VA Seeks Temporary Contractor to Help Process Education Claims

VA Seeks Temporary Contractor to Help Process Education Claims



WASHINGTON (Oct. 28, 2009) - On Oct. 21, the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) issued a solicitation for temporary contractor support to
assist in processing the increased volume of education claims received
since implementing the new Post-9/11 GI Bill.



"This contract will assist VA in delivering education benefits to our
Veterans as quickly as possible," said Under Secretary for Benefits
Patrick W. Dunne. "Veterans are depending on VA to provide the benefits
they earned through their service to our nation. We will do everything
in our power to minimize delays for our Veteran-students."



The Post-9/11 GI Bill, which went into effect on August 1, 2009, has
generated an unprecedented number of new applications. When combined
with the standard high volume of school enrollment claims in August and
September (normally, the busiest months for education claims), the
number of claims has exceeded anticipated levels.



The contractor will provide its own work site and personnel to perform
claims processing tasks. Contract staff will validate enrollment
information provided by schools and provide recommendations on claim
status to VA personnel, who will finalize claims decisions and generate
payments (if applicable).



All work will be reviewed and authorized by VA personnel. VA will
provide training on security and claims processing procedures. The
contract personnel will assist in handling the least complex cases,
which allows for rapid implementation of this initiative.



Information about the Post-9/11 GI Bill, as well as VA's other
educational benefit programs, is available at VA's Web site,
www.gibill.va.gov
or by calling
1-888-GIBILL-1 (or 1-888-442-4551).

Groundbreaking Court Decision for Vets With PTSD

A Groundbreaking Court Decision for Vets With PTSD
Wed Oct 28, 2009 9:02am
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- A groundbreaking verdict for accused
Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was decided in Canyon
City, Oregon on October 19 when former soldier Jesse Bratcher, on trial for
murder, was found guilty by reason of insanity. It was the first trial in the
U.S. where a Veteran's PTSD was successfully considered to mitigate the
circumstances of a crime.

Dr. William Brown and Dr. Robert Stanulis from The Bunker Project, who work on
Veteran defense cases throughout Oregon and Washington, provided research and
testimony for Bratcher's attorney who argued that his PTSD and the influence
of the Military Total Institution shaped his actions in the killing of Jose
Ceja Medina. Bratcher believed his girlfriend had been raped by the man he
shot to death. Bratcher is VA rated as 100% disabled due to PTSD he developed
while deployed in Iraq. Bratcher was a model citizen before joining the Army,
with no criminal or juvenile history.

Bratcher strictly adhered to the rules of engagement in Iraq, twice refusing
to fire on civilians. There, he witnessed the death of a friend from an IED
explosion, which commanders reported drastically changed Bratcher's mental
state.
read more here
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS147712+28-Oct-2009+PRN20091028

Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic

Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic from insurgent grenade
by Chris Freiberg

FAIRBANKS — Sgt. Ricardo Montoya didn’t feel anything as the grenade blew up at his feet.

It was May 18, and the 31-year-old father of six was on patrol in Mosul, Iraq, as part of his second deployment to the country.

While most of Fort Wainwright’s 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team was stationed in Iraq’s northeastern Diyala province, Montoya and the rest of Alpha Company from the 1-5 Infantry were attached to another brigade several months earlier and sent further north to Mosul.
read more here
Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic

Girl gang raped at Richmond High School as 20 just watched

I wonder if they would have wanted others to help if it was happening to them?
I wonder if they would have wanted others to help if it was a sister of their's or their own girlfriend?
They were talking about it after as if they were talking about some kind of TV show while she was left alone and unconscious!

The victim was found unconscious under a bench shortly before midnight Saturday, after police received a call from someone in the area who had overheard people at the assault scene "reminiscing about the incident," Richmond Police Lt. Mark Gagan said.

Police: As many as 20 present at gang rape outside school dance
October 28, 2009 9:03 a.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
10 people involved in assault, 10 others watched and offered no help, police say
Richmond, California, police say student was gang raped for over two hours
Former student, 19, and 15-year-old arrested
Victim, 15, remains in the hospital in stable condition

Richmond, California (CNN) -- Investigators say as many as 20 people were involved in or stood and watched the gang rape of a 15-year-old girl outside a California high school homecoming dance Saturday night.

Police posted a $20,000 reward Tuesday for anyone who comes to them with information that helps arrest and convict those involved in what authorities describe as a 2½-hour assault on the Richmond High School campus in suburban San Francisco.

Two teenage suspects have been jailed, but more arrests, as many as 20 total, are expected, according to a police detective.

read more here
As many as 20 present at gang rape outside school dance

Gunmen storm UN guest house in Kabul, 12 dead

Gunmen storm UN guest house in Kabul, 12 dead
By RAHIM FAIEZ and AMIR SHAH, AP

KABUL -Taliban militants wearing suicide vests and police uniforms stormed a guest house used by U.N. staff in the heart of the Afghan capital early Wednesday, killing 12 people — including six U.N. staff. It was the biggest in a series of attacks intended to undermine next month's presidential runoff election.
A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the early morning assaults, which also included rocket attacks at the presidential palace and the city's main luxury hotel.
The chief of the United Nations mission in Afghanistan, Kai Eide, said the attack "will not deter the U.N. from continuing all its work" in the country. One of the six U.N. dead was an American, the U.S. Embassy said.
The two-hour attack on the guest house where some 20 U.N. election workers were staying sent people running and screaming outside, with some jumping out upper-story windows to escape a fire that broke out. One American man said he held off the assailants with a Kalashnikov rifle until guests were able to escape.
read more here
Gunmen storm UN guest house in Kabul