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Veterans
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WASHINGTON, DC – The Department of Veterans Affairs partnered with the First Army at Camp Shelby, Miss., to launch a streamlined version of its online application for VA health benefits (VA Form 1010EZ) for servicemembers returning from deployment.
VA will introduce it at demobilization sites nationwide by early spring 2012.
“This online application demonstrates VA’s commitment to work with the Department of Defense to make it easier for servicemembers to get the care they earned by their service,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “The new, online system noticeably reduces the paperwork and reduces a 10-day process to three days.”
The application is used to enroll in the VA health care system, which has more than 1,000 sites of care across the country.
Enrollment for VA health care is done as part of a servicemember’s demobilization.
The online form allows the application to be completed during a regularly scheduled briefing for all servicemembers on VA benefits.
Quick enrollment is important for returning troops because recently discharged combat veterans are eligible for five years of cost-free care and medications for conditions potentially related to combat service.
The new application was piloted as part of the demobilization process at Camp Shelby.
Based on the results, VA plans to collaborate with DoD to offer this online application at all 61 demobilization sites nationally.
For more information, servicemembers may contact VA at 1-877-222 VETS (8387) or visit VA’s health eligibility website at www.va.gov/healthbenefits.
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WASHINGTON, DC – On Feb. 1, the Department of Veterans Affairs marked the one-year anniversary of the toll-free National VA Caregiver Support Line, 1-855-260-3274.
The support line’s dedicated staff has helped more than 25,000 veterans, family members and Caregivers connect to resources and receive access to services they have earned.
“VA recognizes the importance of caregivers to our veterans’ health and well being. We also recognize the sacrifices the daily care of their beloved veteran requires,” said VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki. “It is the care and commitment of caregivers that allows veterans with chronic illnesses or severe injuries to remain in the homes they defended, surrounded by the loved ones they hold dear. I am proud we have been able to help so many caregivers in this first year of the support line’s operation.”
Since the program began, the Caregiver Support Line has received more than 25,000 calls and email queries through VA’s main page www.va.gov.
Local caregiver support coordinators at each VA medical center have responded to more than 8,000 referrals. Callers to the support line are spouses, children, other family members and friends of Veterans as well as veterans themselves.
Caregiver Support Line responders listen to the callers and assess how best to offer support, appropriate direction and connection to needed resources.
Responders serve as a resource for caregivers by providing guidance, education on VA programs and benefits, information on community resources and emotional support through brief supportive counseling, if needed.
The support line responders can also connect callers to VA’s other support lines such as the VA Veteran Crisis Line (1-800-273-8255) and Coaching Into Care Line (1-888-823-7458) when these lines better meet the callers needs.
“Caregivers play such a critical role in the lives of our nation’s veterans, often at great cost to themselves. VA recognizes this sacrifice and the Caregiver Support Line is just one way we seek to support caregivers,” said Deborah Amdur, VA’s Chief Consultant for Care Management and Social Work. “Caregivers often give so much of themselves and the social workers on the support line recognize this. They understand the challenges faced by caregivers and are able to offer a listening ear, education and connection with needed resources.”
If a caregiver or veteran who calls the line needs additional guidance, a referral is made to their local caregiver support coordinator, located at every VA medical center, who is the key contact for caregivers at VA and an expert in VA and community programs available to veterans and their family caregivers.
Veterans and caregivers can reach the VA Caregiver Support Line toll free at 855-260-3274. Operating hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., Eastern Time, and 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Eastern Time on Saturdays.
VA also features a Web page, www.caregiver.va.gov, with general information on other caregiver support programs available through VA and the community.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Air Force Airman Anthony R. Silva has graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas.
The airman completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills.
Airmen who complete basic training earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force.
Silva is the son of Tammi Silva of Palm Drive, Lakeport, Calif.
He is a 2010 graduate of Clear Lake High School in Lakeport, Calif.
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WASHINGTON, DC – The Department of Veterans Affairs has published a regulation officially amending VA’s medical benefits package to include up to seven days of medical care for newborns delivered by women veterans who are receiving VA maternity care benefits.
“The regulation change makes formal the commitment VA made to women veterans,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Erik K. Shinseki. “This falls in line with the broad range of services VA is proud to offer women veterans who have served this nation.”
Newborn care includes routine post-delivery care and all other medically necessary services that are in accord with generally accepted standards of medical practice.
The effective date of the rule is Dec. 19, 2011, but the regulation applies retroactively to newborn care provided to eligible women Veterans on or after May 5, 2011.
VA has women veterans program managers at every VA medical center to help women veterans learn more about the health care benefits they have earned with their service.
For more information about VA health care for women veterans, visit www.womenshealth.va.gov.
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“This provision helps ensure eligible veterans continue to get the emergency care they need when VA facilities are not available,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.
The new regulation extends VA’s authority to pay for emergency care provided to eligible veterans at non-VA facilities until the veterans can be safely transferred to a VA medical facility.
More than 100,000 veterans are estimated to be affected by the new rules, at a cost of about $44 million annually.
VA operates 121 emergency departments across the country, which provide resuscitative therapy and stabilization in life-threatening situations. They operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
VA also has 46 urgent care units, which provide care for patients without scheduled appointments who need immediate medical or psychiatric attention.
For more information about emergency care in non-VA facilities, visit www.nonvacare.va.gov.
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The award will be given to an outstanding military child from each Service – Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.
The winners, who each will receive $5,000, will be flown with a parent or guardian to Washington, D.C., for special recognition ceremony on April 5.
Nominations are being accepted online until Jan. 15 at www.OperationHomefront.net/MCOY.
Ideal candidates for the Military Child of the Year Award demonstrate resilience and strength of character, and thrive in the face of the challenges of military life.
They demonstrate leadership within their families and within their communities.
“The sons and daughters of America’s service members learn what patriotism is at a very young age,” said Jim Knotts, chief executive officer, Operation Homefront. “Children in military families understand sacrifice and live with the concept of service. This is what the Military Child of the Year Award honors.”
Nominees must:
Must have valid military ID or currently be enrolled in DEERS.
Must be between the ages of 8-18.
Must be able to travel to Washington, D.C., for the ceremony on April 5.
Finalists must have a background check to confirm the information provided in the nomination and must provide references.
Recipients of the 2011 awards are profiled in the book “Our Youngest Heroes,” available through Amazon.com.
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“I chose to name the department’s new MLPs Montford Point, John Glenn and Lewis B. Puller as a way to recognize these American pioneers and heroes both collectively and individually,” said Mabus. “The courage shown by these Marines helped forge the Corps into the most formidable expeditionary force in the world.”
The USNS Montford Point honors the approximately 20,000 African American Marine Corps recruits who trained at the North Carolina facility from 1942-1949. Their exceptional service prompted President Truman to sign an executive order in 1948 ending segregation in the U.S. military services.
These 20,000 Marines were recently recognized with our nation’s highest civilian honor for distinguished achievement, the Congressional Gold Medal.
The USNS Montford Point will be the first-of-class ship. It is expected to deliver in fiscal 2013 and be operational in fiscal 2015.
The second MLP, the USNS John Glenn, honors Col. John Glenn, a decorated Marine Corps pilot, distinguished astronaut, Congressional Space Medal of Honor recipient and U.S. Senator.
During his time with the Marine Corps, Glenn flew 59 combat missions during World War II and a combined 90 missions over the course of two tours in the Korean War.
The final auxiliary support ship, the USNS Lewis B. Puller, is named in honor of Lt. Gen. Lewis “Chesty” Puller, the most decorated Marine in history and the only one to be awarded five Navy Crosses.
The MLP is a flexible platform that will provide capability for large-scale logistics movements such as the transfer of vehicles and equipment from sea to shore.
It will significantly reduce dependency on foreign ports and provide support in the absence of any port, making it especially useful during disaster response and for supporting Marines once they are ashore.
The MLP in its basic form possesses a core capability set that supports a vehicle staging area, sideport ramp, large mooring fenders and up to three landing craft air cushioned vessel (LCAC) lanes.
The three ships will be constructed by General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. in San Diego.
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The net collective result is 216 fewer reservists activated than the previous week.
At any given time, services may activate some units and individuals while deactivating others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease.
The total number currently on active duty from the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 66,935; Navy Reserve, 4,421; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 10,180; Marine Corps Reserve, 5,220, and the Coast Guard Reserve, 769.
This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 87,525, including both units and individual augmentees.
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WASHINGTON, DC – Veterans of the Persian Gulf War with undiagnosed illnesses have an additional five years to qualify for benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
“Not all the wounds of war are fully understood,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “When there is uncertainty about the connection between a medical problem and military service, Veterans are entitled to the benefit of the doubt.”
A recent change in VA regulations affects veterans of the conflict in Southwest Asia. Many have attributed a range of undiagnosed or poorly understood medical problems to their military services. Chemical weapons, environmental hazards and vaccinations are among the possible causes.
At issue is the eligibility of veterans to claim VA disability compensation based upon those undiagnosed illnesses, and the ability of survivors to qualify for VA’s Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.
Under longstanding VA rules, any undiagnosed illnesses used to establish eligibility for VA benefits must become apparent by Dec. 31, 2011.
The new change pushes the date back to Dec. 31, 2016.
Veterans or survivors who believe they qualify for these benefits should contact VA at 1-800-827-1000.
Further information about undiagnosed illnesses is available online at www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar and www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/oefoif/index.asp.