From: Wayne Gatewood, Jr 
Subject: Veterans News for Friday , July 6, 2012 

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9.     Independence For Homeless Female Veterans.  Washington Times Lynda C. Davis, former deputy undersecretary of defense for military community and family policy, noted, "The number of homeless female American veterans is on the rise (from 4 percent in 1990 to 8 percent in 2010) according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report from March." But based on VA Secretary Eric Shinseki's "core conviction that 'no one who has served this nation as veterans have should ever be living on the streets,' the VA offers expanded services for female veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. These include supportive services for veterans' families, housing vouchers, a per-diem program and specialized health care and mental health services." Still, said Davis, everyone should think about how they can help homeless female veterans.

 

10.                        S.C. Approves More Plates Recognizing Military. AP  "Special license plates that recognize South Carolina's veterans, active military personnel and their parents are among dozens of new plate designs authorized by legislators. Two laws passed last month add to the scores of specialty plates issued" by the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles. They "include plates recognizing recipients of military medals, veterans injured in combat and each branch of the Armed Forces."

 

11.                        Sandoval Creates Veterans Affairs Council. Las Vegas Sun  Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval "has created a Council of Veteran Affairs, saying it is 'incumbent upon us as a society to provide the best level of services we can for our veterans.'" The council, which "will hold its first of four meetings before Oct. 15," is "expected to make recommendations for improvements for veterans before Dec. 31, 2013, to the governor." Nevada Office of Veterans Services Director Cabel Cage "will be chairman of the council."

 

12.                        Vets Seek Repair Of Abandoned Philippine Cemetery. AP  "American war veterans in the Philippines are urging the US Congress to pass a bill that would require Washington to repair and maintain a cemetery north of Manila where the graves of thousands of American servicemen and dependents have been covered in ash since a 1991 volcanic eruption. The head of an American veterans' group, Retired Army 1st Sgt. John Gilbert, said Wednesday that the neglect of Clark Veterans' Cemetery is a disgrace to the memory of more than 8,000 US servicemen and their dependents who are buried there." Gilbert "appealed to Americans to help prod the US government to 'right a wrong.'"

 

13.                        Iraq, Afghanistan War Veterans Struggle With Combat Trauma. Huffington Post Veterans who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan are "at risk of a 'downward spiral' that leads to depression, substance abuse and sometimes suicide, as Eric Shinseki, secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, said in a recent speech." Shinseki's agency, which operates a veterans suicide crisis line and "70 mobile outreach vans," is "making a determined and costly effort to reach those who live in remote areas or who may be unaware of VA services." The mental health budget for VA and its mental health staff have both increased in recent years. The Post says VA is "also expanding its secure teleconferencing facilities and expects this year to provide 200,000 mental health consultations with veterans who lack easy access to its outpatient clinics or outreach vans."

 

14.                        Treatment Is Available For Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader The "most common misconception about post-traumatic stress disorder is that there is no effective treatment." But Dr. Matthew Friedman, executive director of Veterans Affairs' National Center for PTSD, is "working to get the word out that it's 'very treatable.'" Friedman is urging vets with PTSD to seek help. The Herald-Leader added, "The Department of Defense and...VA are working more closely to make sure veterans have access to treatment."

 

15.                        VA Pushes For Advanced CDS For iEHR System. FierceEMR "The Department of Veterans Affairs has opted to use a clinical decision support (CDS) system" for the integrated electronic health record (iEHR) system the agency is developing with the Defense Department. In a Federal Business Opportunities notice, VA, "via the Department of the Interior, requested that the D-service interface specifications it wants for its CDS is CDS functionality as a service." FierceEMR adds, "While a preliminary iEHR will roll out in 2014, the pilot programs are running ahead of schedule, according to a Federal News Radioreport."  Government Health IT  CDS is "currently linked with specific vendor electronic health record software and modules. The Interior Department's National Business Center, which is working on behalf of the VA, wants to develop CDS functionality as a service." The center "anticipates awarding a year-long contract in September."

 

16.                        VA Hospital To Test Hundreds For Tuberculosis.  KETV-TV "Hundreds of patients and hospital staff at Omaha VA Medical Center are expected to be tested for tuberculosis after a Creighton University medical student tested positive for the disease while working at the hospital." Staff "members were scheduling those tests starting in August. Officials said it takes that long for TB to develop to where a test can recognize it."

 

17.                        Valley Hospice Announces Details About A Program To Help Veterans.  WTOV-TV  On Wednesday, the Rayland, Ohio-based Valley Hospice "announced a new program designed to help care for America's veterans." The local effort, which is "called A Hero's Salute," is "part of a national campaign called We Honor Veterans. The program is sponsored through the Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization."

 

18.                        Vet Sentenced For Using Falsified Document To Get Disability Benefits.  Hagerstown (MD) Herald-Mail  "A veteran accused of claiming to be a recipient of the Purple Heart and Combat Infantry Badge to obtain disability and retirement benefits was sentenced to serve 10 months in federal prison, US Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld's office said" on Tuesday. The Herald-Mail added, "Ronald Lamont Clements, 44, of Martinsburg is to be placed on three months of supervised release following the prison sentence imposed Monday by US District Judge Gina M. Groh, according to a news release from Ihlenfeld's office."

 

19.                        Repaying The Debt.  Medford (OR) Mail Tribune  33-year-old veteran Tom Gury, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and his family "have been selected for the Habitat for Heroes program by Rogue Valley Habitat for Humanity." After pointing out that Denise James is director of the Rogue Valley Habitat for Humanity, the Mail tribune added, "The Gurys were selected from a pool of veterans and families in partnership with the US Department of Veterans Affairs, she said, noting that Habitat worked closely with the VA's Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center and Clinics in White City." The Habitat for Heroes program, according to the Mail Tribune, "dedicated to helping low-income veterans and their families."

 

20.                        Veterans' Concerns Discussed. Pacific Daily News "Transportation and housing were two concerns raised at a Guam Veterans Commission meeting held at Adelup last week." In attendance at the meeting was Mary McCarthy, a social worker for the Veterans Affairs Pacific Islands Health Care System. McCarthy "said there are currently 30 vouchers for the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program, but all are being used." The Pacific Daily News adds, "The US Secretary of Veterans Affairs has suggested that Guam address its problem of having too few doctors for veterans by working with the Department of Veterans Affairs to sponsor tuition assistance for medical students from Guam."

 

21.                        Texas A&M-S.A. Offers Free iPad Rentals To Enrolled Vets. San Antonio Express-News  On Tuesday, Texas A&M University-San Antonio "announced that service members, veterans, and family members using Post-9/11 GI Bill educational benefits and enrolling for the first time this fall can rent an Apple iPad 2 for free from the school." To take part in the program, students "must be enrolled full time and meet grade-point average requirements. The university is hoping to distribute about 250 iPads in this program to help these students access ebooks and other class resources, said Richard Delgado Jr., the university's manager of military relations."

 

22.                        GI Forum To Provide Job Training To Homeless Vets.  San Antonio Business Journal  Officials with the US Department of Labor have "approved more than $20 million in grants to provide job training to more than 11,000 homeless veterans nationwide." The "American GI Forum National Veterans Outreach in San Antonio will receive $300,000" of that Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program money.

 

23.                        Veteran Estimates He Has Played "Taps" At More Than 3,000 Funerals. CBS Evening News  Retired US Air Force bugler Jari Villanueva, who is "generally considered the nation's leading authority on 'Taps.'" Villanueva "estimates he's sounded the final call at more than 3,000" Arlington National Cemetery funerals. CBS News adds, "Since 1891, 'Taps' has officially been part of all US military funerals and marked the passing of Army privates and US presidents."

 

24.                        Woods A Star In Wheelchair Games. Suffolk (VA) News Herald  "Diana Woods of Suffolk won three gold medals...at the National Veterans Wheelchair Games," which were recently held in Richmond. The "29-year old took first in the shot put, discus and weightlifting events." Woods "said she looks forward to next year when competition will be held in Tampa, Fla."

 

25.                        Weather Not Limitations End Mount McKinley Climb. AP  "Five men all severely wounded in war, including four who had amputations, had to abandon their climb of North America's tallest peak, but say it was weather and not their disabilities that ended the summit attempt." The five men, who were "wounded in wars from Vietnam to Afghanistan," descended "Alaska's Mount McKinley on Monday." The "climb was organized by Disabled Sports USA and its Warfighter Sports program."

 

26.                        Wounded Veterans Trade The Battlefield For The Playing Field. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel  The "Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team, a squad of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who lost limbs to explosions," is "making its first visit to Wisconsin this weekend. The veterans will play three games Saturday at Lakeside Park in Fond du Lac in an event billed as 'Dustup on the Diamond.'" The team was put together by David Van Sleet, "who spent 30 years working with prosthetics" at Veterans Affairs hospitals.

 

27.                        The Enemy Within.  Washington Post  "An investigation by the Air Force into sexual misconduct at its basic-training operations has identified 31 women who have been victimized. Just as troubling is that only one of the women came forward to report the abuse, a startling fact that reflects the pervasive mistrust in the military's handling of sex crimes within its ranks." The Post notes that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta recently "announced a policy change that requires the disposition of serious sex crime cases to be addressed by senior officers," but the Post adds that if that policy "fails to produce real results, the Pentagon must not hesitate to make additional changes," perhaps "empowering military prosecutors to make the final decision on cases or providing a process for victims to appeal decisions not to prosecute."

 

28.                        Stolen Valor: We Must Be Compelled To Punish The Frauds Who Portray Our Military.  Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News

 

29.                        Soldiering On: Army Sergeant Fights Through Rehab After Afghanistan Accident Takes His Limbs.  AP

 

30.                        Volunteers Sought To Take Vets To Hospitals, Appointments. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

31.                        Veterans Answer Special Court's Call For Mentors. Wilmington (DE) News Journal

 

32.                        With Keystone In Limbo, VFW Helps Vets Get Work On Canada's Section.  FOX News