Showing posts with label congress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label congress. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Seniors and disabled veterans, do not assume you will be getting the stimulus check

UPDATE Veterans urgent!


The Internal Revenue Service has set a deadline of May 5 for veterans to register for dependent payouts, after initially saying they would have only two days. But the guidance, along with warnings that veterans who don't complete the form now will have to wait until next year for their stimulus funds, has left some confused and scrambling.

"We have several veterans with no Internet access," one email received by Military.com said. "Are you able to get at least 25 copies of this IRS form mailed to us?" Military.com

UPDATE They changed their minds!


Mnuchin reverses course, won't force seniors to file tax return for coronavirus stimulus check
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration backtracked Wednesday evening on new rules for getting stimulus checks, saying Social Security recipients won't have to file a tax return to receive a payment.

The move is a response to pressure from elderly Americans and senators to rescind guidance issued Monday that said seniors needed to file a return to get the checks of up to $1,200, even if they weren't ordinarily required to file taxes.

Why some Americans may have to file tax returns before they see a coronavirus stimulus check


CNBC News
Lorie Konish
APR 1 2020
KEY POINTS
A $2 trillion stimulus bill passed by Congress last week included checks of $1,200 to $2,400 to be sent to Americans.
In the legislation, the government said it would deploy those payments using information from tax returns, or 1099 forms for others who don’t typically file those documents, such as some Social Security beneficiaries.
New guidance from the IRS said that those who don’t file returns will have to do so in order to get their payments. Now, some lawmakers and advocacy groups are pushing back.

NoDerog | iStock | Getty Images

There may be a catch for individuals who typically don’t file a tax return but are expecting to receive a stimulus check.

They may have to send a return to the government in order to get paid.

New guidance was released on Monday by the IRS, which said there would be “no action required for most people.”

For some, though, that’s not true.

“People who typically do not file a tax return will need to file a simple tax return to receive an economic impact payment,” the IRS stated. “Low-income taxpayers, senior citizens, Social Security recipients, some veterans and individuals with disabilities who are otherwise not required to file a tax return will not owe tax.”

That new information drew strong pushback from certain members of Congress and advocacy organizations, who argue that those individuals should not have to file just to get their money.
read it here

Saturday, February 29, 2020

VA Secretary under IG investigation for dismissing Navy Reserve Lt. assault claim

VA Secretary Under Investigation for Handling of Dismissed Hospital Sex Assault Claim


Military.com
By Richard Sisk
February 28, 2020
Missal's investigation, which could put Wilkie's job on the line, was first reported by The Washington Post. It follows an earlier clash with Wilkie over his claim that Goldstein's complaint of being assaulted last September was "unsubstantiated."
VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General Michael Missal has opened an investigation into allegations that VA Secretary Robert Wilkie sought to dig up dirt on a congressional staffer who filed a complaint of sexual assault at the Washington, D.C., VA Medical Center. Her complaint was ultimately dismissed.

In a letter Thursday to congressional leaders, Missal said he is putting a "high priority" on the investigation into whether Wilkie attempted to discredit Navy Reserve Lt. Andrea Goldstein, who serves on the staff of House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Mark Takano, D-California.
read it here

Monday, February 24, 2020

Rep. Chris Pappas wants answers on why providers are not being paid for taking care of veterans

As VA works through backlog, NH providers waiting for $134M


New Hampshire Union Leader
By Josie Albertson-Grove
Feb 23, 2020
Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH) has been working on the issue as chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. The committee held a hearing on the reimbursement issue on Feb. 12, and Pappas met with Forrest and local providers in Manchester last Thursday.
Manchester Veterans Affairs Medical Center
New Hampshire Union Leader file photo

MANCHESTER — The VA still owes New Hampshire health care providers an estimated $134 million, as the administration digs out from a backlog of claims.

Kevin Forrest, interim director of the Department of Veterans Affairs Manchester Medical Center, said the delayed payments dated back to a contractor who used to administer the VA Community Care Network program.

The network lets veterans use their VA insurance to pay for treatment outside VA hospitals — from other hospitals and small providers like home health aides, therapists and acupuncturists.

Providers complained of widespread delays and errors in payments last year, and the VA brought in a new contractor to process those claims. But the administration is still working through the nationwide payment backlog.

In the two years since Kathy Twombly’s Laconia acupuncture business has been part of the network, she said the VA has at times left her waiting for as much as $10,000. To make matters worse, the VA has switched contractors three times in two years, she said, meaning the way she files claims keeps changing.
read it here

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

"We’re talking about suicide. We just don’t have time to screw around on this.”

As VA combats veteran suicide, a push to expand mental health services and fears of outsourcing


Pittsburg Post Gazette
DANIEL MOORE
Post-Gazette Washington Bureau
January 13, 2020
“The idea is to broaden the places where people can access help. Veterans aren’t accessing resources … and we need to be able to spread that out as far and wide as it possibly can. We’re talking about suicide. We just don’t have time to screw around on this.” Rep. Chrissy Houlahan

WASHINGTON — When Rep. Chrissy Houlahan separated from the U.S. Air Force in the early 1990s, she said she found the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to be “impenetrable,” a poorly understood and possibly unwelcome place.

She suspects the stubbornly high veteran suicide rate today is linked to barriers — be it a long drive, bureaucratic confusion or a cultural divide — that have persisted between the VA and a significant portion of the country.

That’s why Ms. Houlahan, a first-term Democrat representing the Philadelphia suburbs who has spent most of her working life as an engineer and entrepreneur, has put herself on the front lines in Washington to expand mental health care services to hard-to-reach veterans.

Yet one idea she has championed — a grant program for community organizations that may better reach veterans — has touched a nerve with some other Democrats, VA employees and health advocates. They fear that the measure, while well-intentioned, is another step toward privatizing the massive government-run health care system.

The report also included a statistic often cited by the bill’s supporters: Among veterans who died by suicide in 2017, 62% never visited a VA health facility in the previous year.
Concerns about VA privatization are nothing new. Lawmakers have debated for years how to expand services and fix flaws in the VA system while maintaining the quality of care.

“VA’s better than the private sector on mental health. You can’t match it,” said Russell Lemle, who served 25 years as the chief psychologist at the San Francisco VA Healthcare System.
read it here

Fund outreach to get veterans to go to the VA!

After over a decade of trying to get my husband to go to the VA, he finally did. The VA helped save my husband's life. He had seen private psychologists, but they did not understand the difference between a veteran with PTSD and civilians with mental health needs. He got worse until he went to the VA.

Every veteran seeking help from me, is sent to the VA so they can take care of what I cannot help them with. Lives are saved once they know the VA is not their enemy and has a lot to offer...that can, and does, help them live a happier lives.

Saturday, January 4, 2020

Is “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act” more of the same? Probably.

Do reporters read the bills the president signs?


Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 4, 2020

If your email box is like mine, it was full of the latest "plan" to prevent veterans from committing suicide, “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act” but none of them seem to have thought about all the other "plans" or as they put it "efforts" to actually do what they claim the bill will do.

Start with this executive order going back to 2018

January 9, 2018
Trump expands mental health benefits to decrease suicide rates among new veterans
USA TODAY
Donovan Slack

WASHINGTON — President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday to provide more benefits to service members transitioning from the military to civilian life in an effort to decrease veteran suicides.

Veterans who have recently left the military are between two and three times more likely to commit suicide than active duty service members, and nearly 20% of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression.

The order directs the departments of Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs to submit a plan within 60 days to provide “seamless access to mental health treatment and suicide prevention resources.” read it here


That one did about as much good as this suicide prevention bill for police officers in 2019.
A bill sponsored by Sen. Josh Hawley to prevent police officer suicides with expanded mental health services will head to President Donald Trump’s desk.

The bipartisan bill authorizes $7.5 million annually over the next five years for suicide prevention programs and other treatment to assist officers and their families.

Hawley, R-Missouri, introduced the legislation following a Kansas City police officer’s suicide in February. It passed the House by unanimous consent Wednesday afternoon after clearing the Senate without opposition in May.
And yet, President Trump followed the other executive order with another one in March of 2019
The president made the announcement during a signing ceremony for an executive order aimed to address veteran suicides. Roughly 20 veterans per day take their own lives, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In 2016, the suicide rate among veterans was 1.5 times higher than non-veterans, according to the VA. The order creates a new Cabinet-level task force, run by Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, but that also includes the defense, health and human services and homeland security secretaries. The task force's job is to create a "public health roadmap" to improve veterans' quality of life and end veteran suicides. It's unclear what that will look like yet.



In that video you'll hear this
Supporting veterans in distress is a critical priority for our entire administration - everybody in the administration. Last year, I signed into law the largest funding bill for the VA in its history, which included $8.6 billion for veterans in mental health services. I also signed an executive order directing the Department of Defense, Veteran Affairs, and Homeland Security to ensure our veterans have seamless access to mental health care and suicide prevention resources. These efforts focus on veterans the first year after they separate from military service when they are at the heightened-risk area.

There are more but you get the idea. You will also hear a lot more on money and other things they were claiming they would do.

I wonder if anyone bothered to actually read the bill?
President Trump signs Brindisi-authored veteran suicide prevention act
The bill requires the Comptroller General of the United States to “conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, and vacancy rates of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ Prevention Coordinators.” The job of a Suicide Prevention Coordinator is to identify veterans that are high-risk and make sure they receive appropriate care.
Judging by the news reports, no one did, but you can. Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday, the third day of January, two thousand and nineteen

To direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, and vacancy rates of Department of Veterans Affairs suicide prevention coordinators, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Support for Suicide Prevention Coordinators Act”.

SEC. 2. COMPTROLLER GENERAL ASSESSMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES, WORKLOAD, AND VACANCY RATES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS SUICIDE PREVENTION COORDINATORS.

(a) Assessment Required.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, training, and vacancy rates of Department of Veterans Affairs suicide prevention coordinators. Such assessment shall include a determination of—

(1) the extent to which the use and staffing of suicide prevention coordinators varies between Department facilities; and

(2) the extent to which the Secretary provides oversight of suicide prevention coordinators.

(b) Report To Congress.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report containing the findings of the assessment required by subsection (a).
In other words, more of the same we have seen in the last decade.

This one may actually make a difference.
H. R. 5516 To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts with States or to award grants to States to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 19, 2019
Mr. Levin of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts with States or to award grants to States to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Commitment to Veteran Support and Outreach Act”.

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY FOR SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO AWARD CONTRACTS AND GRANTS TO STATES TO PROMOTE HEALTH AND WELLNESS, PREVENT SUICIDE, AND IMPROVE OUTREACH TO VETERANS.
(a) In General.—Chapter 63 of title 38, United States Code, is amended—
(1) by redesignating sections 6307 and 6308 and sections 6308 and 6309, respectively; and
(2) by inserting after section 6306 the following new section 6307:
Ҥ 6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans

“(a) Purpose.—It is the purpose of this section to provide for assistance by the Secretary to States to carry out programs that promote health and wellness, strengthen the coordination, implementation, and evaluation of comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs, and offer a high probability of improving outreach and assistance to veterans and the spouses, children, and parents of veterans, to ensure that such individuals are fully informed about, and assisted in applying for, any veterans and veterans-related benefits and programs (including State veterans programs) for which they may be eligible.

“(b) Contracts.— (1) The Secretary may enter into a contract with a State in order to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance health and wellness programs, comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs, and outreach by the Department and the State (including outreach with respect to a State, county, or other local veterans program).

“(2) As a condition of entering into a contract with a State under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall require the State to submit to the Secretary a detailed plan for the use of any funds provided to the State pursuant to the contract and to meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (c)(4).

“(3) Each contract entered into with a State under this subsection to carry out an activity shall include a requirement that the State carry out the activity through—
“(A) the county veterans service officers of the State; or
“(B) if a county veterans service officer does not exist in the State or exists only in portions of the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal entity as determined by the Secretary.
“(c) Grants.— (1) The Secretary may award a grant to a State to be used—
“(A) to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance—
“(i) health and wellness programs;
“(ii) comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs;
“(iii) outreach activities; or
“(iv) activities to assist in the development and submittal of claims for veterans and veterans-related benefits; or
“(B) to increase the number of county veterans service officers serving in the State by hiring new, additional county veterans service officers.
“(2) A State that receives a grant under this subsection to carry out an activity described in paragraph (1)(A) shall carry out the activity through—
“(A) a county veterans service officer of the State; or
“(B) if a county veterans service officer does not exist in the State or exists only in portions of the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal entity as determined by the Secretary.
“(3) (A) To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a State shall submit to the Secretary an application therefor at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.
“(B) Each application submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include the following:
“(i) A detailed plan for the use of the grant.
“(ii) A description of the programs through which the State will meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under paragraph (4).
“(4) (A) The Secretary shall develop and provide to the recipient of a grant under this subsection written guidance on outcome measures, policies of the Department, and procedures for applying for grants under this section.
“(B) The Secretary shall review the performance of each State that receives a grant under this section and shall make information regarding such performance publicly available.
“(C) In the case of a State that is a recipient of a grant under this subsection that does not meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary, the Secretary shall require the State to submit a remediation plan under which the State shall describe how and when it plans to meet such outcome measures. The Secretary must approve such plan before the Secretary may award a subsequent grant to that State under this subsection.
“(5) A grant under this subsection—
“(A) shall be used—
“(i) to expand existing programs, activities, and services;
“(ii) to hire new, additional county veterans service officers; or
“(iii) for travel and transportation to facilitate carrying out clause (i) or (ii); and
“(B) shall be used to supplement and not supplant State and local funding that is otherwise available.
“(6) A grant under this subsection may be used to provide education and training, including on-the-job training, for State, county, local, and tribal government employees who provide (or when trained will provide) veterans outreach services in order for those employees to obtain accreditation in accordance with procedures approved by the Secretary and, for employees so accredited, for purposes of continuing education.
“(7) A grant awarded under paragraph (1)(A) may be used to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance an activity carried out pursuant to a contract entered into under subsection (b).
“(d) County Veterans Service Officer Defined.—In this section, the term ‘county veterans service officer’ includes—
“(1) a local equivalent veterans service officer; and
“(2) a tribal veterans service officer or tribal veteran representative.
“(e) Funding.— (1) Amounts for the activities of the Department under this section shall be budgeted and appropriated through a separate appropriation account.
“(2) In the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of the Department budget for any fiscal year (as submitted with the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31), the Secretary shall include a separate statement of the amount requested to be appropriated for that fiscal year for the account specified in paragraph (1).
“(f) Authorization Of Appropriations.—There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, $50,000,000 to carry out this section.”.
(b) Clerical Amendment.—The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 63 of such title is amended by striking the items relating to sections 6307 and 6308 and inserting the following new items:
“6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach to veterans.
“6308. Outreach for eligible dependents.
“6309. Biennial report to Congress.”
President Trump is no different than other presidents on this one since we have heard over and over again what they said mattered, but the end result, showed they really didn't bother to change anything other than the name that was going on a repeat bill.

Friday, January 3, 2020

Sergeant First Class Richard Stayskal Military Medical Accountability Act of 2019 claim filed on New Year's Day

Fort Bragg soldier first to file medical malpractice claim against the government


ABC 11 News
By Diane Wilson
January 2, 2020

A new year means the new law named after a Fort Bragg soldier Richard Stayskal is in effect. This new law, The Sergeant First Class Richard Stayskal Military Medical Accountability Act of 2019, paves the way for the military to hold the government accountable for negligence and malpractice by military doctors.
Stayskal along with his attorney Natalie Khawam didn't waste any time and filed a malpractice claim against the government on New Year's Day.

"I filed SFC Richard Stayskal's claim on January 1st, to ring in the New Year," Khawam said. "We're honored that our bill passed in less than a year, especially after 70 years of unsuccessful attempts by many others. We don't want to waste any time pursuing recourse for the Stayskal family. We look forward to helping our Military families seek justice in 2020."

ABC11 first told you about Sgt. 1st Class Richard Stayskal's fight in December 2018. The Purple Heart recipient is stationed at Fort Bragg and lives in Pinehurst with his wife and two daughters. He has stage four lung cancer.
It's a cancer diagnosis that he said should have been caught earlier but was missed by military doctors at Womack Army Medical Center during a routine physical in January 2017.
read it here


Here is the link to the The Sergeant First Class Richard Stayskal Military Medical Accountability Act of 2019

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

We have to hold all of them accountable for veterans suffering

Holding people accountable for veterans in misery!


Wounded Times
Kathis Costos
December 18, 2019

Another case of someone reporting somethings that are wrong. There is no mention of the "contributor" who wrote ‘Parking lot suicides’ at VA hospitals prompt calls for better training, prevention efforts All it has is "Denton Staff Contributor" with a mention of "The Washington Post’s Julie Tate contributed to this report."

The article starts off with this.
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Alissa Harrington took an audible breath as she slid open a closet door deep in her home office. This is where she displays what’s too painful, too raw to keep out in the open.

Framed photos of her younger brother, Justin Miller, a 33-year-old Marine Corps trumpet player and Iraq veteran. Blood-spattered safety glasses recovered from the snow-covered Nissan Frontier truck where his body was found. A phone filled with the last text messages from his father: “We love you. We miss you. Come home.”

Miller was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidal thoughts when he checked into the Minneapolis Department of Veterans Affairs hospital in February 2018. After spending four days in the mental-health unit, Miller walked to his truck in VA‘s parking lot and shot himself in the very place he went to find help.

“The fact that my brother, Justin, never left the VA parking lot – it‘s infuriating,” said Harrington, 37. “He did the right thing; he went in for help. I just can‘t get my head around it.”

At this point, one would assume it would be an important enough report to have been well researched, however it apparently did not deserve careful research.
The most recent parking lot suicide occurred weeks before Christmas in St. Petersburg, Florida. Marine Col. Jim Turner, 55, dressed in his uniform blues and medals, sat on top of his military and VA records and killed himself with a rifle outside the Bay Pines Department of Veterans Affairs.

“I bet if you look at the 22 suicides a day you will see VA screwed up in 90%,” Turner wrote in a note investigators found near his body.
Yet this was not the "most recent" suicide at the VA.

March 14, 2019, again in Florida, Brieux Dash committed suicide at West Palm Beach VA. He hung himself on the grounds.

In April of 2019, two veterans committed suicide in Georgia in two days.

In August of 2019, it happened in North Carolina when a veteran committed suicide in the parking lot.

There were more, but it depends on who is doing the counting because veterans cannot count on anyone to get this right for them. You would think that with all the news reports focusing on this topic, things would change, but no one is ever held accountable for their broken promises.
With more than 50,000 community organizations nationwide also committed to preventing veteran suicide, bill sponsors said their proposed legislation also would allow the VA to work more closely with those groups to reach more veterans and to make sure veterans know about all available resources.
The "contributor to Denton" also got this wrong.
Sixty-two percent of veterans, or 9 million people, depend on VA‘s vast hospital system, but accessing it can require navigating a frustrating bureaucracy. Veterans sometimes must prove that their injuries are connected to their service, which can require a lot of paperwork and appeals.
While it is true that there are around 9 million veterans in the VA system, they are not depending on VA hospitals for their healthcare. The VA released a data sheet for all the veterans collecting disability compensation by states and counties. This chart released in 2017 gives you a better idea of how the 9 million veterans are using their benefits but also a good time to remind people that there are about 20 million veterans in this country, so less than half use the VA.
We no longer have the luxury of trusting what reporters tell us. We should no longer have the patience to wait for someone to be held accountable for all of this.

The last 4 presidents, including the current one, need to be held accountable.  The 100 Senators serving right now need to be held accountable, along with all the others who have been voted out of office. The over 400 in the House of Representatives need to be held accountable, along with all the ones voted out of office. The State representatives, also passing bills and using tax payer funds to pay for services on the local level, need to be held accountable. The 50,000 groups need to be held accountable for all the money they have been getting from Americans pockets. None of that will happen until we hold the media accountable for deceiving the public!

Find something that was reported and is wrong, call the out on it! Nothing will ever change until we demand it!

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Senator McConnell just made the case for his own expulsion

It seems that Senator McConnell is prepared to protect and defend the President over the duty of the Senate to protect and defend the Constitution.
McConnell, then the chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, made it clear he thought the Constitution required the Senate to hold a full trial on the articles of impeachment Clinton was facing for perjury and obstruction of justice, culminating in a vote on whether to convict or acquit the president.
Why should the rules and laws of this nation matter to him now?
McConnell told NBC’s Tim Russert in December 1998 that the Senate had a “constitutional obligation to commence the trial” but that the trial should be short.
Listen to his own words


It seems as if most Americans find McConnell's attitude toward holding this president accountable very troubling.

Fox News Poll: Trump job approval ticks up, views on impeachment steady
The poll, conducted Sunday through Wednesday, also finds 50 percent want Trump impeached and removed from office, 4 percent say impeached but not removed, and 41 percent oppose impeaching him altogether.
You read that right. Half of the American people not only want President Trump impeached...they want him gone from office.

I listened to a lot of the hearings but while the Democrats arrived with facts and experts, the Republicans arrived ready to do battle loaded with BS and insulted the intelligence of the American people.

Defending the President is one thing if he bothered to participate, or even show the process enough respect to turn over evidence that was required. So far, he has denied the American people the right to know the evidence against him, as much as he has denied us the right to see what would support his claims.

It is however, worse that McConnell is OK with all of that now! President Trump has been accused of terrible things and justice demands a fair trial, not someone like McConnell in opposition to what the Founding Fathers put in place so that no one would ever assume the office of the President allows them to be above the law!
The United States Constitution gives the Senate the power to expel any member by a two-thirds vote. This is distinct from the power over impeachment trials and convictions that the Senate has over executive and judicial federal officials. The Senate concluded in 1798 that senators could not be impeached, but only expelled, while conducting the impeachment trial of William Blount, who had already been expelled.
I stayed out of this for too long because I believed that Trump would get a fair trail but when the ones putting him on trial are already saying they are "coordinating with the President" it is time for all of us to speak up!

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Why does the DOD ignore military domestic violence

update Commands Protect Troops and Fail Families in Domestic Abuse Cases, Victims Say


Military.com
By Patricia Kime
19 Sep 2019
For three years, Kate Ranta said she endured escalating abuse at the hands of her husband, Air Force Maj. Thomas Maffei.

The alleged violence began when the couple lived in military housing at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and, she said, became worse after they moved to Florida, where Maffei planned to retire. One day after a fight, she said, Maffei grabbed a gun and the couple's two-year-old and left home, only to return a short time later to convince the police that he was a war veteran who had been injured in an IED blast in Iraq.

It was a lie, Ranta says. Maffei hadn't seen combat and was, in fact, still on active duty, having forged moving orders and leaving his unit in the Washington, D.C., area without retiring. After the incident, she reported him to his command, launching a lengthy Air Force Office of Special Investigations case, which concluded that he should face a court-martial.
read it here

Is military domestic violence a ‘forgotten crisis’?


Military Times
By: Leo Shane III  
September 18, 2019


Wednesday’s hearing included testimony from a series of abuse victims who said their problems were exacerbated by military leadership, instead of receiving help and support.
Members from Fleet and Family Support Center promote the resources they offer to help with managing stress on Nov. 20, 2018, at Portsmouth, Va. (Petty Officer 1st Class Laura Myers/Navy)
House lawmakers are blasting defense officials for allowing domestic abuse to become “a forgotten crisis” in the military, saying not enough has been done to protect victims, punish attackers or even track the issue.

Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., chairwoman of House Armed Services Committee’s personnel panel, said she is looking at possible legislative changes on the topic, to include mandating a higher level of command review for any criminal abuse and required reports on how cases have been handled.

“Military spouses are often isolated, living far from friends or family and unfamiliar with local resources,” she said at a hearing on the topic Wednesday, “It’s unfortunately easy to see how these conditions can make domestic violence possible, more dangerous, and persistent.
read it here

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Disabled veteran kicked out of Florida VA office...as Congressman?

VA secretary, congressman feud over office space inside Florida hospital


Stars and Stripes
By NIKKI WENTLING
Published: September 16, 2019
“It does something good for our veterans while not hurting anybody,” Mast said. “If you really want to understand a problem… you have to get your eyes on it and witness it yourself. I want to have an office in the VA so I can have my eyes on it, so my staff can have their eyes on what’s going right and wrong on a daily basis.”
VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, left, says Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., right, misled the public over Mast's eviction from his congressional office inside a VA hospital.
WASHINGTON – Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie accused a Florida congressman of misleading the public Friday after the lawmaker expressed outrage at being evicted from his congressional office inside a VA hospital.

The VA sent eviction notices to six members of Congress at the end of August, booting them and their staffs out of their offices inside VA hospitals in West Palm Beach and Orlando. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., an Afghanistan War veteran and double amputee who in 2017 opened the first-ever congressional office inside a VA hospital, accused the agency of trying to avoid transparency and accountability.

On “Fox and Friends” last week, Mast referenced a tense exchange between he and Wilkie at a hearing in April, during which Mast pressed the secretary to visit the West Palm Beach VA hospital after a doctor there was shot by a patient.

Following the “Fox and Friends” interview, Wilkie wrote the congressman, alleging he made false implications about the VA’s decision to remove the lawmakers from their offices by the end of December.
read it here

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Over 100 military construction projects on hold to fund Trump's Wall?

update Fort Bragg among N.C. military bases to take $80M hit to fund Trump’s border wall

North Carolina’s military bases will lose about $80 million in planned military construction, according to a list released by the Pentagon on Wednesday of projects across the United States losing funding to build President Donald Trump’s border wall with Mexico. The affected projects in North Carolina include $40 million for a new battalion complex and ambulatory care center at Camp Lejeune, a previously canceled $32.9 million elementary school at Fort Bragg, and a $6.4 million storage facility for the new KC-46 tanker at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. Those projects join cuts at a Florida base nearly destroyed by last year’s hurricane season, a new middle school for Kentucky’s Fort Campbell and a new fire station for a Marine Corps base in South Carolina.

UPDATE Tarps from Florence are still on roofs of hundreds of buildings at Lejeune, New River as Hurricane Dorian arrives

Fahy said following Florence, 345 buildings needed tarps on them. But he said that the Marine bases have made some progress with regards to roof repairs, with many buildings slated to get metal roof replacements. With a nearly $3.6 billion price tag in damages from Florence, the Corps is worried about the additional destruction that may come with Hurricane Dorian.

Maj. Gen. Julian D. Alford, the commander of Marine Corps Installations East, posted on the Camp Lejeune Facebook page that “many of the buildings on our installations are still undergoing repairs and are vulnerable to leaks.”
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More than 100 military construction projects could be put on hold to free up funds for a US-Mexico border wall


Military Times
By: Meghann Myers
Septamber 3, 2019
The funding comes from $1.8 billion each in funds designated for domestic and overseas projects, McCusker said. The 127 projects targeted are not canceled, she added, and are not necessarily going to be put on hold.
The Army Corps of Engineers is slated to replace, or build new barriers, in 11 places along the U.S.-Mexico border. (Dave Palmer/Army Corps of Engineers)
The Pentagon is prepared to fund 175 miles of border wall construction, Pentagon officials said Tuesday, using $3.6 billion in military construction funds that had been designated for 127 projects over the next year.

Officials declined to release a full list of the affected projects until the Pentagon has finished notifying the lawmakers who oversee the districts where they are planned, but said that family housing, barracks or projects that have had contracts awarded or are expected to be awarded in fiscal year 2020 will not be affected.
About 3,000 active duty and 2,000 National Guard troops are currently deployed to the southwestern border helping the Homeland Security Department with surveillance, detention of migrants and processing asylum requests.
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Now you know who is paying for Trump's Wall! It isn't Mexico....no shocker there.

Monday, September 2, 2019

Chairman Takano Congress is doing too much of the wrong things on suicide prevention

Congress is not doing enough to prevent suicides tied to military

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
September 2, 2019

Chairman Takano,
Your video is far from what is necessary to prevent suicides among citizens who served in the military and are currently serving. The rates prove that. They have gone up since the "suicide awareness" efforts began over a decade ago.

How much time do you think Congress should get before before the families show up in Washington or at your offices in your districts?

Suicide Prevention actually means they are being prevented...not simply passing bills that pretend to be any different from the ones that have already been written and funded by all other sessions of Congress before your Chairmanship.


What is not clear is why there has been so little effort in finding out what all of you have gotten wrong before it is all repeated.

What is not clear is why no one has been held accountable for any of it. Not the military when their suicide rates are at an all time high. Not the VA when more veterans are doing their own suicide awareness by committing suicide on VA property. No one, including members of Congress have ever apologized to the families left behind by for this complete total catastrophe.

There are people at the VA who do know what works and why it works, but Congress will not listen to them. There are people in the military who do know what works and why it works, but again, no one listens to them.

Why? Because what works does not cost as much as the drugs being given. It does not cost as much as paying for private mental healthcare providers who do not even begin to understand military culture. Oh, not that their track record was any better in the civilian community they used to serve, since according to the CDC civilian suicides have gone up every year too.

Stop doing too much of the wrong things and calling it suicide prevention, since results prove you wrong. Given the fact that we have had enough evidence of the rise, we also know about the calls to the Suicide Prevention Hotline going up, more calls to 911 and veterans facing off with police officers. It is futile to continue with all that is being redone now, to have results like these.

So please, stop what you are doing long enough to actually listen to different voices. Listen to those who have been out there doing the work that does actually prevent suicides, prevents families from falling apart, prevents veterans from becoming homeless and above all, from losing hope.
Veterans already know how to die. They need to be made aware of reasons to live!

CHAIRMAN TAKANO: VA SHOULD MARK NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION AWARENESS MONTH WITH A NATION-WIDE STAND-DOWN WASHINGTON, DC –

Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) released the following Video Statement to mark the beginning of National Suicide Prevention Awareness month and reiterate his Call For A VA Wide Stand-Down to address the crisis of veteran suicide.
VA stand down
Full text of the Video Statement below:

I am Congressman Mark Takano, Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.

Today marks the beginning of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month-- and with 20 veterans, servicemembers, reservists, and members of the National Guard dying by suicide a day, it’s clear we have a national public health crisis on our hands.

In April, following 3 suicides on VA property in 5 days, I directed this Committee to work in a bipartisan manner to address the national crisis of veteran suicide and made it this Committee’s top priority.

We acted immediately and since then have held hearings, and passed 5 bills to address this crisis.

And yet, with each suicide, it becomes more clear our country is not doing enough. We need new solutions. That’s why I’ve called on VA to institute an immediate nation-wide stand-down to address this crisis.

Over the next 15 days, I’m asking VA to:

(1) Ensure all VA staff are fully trained
(2) Assess facility infrastructure
And
(3) Identify gaps in policies, procedures, and resources
We cannot keep delaying action. Americans must know that key policies are already in place, that VA will enforce them, and trust that senior VA leadership will be held accountable.

Until VA has a top suicide prevention official in place to implement these programs, veterans can’t have confidence in VA’s ability to care for them in a crisis. While Americans should take this month to have real conversations about suicide across this country, I’m asking VA to do more than talk. I’m asking them to back up their policies with clear, concise actions.

If you or a veteran you know is in crisis, you can call the Veterans Crisis Line at 1(800) 273-8255 and press 1, or text 838-255.

We must do more to “be there” for our veterans in crisis.
###
Press Contact
Jenni Geurink (202-225-9756)

Miguel R. Salazar

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Coast Guard, FEMA and TSA budgets hit for Trump's wall during hurricane season?

Homeland Security raids Coast Guard coffers to pay for border programs


The Associated Press
By: Colleen Long
August 27, 2019
"Taking money away from TSA and from FEMA in the middle of hurricane season could have deadly consequences." House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson

Coast Guard Aids to Navigation Team Puerto Rico personnel attach hurricane shutters on Monday in preparation for Tropical Storm Dorian. (Ricardo Castrodad/Coast Guard)


WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security is moving $271 million from other agencies such as FEMA and the U.S. Coast Guard to increase the number of beds for detained immigrants and support its policy forcing asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their cases play out.

The news comes as hurricane season is ramping up and Tropical Storm Dorian is heading toward Puerto Rico.

The sprawling 240,000-person Homeland Security Department includes the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard and the new Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in addition to immigration agencies.

It is not uncommon for unassigned funds to be transferred between agencies under the same department as the fiscal year ends. Last year around the same time, about $200 million was transferred, including $10 million from FEMA that prompted major criticism from Democrats.

Homeland Security officials said in a statement Tuesday they would transfer $155 million to create temporary facilities along the U.S.-Mexico border for holding hearings with the aim of moving asylum cases through the system faster.
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Monday, August 26, 2019

Senate finally worked together to protect disabled veterans during bankruptcy

Trump Signs Bill Protecting Disability Payments for Veterans Who Declare Bankruptcy


Military.com
By Patricia Kime
23 Aug 2019

President Donald Trump signed legislation Friday that prevents debt collectors from seizing veterans' disability compensation if they declare bankruptcy.
U.S. President Donald Trump stands with World War II veterans during a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, Thursday, June 6, 2019. (AP Photo/David Vincent)

The Honoring American Veterans in Extreme Need, or HAVEN, Act extends the same protection for veterans disability payments that's afforded Social Security disability payments: By law, debtors are now not allowed to count these benefits as disposable income subject to seizure during a bankruptcy.

The bipartisan legislation, introduced earlier this year by Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Georgia, in the House and Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, and John Cornyn, R-Texas, in the Senate, passed by voice vote in both legislative bodies and was widely hailed by veterans groups.

"Our disabled veterans should never be penalized for injuries they sustained in service to our country. They have earned their benefits, and it's our duty to stand up for them if they fall on tough times," McBath said.

"By protecting their disability compensation during bankruptcy, we can help [veterans] and their families regain financial stability," Cornyn said after the Senate passed the measure.
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Saturday, August 24, 2019

VA Medical Records of PTSD Veteran Released to Public

update VA Employee Pleads Guilty to Leaking Former Army Officer's Medical Records


HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A Department of Veterans Affairs employee has pleaded guilty to leaking the medical records of Richard Ojeda as the former Army major was running for Congress. Federal prosecutors announced Tuesday that Jeffrey Miller has acknowledged accessing the medical records of six veterans when he was working for the VA's benefits administration.

Ojeda says his VA medical records were stolen, wants answers from government


West Virginia Record
By Chris Dickerson
Aug 23, 2019

HUNTINGTON – A former state Senator and U.S. House candidate says his medical records were stolen from a Veterans Affairs office and used against him in his 2018 congressional campaign.

Richard Ojeda filed a complaint Aug. 22 in federal court asking to have a Department of Veterans Affairs investigation into the matter released. Federal prosecutors said Jeffrey S. Miller, a claims assistant at the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Huntington office, took a photograph of medical records of a public figure on May 17 and sent the photo to someone.

The incident occurred days after Ojeda won the Democratic primary for the open Third District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. That fall, Ojeda lost to Republican Carol Miller in the general election.

In his federal lawsuit, Ojeda says he is the anonymous public figure. He says Jeffrey Miller accessed his medical records for more than two months “without authorization and without any legitimate work-related purpose.”

read it here

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

First female combat veteran running for President reporting for duty...in National Guard

Gabbard takes presidential campaign break for Army National Guard training


By: The Associated Press
  August 13, 2019
Gabbard is the first female combat veteran to run for U.S. president. She was elected to Congress in 2012.
HONOLULU — Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii is taking two weeks off from her 2020 Democratic presidential campaign to participate in Army National Guard training.
Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard speaks at the Presidential Gun Sense Forum, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2019, in Des Moines, Iowa. (Charlie Neibergall/AP)


Gabbard announced the two-week break in a statement Monday. She will return to the campaign trail on Aug. 25.

Gabbard is a major in the Army National Guard who has served in the military for more than 16 years and deployed to Iraq in 2004 and Kuwait in 2008.
read it here

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Senate passed 9 11 responders fund forever

'Put down your swords': Senate passes bill ensuring 9/11 victims fund will never run out of money


NBC News
By Dareh Gregorian and Frank Thorp V
July 23, 2019

"I'm going to ask my team now to put down your swords and pick up your rakes and go home, and hopefully, we don't have to come back," victims' advocate John Feal told his fellow first responders at a news conference later. "What I'm going to miss the most about D.C. is — nothing."

Jon Stewart embraces a crying John Feal, the Sept. 11, 2001, first responder who led the organization pushing for the full extension of the victim compensation fund, just after the bill passed in the Senate on July 23, 2019.Frank Thorp V / NBC News


The Senate passed a bill Tuesday to ensure a fund to compensate victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks never runs out of money — and that first responders won't have to return to Congress to plead for more funding.

The vote came after intense lobbying from ailing 9/11 first responders — including one who died shortly after testifying before Congress last month.

The bill, which was passed by a vote of 97-2, would authorize money for the fund through 2092, essentially making it permanent.

Before the bill's final passage, the chamber defeated two proposed amendments: One, from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, would have restricted the authorization to 10 years; the other, from Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky, would have required offsets for the money spent on the fund.
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Friday, July 19, 2019

Marine Corps tells Duncan Hunter to stop using emblem

Duncan Hunter ordered to stop using Marine Corps emblem in campaign


NBC News
By Mosheh Gains
July 17, 2019


He currently faces federal charges of wire fraud, campaign finance violations, falsifying records and conspiracy. He has pleaded not guilty to all counts and has argued the charges are politically motivated. In June, federal prosecutors alleged in court documents that Hunter had used campaign funds to pursue extramarital affairs with five women while in Congress.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., arrives for a hearing for his upcoming campaign finance trial at federal court in San Diego on July 8, 2019.Mike Blake / Reuters file
The California Republican used the Marine Corps emblem in a campaign mailer that tied his Democratic opponent and two Democratic congresswomen to terror.

WASHINGTON — The Marine Corps has issued a cease-and-desist letter to Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., for using the official Corps emblem and phrase on campaign mailers that link his likely 2020 opponent and two Democratic congresswomen to terror.

In a letter to Hunter obtained by NBC News, the Marine Corps Trademark Licensing Office tells the congressman, "It has come to our attention that your campaign is using the official USMC Eagle, Globe and Anchor (Emblem) and the phrase 'No Better Friend, NO Worse Enemy' (Phrase) as an integral part of your political campaign, namely, on at least one fundraising mailer to your constituents."

The letter, dated Tuesday, demands that Hunter's campaign "immediately remove the Emblem and the Phrase from its mailers, and, without limitation, from all other campaign materials including websites and other instances where the Emblem or the Phrase are being used. We also request that you provide us with a timetable as to your compliance with our requests."
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Tuesday, July 9, 2019

What are veterans really worth to the candidates?

Next President needs to prove what veterans are worth

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
July 9, 2019

Veterans, if your Mom told you that you were special...Mom knows best. You actually are! Surprised? You shouldn't be. The budget of the federal government prove it.

The two of the biggest departments this nation has are the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

The DOD budget was $1.3 Trillion.  The VA budget request for 2020 is $220.2 billion. Yet when it comes to size of both departments, you get the idea that you are even more special. Current military members are less than 1% of the population. Less than 10% of our citizens are veterans, and less than half of you use the VA.

Right now there are 2 Republicans and 24 Democrats who want to become the next President. It seems that everyone is talking about what is either strong or wrong, but no one is talking about what matters to your lives. We are just hearing the same old crap on what they will do for you, but no apologies on what they already did to you.

Let's get honest and shove politics out of the way because as we already know, it is both parties messing up. Congress has had since 1946 to get it right for your sake...and they all failed.
For the 26 some odd...and changing, they want to become the next Commander-in-Chief but all of them should be "chef" considering the strange brew they have been cooking up for veterans while calling it good medicine.

Members of Congress have been telling the American people how bad our healthcare system is...and it is bad. These same folks are telling veterans sending them into this mess is "good for them" and they should be grateful. As to "what" they should be grateful for...no one has an answer.

This is easy, or it should be. Disabled veterans became disabled serving this county. They were promised that their wounds would be treated and they would not have to worry about surviving after they pre-paid for their healthcare with their service.

Now, you'd think that would come with a square deal and it would be delivered. You'd also have to imagine that the folks leading this country are grateful enough to make sure our veterans and current military members were actually honored. Then again, if you do, then you haven't been paying attention to the facts.

The percentage of veterans living in this country is lower than in 1999 when the VA said that 20 veterans a day were committing suicide. They released the the first report in 2012. Back then, the general public had no idea but veterans knew all about it. (In 2000, my husband's nephew was one of them.)

Seven years after the first report, everyone is talking about veterans killing themselves but no one is talking about how it has gotten worse for them to stay alive.

Sure we have the usual problems that have been going on for as long as I've been alive (a very long time) but it got worse with the wrong people advising Trump. 

Fact, he wanted to cut the "unemployable" percentage from senior veterans disability checks because they were too old to work anyway. While the largest percentage of veterans in this country are over the age of 50...they are also the majority of the known veterans committing suicide. Did anyone think about what hearing this did to them?

I can tell you there was a major freak out when veterans thought the one thing they could depend on was that "permanent and total" actually meant that.

Then we have what is going on with the military. Their suicides have gone up too. According to the DOD, suicides hit the largest number in ten years! The other fact is that it has averaged about 500 a year since 2012.

Military families are subjected to not only living on contaminated bases, 126 at last count by the DOD. Military housing has also been harming them because someone thought it was a good thing for them to be handed over to for profit businesses.

Yes, even more horror for those who had been prepared to face the enemy...but did not think they would have to face all this.

When you hear all the people running for the office make them actually answer questions without running away from what they've already done to you! Stop letting them get away with treating you as if you are just like everyone else they can just make a speech to and then get your vote.

MAKE THEM EARN IT!