ACLU Wants Probe Into West Los Angeles Veterans’ Facility
February 16, 2011 5:10 AM
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union says the federal government isn’t doing enough to help Los Angeles military veterans.
The ACLU wrote Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, the U.S. Department of Justice and California Attorney General Kamala Harris asking for an investigation into the VA’s stewardship of its sprawling West Los Angeles property.
read more here
ACLU Wants Probe Into West Los Angeles Veterans’ Facility
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Photographer embedded with US soldiers severely wounded by bomb
Blast photographer wounds 'severe'
(UKPA) – 5 hours ago
The family of a London photographer blown up by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan have said in a statement that his injuries are "severe and complex".
Giles Duley, 39, underwent multiple amputations after the blast in Kandahar on Monday last week, before being flown back to the UK.
He had been embedded with US troops when he was critically injured by an improvised explosive device.
He was brought back to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for further surgery, and was said to be in a stable condition on Saturday.
read more here
Blast photographer wounds severe
(UKPA) – 5 hours ago
The family of a London photographer blown up by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan have said in a statement that his injuries are "severe and complex".
Giles Duley, 39, underwent multiple amputations after the blast in Kandahar on Monday last week, before being flown back to the UK.
He had been embedded with US troops when he was critically injured by an improvised explosive device.
He was brought back to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for further surgery, and was said to be in a stable condition on Saturday.
read more here
Blast photographer wounds severe
Psychiatric Center patients warned of hepatitis risk
Patients treated at Rockland Psychiatric Center warned of hepatitis risk
BY JANE LERNER • JLERNER@LOHUD.COM • FEBRUARY 16, 2011
ORANGEBURG — At least one patient contracted hepatitis B at Rockland Psychiatric Center and state officials are testing hundreds more to see if anyone else was infected, possibly through the use of a blood-sample lancing device.
The state Department of Health issued an advisory Tuesday so anyone who was treated at the hospital at the same time as the patient who contracted the disease would get tested.
All 229 people who might have been exposed to blood-borne diseases while they were at the state-run psychiatric center have been identified and contacted, said Jill Daniels, a spokeswoman for the state Office of Mental Health.
Blood tests are being done on those people to see if they were infected with hepatitis B, hepatitis C or HIV while they were at the Rockland hospital. No other cases have been identified yet, Daniels said.
The Rockland Psychiatric Center advisory was the second time in a week that the state warned patients who had been treated at a hospital that they might have contracted a blood-borne disease.
Patients treated at a pain management clinic run by South Nassau Communities Hospital on Long Island were warned that they might have been exposed to hepatitis C.
read more here
Psychiatric Center warned of hepatitis risk
BY JANE LERNER • JLERNER@LOHUD.COM • FEBRUARY 16, 2011
ORANGEBURG — At least one patient contracted hepatitis B at Rockland Psychiatric Center and state officials are testing hundreds more to see if anyone else was infected, possibly through the use of a blood-sample lancing device.
The state Department of Health issued an advisory Tuesday so anyone who was treated at the hospital at the same time as the patient who contracted the disease would get tested.
All 229 people who might have been exposed to blood-borne diseases while they were at the state-run psychiatric center have been identified and contacted, said Jill Daniels, a spokeswoman for the state Office of Mental Health.
Blood tests are being done on those people to see if they were infected with hepatitis B, hepatitis C or HIV while they were at the Rockland hospital. No other cases have been identified yet, Daniels said.
The Rockland Psychiatric Center advisory was the second time in a week that the state warned patients who had been treated at a hospital that they might have contracted a blood-borne disease.
Patients treated at a pain management clinic run by South Nassau Communities Hospital on Long Island were warned that they might have been exposed to hepatitis C.
read more here
Psychiatric Center warned of hepatitis risk
Three Florida doctors and 18 others charged with Medicare scam
3 doctors, 18 others charged in Fla. Medicare scam
By KELLI KENNEDY - Feb 15, 2011 5:25 PM ET
By The Associated Press
MIAMI (AP) — Three doctors and 18 other people were charged Tuesday with billing Medicare for roughly $200 million in bogus mental health services for patients suffering from Alzheimer's and severe dementia.
Prosecutors allege American Therapeutic Corp. and its sister companies faked medication and care charts and paid the owners of assisted living facilities and halfway houses to bring patients to their seven mental health centers for therapy sessions that were never held.
Some patients also cashed in on the scheme by providing their Medicare numbers, while others were "not coherent enough" to demand kickbacks, according to the investigation by the U.S. departments of Justice and Health and Human Services.
read more here
Medicare scaml
By KELLI KENNEDY - Feb 15, 2011 5:25 PM ET
By The Associated Press
MIAMI (AP) — Three doctors and 18 other people were charged Tuesday with billing Medicare for roughly $200 million in bogus mental health services for patients suffering from Alzheimer's and severe dementia.
Prosecutors allege American Therapeutic Corp. and its sister companies faked medication and care charts and paid the owners of assisted living facilities and halfway houses to bring patients to their seven mental health centers for therapy sessions that were never held.
Some patients also cashed in on the scheme by providing their Medicare numbers, while others were "not coherent enough" to demand kickbacks, according to the investigation by the U.S. departments of Justice and Health and Human Services.
read more here
Medicare scaml
UK Army major fired soldiers by email
Fox apologises to soldiers given redundancy by e-mail
Defence Secretary Liam Fox has apologised to 38 soldiers who heard that they were being made redundant by e-mail, including one who is currently serving on the front line in Afghanistan.
Dr Fox said the situation was "completely unacceptable", and also told MPs he regretted the way trainee RAF pilots had discovered they were to lose their jobs.
Having been summoned to the despatch box to answer an urgent question in the Commons from shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy on 15 February 2011, Dr Fox said: "As a result of the Strategic Defence and Security Review and the Comprehensive Spending Review, it has sadly been necessary to plan for redundancies in both the civil service and armed forces.
"At all times this should be done with sensitivity to individuals concerned and with an understanding of the impact this will have on them and their families."
read more here
Fox apologises to soldiers given redundancy by e-mail
Army major who fired soldiers by email 'deeply regrets' what he did
By IAN DRURY, NICK FAGGE and DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 9:24 AM on 16th February 2011
The army major who sacked 38 long-serving soldiers by e-mail forcing a humiliating government apology 'deeply regrets' what he did, it was claimed today.
Career manager Andy Simpson sent the message out to men who had each completed 22 years of duty, sparking outrage from Downing Street.
One victim of the spending cuts – a sergeant major in the Royal Tank Regiment – was on the frontline in Afghanistan when he heard the news.
Read more:
Army major who fired soldiers by email
Defence Secretary Liam Fox has apologised to 38 soldiers who heard that they were being made redundant by e-mail, including one who is currently serving on the front line in Afghanistan.
Dr Fox said the situation was "completely unacceptable", and also told MPs he regretted the way trainee RAF pilots had discovered they were to lose their jobs.
Having been summoned to the despatch box to answer an urgent question in the Commons from shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy on 15 February 2011, Dr Fox said: "As a result of the Strategic Defence and Security Review and the Comprehensive Spending Review, it has sadly been necessary to plan for redundancies in both the civil service and armed forces.
"At all times this should be done with sensitivity to individuals concerned and with an understanding of the impact this will have on them and their families."
read more here
Fox apologises to soldiers given redundancy by e-mail
Army major who fired soldiers by email 'deeply regrets' what he did
By IAN DRURY, NICK FAGGE and DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 9:24 AM on 16th February 2011
The army major who sacked 38 long-serving soldiers by e-mail forcing a humiliating government apology 'deeply regrets' what he did, it was claimed today.
Career manager Andy Simpson sent the message out to men who had each completed 22 years of duty, sparking outrage from Downing Street.
One victim of the spending cuts – a sergeant major in the Royal Tank Regiment – was on the frontline in Afghanistan when he heard the news.
Read more:
Army major who fired soldiers by email
Veterans Say Rape Cases Mishandled
Rape is a crime. Simple. So why is it there are some believing they are above the law? Why would anyone in the military not be able to honor the law? This is the part we all need to face. They believe they can ignore it.
This attitude not only insults females in the military, it insults every female veteran slapping their service with a less than worthy middle finger. It insults every woman in this country especially women seeking protection and justice from a rapists.
They prepare for the fact there will be traumatic events when they deploy but what they are not prepared for is being attacked by their own and then betrayed.
Women go into the military as they have since the beginning of this country, legally or disguising themselves and they will keep going into the military with the same patriotic tug of the heart as males. They will deploy into combat zones and while they are technically not supposed to be in combat roles, they are. With the kind of warfare going on as terrorist tactics remove safe zones, combat comes to them.
Why do they serve? Because they love this country and the rights that are supposed to be protected for all citizens but as they are risking their lives they discover they are sub-citizen to their commanders in the military. Rape is a crime. If these same commanders had a wife, sister or daughter raped by someone in the military or in civilian life, they would not be able to put the rapist criminal above them. So how do these same people justify it when it is a servicewoman under their command?
This attitude not only insults females in the military, it insults every female veteran slapping their service with a less than worthy middle finger. It insults every woman in this country especially women seeking protection and justice from a rapists.
Veterans Say Rape Cases MishandledAnd then we have this study.
February 15, 2011 posted by Veterans Today
WASHINGTON – A group of U.S. veterans who say they were raped and abused by their comrades want to force the Pentagon to change how it handles such cases.
More than a dozen female and two male current or former service members say servicemen get away with rape and other sexual abuse and victims are too often ordered to continue to serve alongside those they say attacked them.
Kori Cioca, 25, of Wilmington, Ohio, speaks about how she was raped while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard
In a federal class-action lawsuit filed Tuesday that names Defense Secretary Robert Gates and his predecessor, Donald Rumsfeld, they want an objective third party to handle such complaints because individual commanders have too much say in how allegations are handled.
The alleged attackers in the lawsuit include an Army criminal investigator and an Army National Guard commander. The abuse alleged ranges from obscene verbal abuse to gang rape.
In one incident, an Army Reservist says two male colleagues raped her in Iraq and videotaped the attack. She complained to authorities after the men circulated the video to colleagues. Despite being bruised from her shoulders to elbows from being held down, she says charges weren’t filed because the commander determined she “did not act like a rape victim” and “did not struggle enough” and authorities said they didn’t want to delay the scheduled return of the alleged attackers to the United States.
“The problem of rape in the military is not only service members getting raped, but it’s the entire way that the military as a whole is dealing with it,” said Panayiota Bertzikis, who is a plaintiff in the lawsuit and claims she was raped in 2006. “From survivors having to be involuntarily discharged from service, the constant verbal abuse, once a survivor does come forward your entire unit is known to turn their back on you. The entire culture needs to be changed.”
Although The Associated Press normally does not identify the victims of sexual assault, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit have publicly discussed the cases.
Bertzikis, 29, of Somerville, Mass., now is executive director of the Military Rape Crisis Center. She says she was raped by a Coast Guard shipmate while out on a social hike with him in Burlington, Vt. Bertzikis complained to her commanding officer, but she said authorities did not take substantial steps to investigate the matter. Instead, she said, they forced her to live on the same floor as the man she had accused and tolerated others calling her a “liar” and “whore.”
read more here
Veterans Say Rape Cases Mishandled
Trauma increases risks for alcohol problems in women
February 14, 2011
By Jim Dryden
Young women who have experienced traumatic events are more likely to become alcohol dependent than those who have not, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Midwest Alcoholism Research Center (MARC), which is housed in the Department of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine.
The MARC involves collaborations among Washington University alcoholism researchers and scientists at the University of Iowa, the University of Missouri-Columbia, the Veterans Administration Palo Alto Health Care System, Arizona State University and Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Australia.
The center is preparing to host the 11th Annual Guze Symposium on Alcoholism, which this year will focus on Trauma and Alcoholism, Findings from studies published in the journals Psychological Medicine and the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs suggest that trauma is an important risk factor for alcohol problems in women.
read more here
Trauma increases risks for alcohol problems in women
They prepare for the fact there will be traumatic events when they deploy but what they are not prepared for is being attacked by their own and then betrayed.
Women go into the military as they have since the beginning of this country, legally or disguising themselves and they will keep going into the military with the same patriotic tug of the heart as males. They will deploy into combat zones and while they are technically not supposed to be in combat roles, they are. With the kind of warfare going on as terrorist tactics remove safe zones, combat comes to them.
Why do they serve? Because they love this country and the rights that are supposed to be protected for all citizens but as they are risking their lives they discover they are sub-citizen to their commanders in the military. Rape is a crime. If these same commanders had a wife, sister or daughter raped by someone in the military or in civilian life, they would not be able to put the rapist criminal above them. So how do these same people justify it when it is a servicewoman under their command?
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Homeless veteran Charles Lee Cummings was not alone
Homeless veteran gets final salute at Plant City funeral
By GEORGE H. NEWMAN | The Tampa Tribune
Published: February 11, 2011
PLANT CITY - A homeless Air Force veteran who served in the Vietnam era had no family or friends at his funeral service.
But in the end, Charles Lee Cummings was not alone.
The staff at Wells Memorial Funeral Home, veterans and others paid a final tribute Thursday to Cummings, who was 68 when he died at Community Care Center.
MacDill Air Force Base provided an honor guard; the Rev. Jim Brady, pastor at East Thonotosassa Baptist Church, delivered the eulogy.
"While one might state that Charles has no family here, I beg to differ," Brady said.
"The family of God is here today. And there are also representatives of Charles' military family. It is often said that a soldier never dies alone. For within his spirit is fixed the memory of times shared with those who, then and now, wear the same uniform as he once proudly wore."
The staff at Wells Memorial, led by Manager Verna McKelvin, made sure that Cummings did not die a forgotten man.
About 30 people – many of them veterans - attended the funeral service for Cummings, who was buried later that day in Bushnell's Florida National Cemetery.
Not much is known about Cummings, who died Dec. 9. He had no home address, and attempts to contact relatives by Wells employees and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office failed.
Cummings was born in Union City, Tenn., and served in the Air Force from 1960 to 1968. Through contacts with veterans agencies McKelvin was able to determine that Cummings was honorably discharged. This was enough to allow a military funeral and burial in a military cemetery.
read more here
Homeless veteran gets final salute at Plant City funeral
More on forgotten veterans funerals
By GEORGE H. NEWMAN | The Tampa Tribune
Published: February 11, 2011
PLANT CITY - A homeless Air Force veteran who served in the Vietnam era had no family or friends at his funeral service.
But in the end, Charles Lee Cummings was not alone.
The staff at Wells Memorial Funeral Home, veterans and others paid a final tribute Thursday to Cummings, who was 68 when he died at Community Care Center.
MacDill Air Force Base provided an honor guard; the Rev. Jim Brady, pastor at East Thonotosassa Baptist Church, delivered the eulogy.
"While one might state that Charles has no family here, I beg to differ," Brady said.
"The family of God is here today. And there are also representatives of Charles' military family. It is often said that a soldier never dies alone. For within his spirit is fixed the memory of times shared with those who, then and now, wear the same uniform as he once proudly wore."
The staff at Wells Memorial, led by Manager Verna McKelvin, made sure that Cummings did not die a forgotten man.
About 30 people – many of them veterans - attended the funeral service for Cummings, who was buried later that day in Bushnell's Florida National Cemetery.
Not much is known about Cummings, who died Dec. 9. He had no home address, and attempts to contact relatives by Wells employees and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office failed.
Cummings was born in Union City, Tenn., and served in the Air Force from 1960 to 1968. Through contacts with veterans agencies McKelvin was able to determine that Cummings was honorably discharged. This was enough to allow a military funeral and burial in a military cemetery.
read more here
Homeless veteran gets final salute at Plant City funeral
More on forgotten veterans funerals
Homeless Vets on the Road to Proper Burials
Updated: Monday, 14 Feb 2011, 7:48 PM EST
Published : Monday, 14 Feb 2011, 7:48 PM EST
By BILL GALLAGHER
WJBK | myFOXDetroit.com
ROCHESTER, Mich. (WJBK) - The remains of four homeless veterans were kept at the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office. No relatives had claimed the bodies.
Through the Dignity Memorial Homeless Veterans Program, an effort began to have them buried at the Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly.
John Desmond, the manger of the Pixley Funeral Home in Rochester, offered to donate coffins and burial preparations. However, his efforts were initially thwarted because he didn't have the Social Security numbers of the homeless vets.
After our story aired, there was an uproar and outpouring of offers to help.
read more here
Homeless Vets on the Road to Proper Burials
Monday, February 14, 2011
Unemployed veterans, congress wants your resumes
Vets can put resumes into Congressional Record
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Feb 14, 2011 15:41:57 EST
An Illinois congressman is promising out-of-work veterans the opportunity to have their resumes published in the Congressional Record, the official record of debate and proceedings for the House and Senate.
He is promising attention, but not jobs.
“Sending me your resume will not get you a job, but it can help force Washington to end the unemployment problem once and for all,” said Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., who launched his effort last week.
Jackson spokesman Andrew Wilson confirmed Monday that the congressman’s intent is to put the resumes into the Congressional Record “in addition to using the stories in floor remarks, speeches, etc.”
The first four people to take him up on the offer are a retired Navy telecommunications expert from San Diego, a former Army supply officer from Burbank, Calif., a retired Air Force technical sergeant from Snow Hill, N.C., and a former Navy radioman from Bradford, Pa.
Their resumes appear in the Feb. 10 Congressional Record as part of Jackson’s effort to call attention to the plight of veterans who are having problems finding work.
“Service to our nation is an honorable profession, and we should honor that service by seeing that every veteran has a job when their service is over,” Jackson said.
“When you risk your life for your country, we should make sure you have a life when you return,” he said. “No veteran should be left questioning how they will feed their family, wondering about their self worth or fretting about their financial future.”
Jackson said veterans who want their resumes published in the Congressional Record should e-mail them to
resumesfromveterans@mail.house.gov
read more here
Vets can put resumes into Congressional Record
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Feb 14, 2011 15:41:57 EST
An Illinois congressman is promising out-of-work veterans the opportunity to have their resumes published in the Congressional Record, the official record of debate and proceedings for the House and Senate.
He is promising attention, but not jobs.
“Sending me your resume will not get you a job, but it can help force Washington to end the unemployment problem once and for all,” said Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., who launched his effort last week.
Jackson spokesman Andrew Wilson confirmed Monday that the congressman’s intent is to put the resumes into the Congressional Record “in addition to using the stories in floor remarks, speeches, etc.”
The first four people to take him up on the offer are a retired Navy telecommunications expert from San Diego, a former Army supply officer from Burbank, Calif., a retired Air Force technical sergeant from Snow Hill, N.C., and a former Navy radioman from Bradford, Pa.
Their resumes appear in the Feb. 10 Congressional Record as part of Jackson’s effort to call attention to the plight of veterans who are having problems finding work.
“Service to our nation is an honorable profession, and we should honor that service by seeing that every veteran has a job when their service is over,” Jackson said.
“When you risk your life for your country, we should make sure you have a life when you return,” he said. “No veteran should be left questioning how they will feed their family, wondering about their self worth or fretting about their financial future.”
Jackson said veterans who want their resumes published in the Congressional Record should e-mail them to
resumesfromveterans@mail.house.gov
read more here
Vets can put resumes into Congressional Record
Vietnam Vet receives Silver Star 40 years late
Veteran Receives Medals After 40 Years
Updated: Sunday, 13 Feb 2011, 5:42 PM MST
Published : Sunday, 13 Feb 2011, 5:42 PM MST
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - From the War Room -- the Army honors several soldiers in Scottsdale on Sunday, one of whom has been waiting more than 40 years for several medals from the Vietnam War.
Luis Molinar accepted awards for his bravery in Vietnam.
“I’m a little overwhelmed. I’m emotional and happy this is happening,” Molinar said.
It was a recognition that had been long overdue.
“To me, this is a closure, a closure of many years in the military and being shot down twice and receiving these awards and recognition,” Molinar said.
On Sunday, Molinar received his Purple Hearts and Silver Star.
“It was a matter of time. I knew this would come, but I wasn't expecting it,” he said.
A pilot during the Vietnam War, Molinar is credited with getting his helicopter back in the air after it was shot down.
read more here
Veteran Receives Medals After 40 Years
Updated: Sunday, 13 Feb 2011, 5:42 PM MST
Published : Sunday, 13 Feb 2011, 5:42 PM MST
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - From the War Room -- the Army honors several soldiers in Scottsdale on Sunday, one of whom has been waiting more than 40 years for several medals from the Vietnam War.
Luis Molinar accepted awards for his bravery in Vietnam.
“I’m a little overwhelmed. I’m emotional and happy this is happening,” Molinar said.
It was a recognition that had been long overdue.
“To me, this is a closure, a closure of many years in the military and being shot down twice and receiving these awards and recognition,” Molinar said.
On Sunday, Molinar received his Purple Hearts and Silver Star.
“It was a matter of time. I knew this would come, but I wasn't expecting it,” he said.
A pilot during the Vietnam War, Molinar is credited with getting his helicopter back in the air after it was shot down.
read more here
Veteran Receives Medals After 40 Years
Will GOP Congress honor VA funding?
We saw veterans suffering and ignored while the GOP held the most seats in congress before but now there are more Tea Party folks like Bachmann not caring about what veterans need. We all know about the backlog of claims and the need to take care of veterans with the usual wounds along with illnesses, the aging population, increase of Agent Orange illnesses topped of with PTSD and TBI. With all of this, when the need is so great, will they honor veterans with their votes or will they betray them with their lip service?
VA Announces Budget Request for 2012
Shinseki Pledges to Continue to be "Good Steward" of Resources
WASHINGTON (Feb. 14, 2011) - In announcing the proposed budget for the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) during the next fiscal year,
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki emphasized "making every
dollar" count in the $132 billion budget proposal for VA.
"We will continue to wisely use the funds that Congress appropriates for
us to further improve the quality of life for Veterans and their
families through the efficiency of our operations," said Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki
"In the current constrained fiscal environment, every dollar counts,"
Shinseki added. "We have put into place management systems and
initiatives to maximize efficiency and effectiveness, and to eliminate
waste."
The budget request for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 must be
approved by Congress before taking effect.
Health Care
The budget request seeks nearly $51 billion for medical care. It would
provide care to more than 6.2 million patients, including nearly 540,000
Veterans of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The budget request also includes almost $1 billion for a contingency
fund and $1.2 billion of operational improvements to manage the
appropriated funds in a fiscally responsible manner.
Major health care provisions include:
* $6.2 billion for mental health programs, including $68
million directly for suicide prevention;
* $344 million to activate newly constructed medical
facilities;
* $208 million to implement new benefits for Veterans'
caregivers;
* Nearly $509 million for research; and
Shinseki noted the department has created "a portfolio of initiatives"
to improve the quality of VA care while making it easier for patients to
access services. Primary care providers will put more emphasis upon
disease prevention and healthy living. New technology - securing
e-mails, social networking and telehealth - will be harnessed to meet
the evolving needs of patients.
For example, in 2010, a daily average of more than 31,000 patients took
advantage of VA's telehome health care. The budget proposal will allow
more than 50,000 people daily to use this innovative, at-home care.
Among the department's operational improvements is a provision that
calls for VA to implement Medicare's standard payment rates, a measure
that will free $315 million for other health care needs.
Benefits
The proposed budget for the new fiscal year includes more than $70
billion in "mandatory" benefits programs, a category consisting mostly
of VA disability compensation and pension payments.
Shinseki reaffirmed his commitment to "break the back of the backlog" of
claims from Veterans for disability compensation and pensions. VA's
goal is to provide Veterans with decisions on their claims within 125
days at a 98 percent accuracy rate by 2015.
Various initiatives support continued redesign of VA's business
processes and development of a paperless claims system to improve the
efficiency of VA's handling of applications for compensation and
pensions. Among the major projects is one to provide Veterans with
streamlined forms to present to non-VA physicians who are evaluating
Veterans for disability benefits, while another new program allows
online application for claims related to exposure to Agent Orange.
Homelessness Prevention
The funding request includes nearly $940 million for specific programs
to prevent and reduce homelessness among Veterans and their families.
This funding is a 17 percent increase over the current budget of nearly
$800 million.
"Homelessness is both a housing and a health care issue," Shinseki said.
"Our 2012 budget plan supports a comprehensive approach to eliminating
Veterans' homelessness by making key investments in homeless and mental
health programs."
Education and Training
The requested budget for "mandatory" benefits programs includes nearly
$11.5 billion for VA education, training, vocational rehabilitation and
employment programs, including educational benefit programs VA
administers for the Department of Defense. Approximately 925,000 people
will receive benefits under these programs. Nearly three-quarters of
the funds will go to recipients of the new Post-9/11 GI Bill.
The budget proposal continues development of an automated Post-9/11 GI
Bill claims processing system that will speed tuition and housing
payments to eligible Veterans.
Information Technology
VA will seek nearly $3.2 billion for the new fiscal year to operate and
maintain its information technology (IT).
"IT is the key to bringing VA into the 21st century," Shinseki said. "It
allows for the efficient delivery of health care and benefits."
A recent independent study found that VA invested $4 billion in medical
IT from 1997 to 2007, which generated $7 billion in savings, mostly from
the elimination of duplicate medical tests and the reduction of medical
errors.
VA has a major role in the development of the "virtual lifetime
electronic record" as part of an inter-agency federal initiative to
provide complete and portable electronic health records for service
members, Veterans, other family members and, eventually, all Americans.
Through a disciplined approach to IT projects, VA transformed its
software development processes, meeting product delivery schedules over
80 percent of the time.
VA is consolidating its IT requirements into 15 major contracts, which
will lower costs and increase oversight and accountability. Seven of
the 15 contracts are set-aside for Veteran-owned businesses, and four of
those seven are reserved for small businesses owned by service-disabled
Veterans.
Construction
Nearly $590 million in major construction is included within next year's
budget request.
"This reflects the department's continued commitment to provide quality
health care and benefits through improving its facilities to be modern,
safe and secure for Veterans," Shinseki said.
The funding proposal provides for the continuation of seven ongoing
construction projects at health care facilities - New Orleans; Denver;
San Juan, Puerto Rico; St. Louis; Palo Alto, Calif.; Bay Pines, Fla.,
and Seattle - plus new projects in Reno, Nev.; Los Angeles and San
Francisco.
Also in the budget request is $550 million for minor construction for
such purposes as seismic corrections, improvements for patient safety,
and enhancements for access and patient privacy.
Additionally, the spending proposal includes funds for a gravesite
expansion project at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in
Hawaii.
National Cemeteries
VA is seeking more than $250 million next year for the operation and
maintenance of its 131 national cemeteries.
The department expects to inter about 115,000 people next year at its
national cemeteries. Nearly 90 percent of the U.S. population is within
75 miles of a VA-run national cemetery or a state-run Veterans cemetery.
For the fourth consecutive time in 10 years, VA's system of national
cemeteries has bested the nation's top corporations and other federal
agencies in a prestigious, independent survey of customer satisfaction.
The fiscal year 2012 budget plan includes $46 million to fund creation
and improvement of state Veterans cemeteries and tribal government
Veterans cemeteries.
Further information about VA's budget proposal for fiscal year 2012 is
available on the Internet at www.va.gov/budget/products.asp.
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