Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 12-15-08

1. Shinseki Planning To Visit Montana If Confirmed As VA Secretary.  
2. VA Found To Have Wrongfully Denied Survivors’ Benefits.  
3. VA Agrees To Reimburse Montana Families’ Burial Costs.  
4. Officials "Bracing" For New Wave Of Vets As Potential Budget Cuts Loom.  
5. VA Planning To Open New Clinics In Maryland, 15 Other States.  
6. VA Reportedly Planning To Build Clinic At Fort Detrick In Maryland.  
7. Warrior Transition Units Help Manage Veterans’ Care Through Employment.  
8. Veteran’s Book "Explains" Marine Life To Civilians.  
9. Land Transfer Deal For New National Cemetery In Arkansas Said To Be Nearing Completion.  
10. Military Veterans Heavily Represented In Red States.

1.      Shinseki Planning To Visit Montana If Confirmed As VA Secretary.   In continuing coverage, the KULR-TV Billings, MT (12/14, Gravlee) website noted that retired General Eric Shinseki, who has been nominated to head the US Department of Veterans Affairs, "plans to visit Montana if he’s confirmed." US Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, "invited…Shinseki to the treasure state." Tester, who "said he wants the general to see the struggles that veterans face in a rural state, praised Shinseki, saying, "It’s obvious this guy is a very quality guy and a very capable man to run Veterans Affairs."
      Shinseki Nomination Said To Be Moving At A Rapid Pace.   In the lead story in his "What’s Brewin’" Government Executive (12/15) blog, Bob Brewin reports, "The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee plans to hold a hearing on the presumptive nomination of former Army Chief of Staff Eric Shinseki" for Veterans Affairs secretary. US Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), "chairman of the committee, says he will hold the hearing on Jan. 14, 2009, six days before Barack Obama is sworn in as the nation’s 44th president," so the Senate can act on Shinseki’s nomination "as soon as it is received, potentially the afternoon of Jan. 20. This may just set a new speed record for confirmations, which tend to move through the Senate at a glacial pace. Akaka met with Shinseki on Dec. 10 and told him he considered mental health care a priority." Brewin adds, "I don’t know where Shinseki stands on this issue, but he might want to consult his wife, Patti, who has worked to help children of military families deal with the invisible wounds of war."
      Bush Praises Shinseki.   On its website, ABC News (12/14) published an interview with President George Bush, in which the Bush said that President-elect Barack Obama’s decision to nominate Shinseki for VA secretary "was in many ways a brilliant appointment because Gen. Shinseki served with great distinction and he is an honorable man and cares deeply about the vets." Bush added that Shinseki is "obviously capable of managing entities and the VA is a large entity."
      Shinseki Labeled A "Champion" Veterans "Richly Deserve."   The Houston Chronicle (12/15) publishes an editorial on the Shinskei nomination, saying Obama was "right to choose" him, "right to give America’s beleaguered veterans the champion they so richly deserve."
      Shinseki Urged To Set "Record Straight" On His Stance On Iraq War Plan.   In a Washington Post (12/15, A21) op-ed, Lawrence Di Rita, who served as "special assistant to the secretary of defense from 2001 to 2006," writes, "The announcement that…Shinseki will be" Obama’s VA secretary nominee "has energized one of the most enduring myths of the Bush presidency," but Shinseki "has a chance during his confirmation hearings to set the record straight." According to Di Rita, a "legend has grown" that Shinseki "was a stalwart opponent" of then-Defense Secretary’s Donald Rumsfeld’s war plan for Iraq, but there "is no record of Shinseki having objected" to that plan during its development.
      Helping Vets Suffering From TBI Said To Be An Important Challenge For Shinseki.   In an editorial, the Frederick (MD) News-Post (12/13) said the US "must deal with the consequences" of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) suffered by US troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Such "consequences…are more than confounding for a VA used to dealing mainly with the diabetes-heart-and-lung-disease issues of aging veterans." That is "where the new administration comes in, along with the hope vested in" Shinseki, "its choice to head up the VA."

      Vets In Virginia, North Carolina Urged To Make Their Thoughts Known To New Administration.   The Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot (12/15) editorializes, "With…Obama’s choice of retired Gen. Eric Shinseki as the new head" of the VA, the "status of health care is certain to receive a fresh look. Veterans in Virginia and North Carolina should speak up and tell the new administration what’s working well – and what’s missing still."

2.      VA Found To Have Wrongfully Denied Survivors’ Benefits.   In an article carried by more than 140 media outlets, the AP (12/14, Yen) reports, "Widows of war veterans have been wrongfully denied up to millions of dollars in government benefits over the past 12 years due to computer glitches that often resulted in money being seized from the elderly survivors’ bank accounts." The VA "said Saturday it wasn’t fully aware of the problem," and "pledged to work quickly to give back the pension and disability checks ranging from $100 to more than $2,500 that hundreds of thousands of widows should have received during the month of their spouse’s death." Secretary Peake responded by saying, "This problem must be fixed." According to the AP, Sen. Daniel Akaka, the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee chairman, "confronted Peake about the problem in a letter," and "in response, Peake instructed the Veterans Benefits Administration to update its systems as quickly as possible to prevent future denials of benefits."                                                                                                                                                     Letter From Widow In Hawaii Said To Have Alerted VA To Computer Glitch.   In a related story, the Honolulu Advertiser (12/15, Hoover) reports, "Thanks to" a "71-year-old Maui woman, tens of thousands of widows and widowers of veterans will receive millions of dollars in federal benefits wrongfully denied them." When the US Treasury Department began deducting the amount of the final benefit check issued to Ruby Maile Sasaoka’s husband, Raymond Fusao Sasaoka, from Ruby’s account, she sent a letter to US Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), "who chairs the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Akaka told" VA Secretary James Peake "about the problem." Peake then "instructed the Veterans Benefits Administration to update its systems quickly to prevent future denials of benefits."

3.      VA Agrees To Reimburse Montana Families’ Burial Costs.   The Missoulian (12/14, Moy) reports, "The federal government has agreed to reimburse several families from western Montana who had to wait more than two years to bury their loved ones in the new, much-delayed state veterans cemetery in Missoula. US Veterans Affairs Secretary James Peake agreed on Friday to reimburse six Montana families for a $300 burial fee." The veterans had requested that they be buried in the cemetery, and the delays made their families ineligible for VA burial benefits. Rep. Denny Rehberg "wrote a letter to Peake last week asking the Department of Veterans Affairs to pick up the $300 cost per family for those who died more than two years ago," and said this week that he is "glad to see Secretary Peake was willing to work with me to help these families out."

4.      Officials "Bracing" For New Wave Of Vets As Potential Budget Cuts Loom.   The Baltimore (MD) Sun (12/15, Wood) reported, "In Baltimore and across the nation, officials are bracing for new waves of war veterans to return home — amid worries that federal and state budget cuts will threaten programs that offer a lifeline for those facing health and career problems." Over "1.8 million Americans have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, creating a need for veterans’ services not seen since the World War II generation came home six decades ago," yet "there are just barely enough services to care for their needs. And trouble is brewing. ‘I anticipate we are going to have difficult times,’ said" Maryland Veterans Affairs Secretary James A. Adkins. The Sun notes that 27-year-old Aliyah Hunter, an Iraq veteran from Maryland, was able to get treatment for her post-traumatic stress disorder at the Veterans Affairs medical center in Baltimore.
      UPI (12/15), which publishes a similar story, reported that at the VA medical center in Baltimore, "veterans with a range of issues are treated, including psychiatric ones. ‘People come in who need an overhaul — a tune-up just won’t do,’ said clinical psychologist Larry Smyth, a Vietnam veteran."

5.      VA Planning To Open New Clinics In Maryland, 15 Other States.   In continuing coverage, the Baltimore Sun (12/15) reports, "The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced plans to open new outpatient clinics" in Maryland’s Fort Meade and Montgomery County. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake "said the clinics are part of a plan to establish 31 new clinics in 16 states. Maryland’s community-based outpatient clinics will become operational by 2010."
      Paper Says New Clinics Should Cut Down On Travel, Wait Times For Vets.   The Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot (12/15) editorializes, "Veterans shouldn’t face long waits, or a long drives, to receive the medical care to which they are entitled," but "they’ve faced both obstacles in recent years. Some help is on the way," however, because this month, the VA "announced that 31 new outpatient clinics in 16 states, including one in the Elizabeth City or Edenton area" of North Carolina, "will open by 2010." In "this round of construction, no additional clinics are planned for Virginia. Earlier this year, however, VA officials announced new clinics would open in Emporia, Wytheville and Augusta County in 2009."

6.      VA Reportedly Planning To Build Clinic At Fort Detrick In Maryland.   In a story on projects being developed at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland, the Hagerstown (MD) Herald-Mail (12/15, Platou) reports the US Department of Veterans Affairs "plans to build a…clinic at Detrick next year." Chuck Gordon, a Detrick spokesman, "said he doesn’t know how many employees it will have."

7.      Warrior Transition Units Help Manage Veterans’ Care Through Employment.   The Newark (NJ) Star-Ledger (12/14, Alloway) reports that "nationwide, 10,875 injured and ill troops are in Warrior Transition Units, which the Army created to manage soldiers’ health care after questions arose last year about the poor conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC. Some are recuperating at home, others at army bases." And "last year, the Army began finding other opportunities for injured soldiers, even jobs outside the military. Convalescing soldiers are working for FEMA, US Department of Agriculture, even the Internal Revenue Service." Such programs act as post-military employment training, help the veterans adjust to civilian life, and help treat conditions like PTSD.

8.      Veteran’s Book "Explains" Marine Life To Civilians.   The Terre Haute (IN) Tribune-Star (12/14, Boyce) profiles Nick Popaditch, the author of ‘Once a Marine: An Iraq War Tank Commander’s Inspirational Memoir of Combat, Courage and Recovery,’ a book released in October. Popaditch had originally planned on remaining in the Marines for his entire career, but was medically retired after being severely injured in an RPG attack. He says the book "[explains] a way of life, its family culture and values, that those unfamiliar with the Marines have never experienced."

9.      Land Transfer Deal For New National Cemetery In Arkansas Said To Be Nearing Completion.   The Fort Smith (AR) Times-Record (12/14, Freeman) reported, "After almost 10 years and immeasurable red tape, the decades-old softball park known as Andrews Field will become part of the National Cemetery system and eventually a cemetery addition itself." Cliff Shields, director of the US National Cemetery in Fort Smith, "said he was shipping off the final documentation Friday, and by Monday the Department of Veterans Affairs would have ‘the last piece of paper our Washington, DC, office needs to finalize the land transfer.’ Shields said citizens can look forward to an announcement of the land acquisition in the first quarter of 2009, complete with a formal signing ceremony and speakers from the nation’s capital."

10.    Military Veterans Heavily Represented In Red States.   The Washington Post (12/15, A21, Allen, 696K) reports that until "the end of the draft in 1973" military service "was distributed pretty evenly across regions. But that is no longer true. The residential patterns for current veterans and the patterns of state-level contributions of new recruits to the all-volunteer military have a distinct geographic tilt. And tellingly, the map of military service since 1973 aligns closely with electoral maps distinguishing red from blue states." In 1969, "the 10 states with the highest percentage of veterans were, in order: Wyoming, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, California, Oregon, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio, Connecticut and Illinois." In 2007, "the 10 states with the highest percentage of post-Vietnam-era veterans were, in order: Alaska, Virginia, Hawaii, Washington, Wyoming, Maine, South Carolina, Montana, Maryland and Georgia."