burr, and distinguished members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs: It is my honor to present this testimony on behalf of the Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry (hereafter ABCCM) and on behalf of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV) with my friend Mr. John Driscoll, NCHV President and CEO. I want to recognize the other guests in the room who are also concerned about ending homelessness among our veterans.

Introduction

ABCCM has had a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Grant and Per Diem (GPD) contract since 2003. We currently have four Grant and Per Diem programs which encompass 148 homeless men and 10 homeless women (mothers with children) for a total of 158 beds. This makes us the third-largest contractor of Grant and Per Diem services in the nation. Our combined campus facilities of 12.5 acres, with 11 acres for men and 1.5 acres for women, makes us one of the largest facilities for serving homeless veterans in the nation.

Under ABCCM’s umbrella, we offer employment and training services through a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program (HVRP) grant. Last year we placed 201 homeless veterans back into the workforce at an average cost of $1,100 per participant, compared to $2,600 per participant nationally. We were recently honored with being included in the HVRP Best Practices document for the DOL-Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS).
read more here

War of words heats up over vets bill blockage

War of words heats up over vets bill blockage

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Nov 6, 2009 14:26:56 EST

The chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee remains hopeful that a roadblock holding up consideration of an omnibus veterans’ health care bill can be cleared early next week.

Speaking Friday on the Senate floor about a procedural hold that is blocking passage of S. 1963, the Veterans’ Caregiver and Omnibus Health Benefits Act, Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, said “it would be truly disgraceful” if the bill didn’t clear the Senate by Veterans’ Day.

Akaka said the bill represents a bipartisan collection of veterans’ committee proposals packaged into one bill so it could quickly pass. Consideration of the measure is being blocked by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who doesn’t want the measure brought up unless he is given an opportunity to offer amendments.

“This single senator is denying veterans many benefits and services,” Akaka said, including a new caregiver assistant program at families of the “most seriously wounded veterans.”

Akaka said the veterans’ committee “continues to hear about family members who quit their jobs, go through their savings and lose their health insurance as they stayed home to care for their wounded family members.”
read more here
War of words heats up over vets bill blockage

Lone senator holds up veterans bill

UPDATE
Coburn named as senator holding up vets bill

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Nov 3, 2009 17:23:29 EST

Thirteen major military and veterans groups have joined forces to try to force one senator — Republican Tom Coburn of Oklahoma — to release a hold that he has placed on a major veterans benefits bill.

Coburn has been identified by Senate aides as the lawmaker preventing consideration of S 1963, the Veterans’ Caregiver and Omnibus Health Benefits Act of 2009, by using an informal but legal practice of putting a hold on a bill.

Coburn’s staff did not respond to questions, but Senate aides said the first-term senator has expressed concern about creating new and unfunded benefits and wants the opportunity to amend the measure.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/11/military_veteransbill_coburnhold_110309w/

Lone senator holds up veterans bill

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Nov 2, 2009 17:01:59 EST

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America is trying to bring pressure on the Senate to ignore tradition and bring a veterans health care bill up for debate despite the anonymous hold on the bill placed by a senator.

The bill in question is S 1963, the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2009, which includes three top priorities of the veterans group.

It contains a package of improvements for female veterans, including more training for mental health providers in treating sexual trauma, a pilot program to offer child care so that veterans who have children find it easier make appointments, and a trial counseling program in which newly separated female veterans would be treated in retreat-like settings.

It also would expand mental health programs for veterans in rural areas by contracting with local community mental health centers, and expand mental health services for the immediate families of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/11/military_veteransbill_delayed_110209w/

Lawmakers conflicted on VA claims fixes

If there is any conflict it is because there are people who stood in the way of the VA being fixed all these years but are now complaining, pretending they suddenly care.

We've read all the reports about how the VA got this bad over the last eight years but now people like Burr want to act like they care? Enough is enough. I said a long time ago I don't play games when it comes to the truth and I won't play them now. The VA has serious problems that will only get worse if these games are allowed to control the debate instead of the facts.

My attitude is, if they do not support the veterans or support the men and women in the military with what they need to heal, then they don't deserve our support either. This has cost me dearly but when I think about what it has cost them, there is no contest.

If Senator Burr now wants the VA fixed, the question is, what changed his mind? This is not a game. This is life and death for our troops who end up wounded and for our veterans. Yet this is Burr's voting record.

Veterans Issues
Date
Bill Title
Vote
Outcome
09/27/2008
Continuing AppropriationsHR 2638
PN
Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate(78 - 12)
05/22/2008
GI Bill and Other Domestic ProvisionsS Amdt 4803
N
Amendment Adopted - Senate(75 - 22)
01/22/2008
Defense Authorizations BillHR 4986
Y
Bill Passed - Senate(91 - 3)
10/01/2007
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008HR 1585
Y
Bill Passed - Senate(92 - 3)
05/11/2006
Tax Relief Extension Reconciliation Act of 2005HR 4297
Y
Conference Report Adopted - Senate(54 - 44)
05/04/2006
Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2006HR 4939
N
Bill Passed - Senate(77 - 21)
02/02/2006
Tax Relief Extension Reconciliation Act of 2005HR 4297
N
Bill Passed - Senate(66 - 31)
02/02/2006
Tax Rate Extension AmendmentS AMDT 2735
N
Motion Rejected - Senate(44 - 53)
11/17/2005
Additional Funding For Veterans AmendmentS AMDT 2634
N
Motion Rejected - Senate(43 - 55)
10/05/2005
Health Care for Veterans AmendmentS AMDT 1937
N
Motion Rejected - Senate(48 - 51)
11/21/2003
Department of Veterans Affairs Improvement Act of 2003S 1156
Y
Bill Passed - House(423 - 2)
05/10/2002
National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2003HR 4546
Y
Bill Passed - House(359 - 58)
11/08/2001
Veterans Affairs and HUD Appropriations Act of 2002HR 2620
Y
Conference Report Adopted - House(401 - 18)
10/14/1999
Veterans Affairs and HUD Appropriations bill, FY 2000HR 2684
Y
Conference Report Adopted - House(406 - 18)
09/21/1999
Veterans' Millennium Health Care ActHR 2116
Y
Bill Passed - House(369 - 46)
09/09/1999
Veterans Affairs and HUD Appropriations bill, FY 2000HR 2684
Y
Bill Passed - House(235 - 187)
09/24/1996
Veterans Affairs, HUD FY97 Appropriations billHR 3666
Y
Conference Report Adopted - House(388 - 25)
06/26/1996
Veterans Affairs, HUD FY97 Appropriations billHR 3666
Y
Bill Passed - House(269 - 147)

Veterans Issues

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2007-2008 In 2007-2008 Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America gave Senator Burr a grade of C.

2006 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 60 percent in 2006.

2006 In 2006 Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America gave Senator Burr a grade of F.

2006 Senator Burr sponsored or co-sponsored 18 percent of the legislation favored by the The Retired Enlisted Association in 2006.

2005 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 33 percent in 2005.

2004 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 0 percent in 2004.

2004 Senator Burr supported the interests of the The Retired Enlisted Association 17 percent in 2004.

2003-2004 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Vietnam Veterans of America 38 percent in 2003-2004.

2003 Senator Burr supported the interests of the American Veterans 50 percent in 2003.

2003 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 0 percent in 2003.

2003 Senator Burr supported the interests of the The American Legion 60 percent in 2003.

2001 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 100 percent in 2001.

2001 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Vietnam Veterans of America 77 percent in 2001.

1999 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 0 percent in 1999.

1997-1998 Senator Burr supported the interests of the Vietnam Veterans of America 50 percent in 1997-1998.
http://www.votesmart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=21787&type=category&category=66&go.x=16&go.y=8

Lawmakers conflicted on VA claims fixes

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Sep 17, 2009 14:28:55 EDT

One reason that efforts to overhaul the veterans disability compensation system are taking so long could be conflicting pressures being applied by Congress.

On Thursday, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee chairman said he wants to make sure changes are done right.

“We need to be deliberate as we work to develop solutions that will result in appropriate reform,” said Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii.

Noting that studies funded by the Veterans Affairs Department have shown that some veterans are underpaid and some are overpaid, Akaka said calculating the appropriate level of compensation for disabled veterans is “a complex matter.”

But while Akaka was talking about being “deliberate,” the committee’s ranking Republican was pushing VA to act now.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina said all he sees from VA are studies about reforming benefits that end up leading to more studies, while the window of opportunity for change rapidly closes.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/09/military_VA_disabilityclaims_091709w/

Tester, military brainstorm on VA services

Senator Tester said it's time to think outside the box and that is exactly what has been needed all along. Between service and civilian life, they don't fit in either box and we let them down expecting them to just jump right in.

When they are in the service and wounded, physically with visible wounds and invisible ones, they are expected to just do with what the unwounded receive and no longer fit into that box.

The DOD and the VA have a habit of just plodding along with the same treatments and rules as if one size fits all, when they never did. Sure, you can train them all alike but they never all end up with the same talents or excel at the same tasks. Would you take a Marine with the skills of a sniper and put him in the motor pool just because he was trained like everyone else? Would you take a man trained to cook for hundreds and put him in a tank? None of that would make any sense at all so how is it they can manage to think then but not when the men and women they trained need them instead?

The rest of the country has been doing very well addressing PTSD head on when it comes to police, firefighters, emergency responders and survivors. There are trained people all over the country to respond to traumatic events and emergencies. Crisis Intervention, Community Emergency Response Teams, Disaster and Extreme Event Preparedness teams, Stress Debriefers, you name it, they are trained and ready to go, but when it comes to the military and the VA, they only allow in certain types instead of highly trained, ready, able and willing to step in people from the communities.

I am a Chaplain, trained, certified and experienced to respond to traumatic events because I know what it looks like from the other side when no one responded to Vietnam veterans. I've been a Chaplain for a year, but have been doing the same work since 1982. Would the VA hire me as a Chaplain with all of this topping it off with my own insurance and licenses? No. I didn't get a degree from a seminary. What good does it do to take a person with very little life experience and put them on the front lines just because they went to the right school? If this worked, there would be no need for all the trainers traveling all over the country doing the training of responders in the field.

The troops are waiting for help and so are the veterans. It's time the DOD and the VA caught up to the rest of the country and got out of the box no one really fits in.

Tester, military brainstorm on VA services
By MARTIN J. KIDSTON - Independent Record - 08/22/09

FORT HARRISON - A group of military leaders and health experts joined Sen. Jon Tester Friday in a brainstorming session aimed at finding ways to help veterans transition out of the service, find jobs and better promote the VA's many services.

A member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, Tester, D-Mont., has held similar sessions since his election to office three years ago.

Among the results of the sessions are new vet centers in Kalispell and Great Falls, an increase to the mileage reimbursement for disabled vets, and more clinical resources to help treat veterans living in rural areas.

But Tester admitted Friday that work remains and the group spent more than an hour thinking "outside the box," broaching such ideas as educating families on post-war issues, reaching veterans on reservations, and expanding the VA system to include something of a hiring service for vets leaving the service.
read more here
Tester, military brainstorm on VA services

Veteran's best friends are watchdogs.

Veteran's best friends are watchdogs. Three of them are on one post over at the Daily Kos. If you are like me, you read titles of Bills and hear how wonderful the creators of these Bills think they are. I tend to get too busy to really read them and honestly, most of the language used confuses the hell out of me. That's why it's important for us to trust the experts on these Bills to make sure they are not worse than nothing. I understand PTSD and what comes with it but I also understand how harmful well sounding Bills can end up being and we fall for them all the time. We end up supporting Bills, contacting Congress to vote for them, only to discover that the Bill was akin to selling back Manhattan to the Indians because it had the title like Land Restoration Act never noticing to what point in history they planned on going back to. They do it to us all the time.

Here from the Daily Kos we have such a shady deal going on.

Senator Richard Burr received this from the IAVA Report Card

Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC)
1st term Republican from North Carolina.

IAVA Action Grade


C

(6 out of 9 votes with IAVA Action, not a Post-9/11 GI Bill cosponsor)



Current Elected Office Committees:

Armed Services
Energy and Natural Resources
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Select Committee on Intelligence
Veterans' Affairs , Rnk. Mem.
http://iava.www.capwiz.com/bio/id/444&lvl=C&chamber=S

Burr is ranking member on the Veteran's Affairs committee yet he's trying to pull this off? And they are letting him try why? Last time I checked is a "C" is just average and the problems our veterans have right now should require at least someone with a "B" or above to tackle any part of it. But this is all part of the tricks they like to play on us. It's easy to fool us because all we care about is the veterans and what they need and it's really hard for us to ever think anyone in Congress would ever try to screw them. But they do it all the time. Thanks to Scharrison over at Daily Kos, and USDR, along with people like Larry Scott, the rest of us are not going to get hoodwinked into supporting something that will do more harm to the veterans than good.

Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans
by scharrison
Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans Sun Jun 14, 2009 at 11:54:21 AM PDT

As a veteran, my eyes and ears tend to perk up whenever the military is mentioned, whether in the media or even just in casual conversation. I can't help it. And if a politician claims to be "looking out for" or "representing" veterans' interests, I pay even closer attention, because that's one of those things that voters love to hear, but seldom follow up on. Richard Burr has developed a reputation as being "big" on veterans' issues, and I think it's about time we followed up on that.

scharrison's diary :: ::
Before I begin, I want to make sure that everybody understands that our senior Senator from North Carolina has been well-informed on these issues. He's been privy to countless briefings exposing the needs of veterans over the years, so any mistakes he's made can't be attributed to a lack of knowledge. Also, although I usually refrain from linking to (other) blogs because I don't want readers to have to struggle to find primary sources, I'm going to post a few here, because they are concerned voices that deserve to be heard.

Concerned About America's Wounded Warrior Act (11Mar2008)
As a disabled veteran with my fellow California Comrades are most concerned with the provisions of Senator Burr's America's Wounded Warrior Act (S 2674) and Representative Buyer's Nobel Warrior Act (HR 5509). I’m asking veterans to review the proposed drastically changes for disability compensation system for America's veterans. Then ask your Senators and Congress Representative to oppose this legislation.

Let me explain these bills are loosely based on the recommendations of the President's Commission on Care for America's Wounded Warriors (Dole/Shalala Commission), but the specifics of these bills would do great harm to most veterans in the following ways:

go here and read the rest
Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans

And the USDR (Uniformed Services Disabled Retirees) Abel Quinones does exactly that.

For these reasons, among others, I strongly urge you to oppose S2674/HR5509 and any other legislation which is detrimental to and/or discriminatory against this nation's veterans.
go here for more
Concerned About America's Wounded Warrior Act

These are the Bills

Noble Warrior Act
To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes.
previous 110th session of congress
Other Bill Titles (2 more)
Hide Other Bill Titles
Short: Noble Warrior Act as introduced.
Official: To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes. as introduced.
2/28/2008--Introduced.
Noble Warrior Act - Amends federal armed forces provisions to add new provisions concerning the retirement for disability of members of the Armed Forces (members) following the implementation of an enhanced Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation system (implemented under this Act). Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to continue after discharge or separation from active duty respite care and aid and other extended care benefits for members who incur a serious injury or illness while serving on such duty. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Secretary) to conduct a study to determine the appropriate:
(1) amount of compensation for service-connected disability payable to veterans for each assigned rating of disability; and
(2) amounts and duration of transition payments and rehabilitation transition allowances payable to veterans participating in a rehabilitation program. Requires the Secretary to conduct a study on measures to assist and encourage veterans in the completion of their vocational rehabilitation plans. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress a proposal on the purposes and amounts of veterans' disability compensation and veterans' transition benefits. Provides for congressional consideration (by way of a joint resolution) of such proposal. Makes the effective date of implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system the date on which the authority of Congress to disapprove the Secretary's proposal expires, as long as Congress does not disapprove the proposal before such date. Revises the current VA schedule of disability ratings to take into account losses of earning capacity and quality of life as a result of the disability. Provides revised compensation and transition payments in connection with service-connected disabilities. Allows a retired veteran entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability to elect to provide a monthly supplemental survivor benefit to the veteran's surviving spouse and/or children. Authorizes such election by veterans:
(1) at the time of award of the disability compensation;
(2) not married at the time of award of the compensation who later marry; and
(3) married at the time of award of the compensation who later remarry. Allows a veteran to revoke the election of a benefit to a surviving spouse. Provides for the receipt of such benefit on the first day of the first month after the veteran dies. Requires the:
(1) reduction of disability compensation due to the election of the supplemental survivor benefit; and
(2) offset of the supplemental survivor benefit by the amount of dependency and indemnity compensation received.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-h5509/show

America's Wounded Warriors Act
A bill to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes.
previous 110th session of congress
Other Bill Titles (2 more)
Hide Other Bill Titles
Short: America's Wounded Warriors Act as introduced.
Official: A bill to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes. as introduced.
2/28/2008--Introduced.
America's Wounded Warriors Act - Amends federal armed forces provisions to add new provisions concerning the retirement for disability of members of the Armed Forces (members) following the implementation of an enhanced Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation system (implemented under this Act). Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to continue after discharge or separation from active duty respite care and aid and other extended care benefits for members who incur a serious injury or illness while serving on such duty. Directs the Secretary of Defense to conduct a study to determine the number of retired members who will be eligible for medical and dental care following implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Secretary) to conduct a study to determine the appropriate:
(1) amount of compensation for service-connected disability payable to veterans for each assigned rating of disability; and
(2) amounts and duration of transition payments and rehabilitation transition allowances payable to veterans participating in a rehabilitation program. Requires the Secretary to conduct a study on measures to assist and encourage veterans in the completion of their vocational rehabilitation plans. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress a proposal on the purposes and amounts of veterans' disability compensation and veterans' transition benefits. Provides for congressional consideration (by way of a joint resolution) of such proposal. Makes the effective date of implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system the date on which the authority of Congress to disapprove the Secretary's proposal expires, as long as Congress does not disapprove the proposal before such date. Revises the current VA schedule of disability ratings to take into account losses of earning capacity and quality of life as a result of the disability. Provides revised compensation and transition payments in connection with service-connected disabilities. Allows a retired veteran entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability to elect to provide a monthly supplemental survivor benefit to the veteran's surviving spouse and/or children. Authorizes such election by veterans:
(1) at the time of award of the disability compensation;
(2) not married at the time of award of the compensation who later marry; and
(3) married at the time of award of the compensation who later remarry. Allows a veteran to revoke the election of a benefit to a surviving spouse. Provides for the receipt of such benefit on the first day of the first month after the veteran dies. Requires the:
(1) reduction of disability compensation due to the election of the supplemental survivor benefit; and
(2) offset of the supplemental survivor benefit by the amount of dependency and indemnity compensation received.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-s2674/show

Larry Scott over at VA Watchdog was mentioned on this piece because he took aim at anything attached to Dr. Sally Satel. She is also a favorite target of mine. Satel is one of the PTSD deniers that likes to blame the veteran, call them slackers and accuse them of sucking off the system. Yep, that type.