1. VA Will
Release RFPs For $12 Billion In IT Outsourcing. InformationWeek (7/23, Hoover) reports that the Department
of Veterans Affairs "will ramp up a $12 billion set of IT contracts on
Monday, when it will release the request for proposals for the sweeping
Transformation Twenty-One Total Technology program, or T4. The effort will
include up to $7 billion in spending on IT at the VA over the next five years,
and up to $5 billion set aside to provide services" to other agencies that
need to meet government requirements for contracting work out to small businesses.
In a speech Tuesday to a conference on veteran-owned small businesses, VA
Secretary Shinseki said that the agency has received expressions of interest
from hundreds of IT vendors, has consulted directly with about 240 and drew 320
to a pre-solicitation conference last month.
A Washington Technology (7/23, Lipowicz, 40K) blog adds that
at least seven of the 15 prime contracts to be awarded by VA's T4 procurement
"will be awarded to veteran-owned small businesses, Secretary Eric
Shinseki announced. Four of the Transformation Twenty-One Total Technology (T4)
prime contracts will go to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses,
while three will go to veteran-owned small businesses, a department news
release said." Shinseki estimated that T$ will bring veteran-owned small
businesses contracts worth between $800 million to $1 billion.
2. Texas Will Build
Veterans Cemetery In Corpus Christi. KIII-TV Corpus Christi, Texas (7/23, De La Rosa) reports
the groundbreaking for a state veterans cemetery in the northwestern part of Corpus
Christi. The cemetery, which local veterans had sought since the late 1990's,
received nearly $8.5 million from the Department of Veterans Affairs and is
expected to be completed in about two years.
The website for KRIS-TV Corpus Christi (7/23, Martinez) adds that Texas
presently has three veterans cemeteries. KZTV-TV
Corpus
Christi (7/23, Miles, 11:26 p.m. EDT) also covers the groundbreaking.
3. Veteran
Services Brings Nearly $30 Million To One Pennsylvania County. WKBN-TV Youngstown, Ohio (7/23, Poulton) reports that the
director of the Mercer County, Pennsylvania Veterans Affairs Office, says that
last year veterans there "benefited from nearly $30 million in
expenditures that were made by the US Department of Veteran Affairs." Of
that total $15.2 million was for medical care and $13.1 million was for direct
compensation and pensions.
4. Minnesota
Community Works To Get Veterans Cemetery. The Marshall (MN) News Record (7/24, Adamek) reports that the
commissioners of Fillmore County hope to win a state veterans cemetery for Preston,
and recently traveled to observe the operations of a veterans cemetery in
Little Falls.
5. Ohio
Delegation Urges VA To Establish Consolidated Archive In Dayton. The Dayton Daily News (7/23, Nolan, 115K) reports, "Ohio's
congressional delegation is urging the US Department of Veterans Affairs to
locate a consolidated archive of the department's records in Dayton." A
joint news release from the state's Senators Sherrod Brown (D) and George
Voinovich (R) and OH3 Rep. Mike Turner (R) said that the archive would be
located in two buildings at the Dayton VAMC, if the city is chosen. The article
adds that Minneapolis is also reportedly being considered if a consolidated
archive is approved. WHIO-TV
Dayton
(7/24, 6:35 a.m. ET) also reports the story.
6. Senate Panel
Will Probe Arlington Cemetery; McCaskill Says VA Shows Task Is Manageable. KRCG-TV
Columbia,
Missouri (7/23, 7:02 p.m. ET) reports that Sen. Claire McCaskill will hold
hearings next week in her subcommittee on contract oversight to probe the
"record-keeping disaster at Arlington National Cemetery." She
"says that the Veterans Administration has demonstrated that millions of
gravesites can be located with a little digital know-how, and there is nothing
wrong at Arlington that expertise and software can't fix."
7. Man Accused
Of Collecting Mother's VA Benefits For Years After Her Death. The Sioux City Journal (7/24, Montag) reports that a Sioux City
man "has been charged in court documents with felony theft for allegedly
illegally collecting approximately $90,000 in federal assistance." Charles
Meyers, 61, is of collecting nearly six year's worth of his mother's benefits
from the Veterans Administration after she died in 2003.
8. Air Force
Says Agent Orange Was Never Stored At Texas Air Base. The San Antonio Express-News (7/22, Cantú, 210K) reports that
Vietnam-era herbicide Agent Orange "was never stored at the former Kelly
Air Force Base, local US Air Force officials said." At a July 13 meeting
of area residents advising on cleaning up the site of the former base, now an
industrial park, the question was raised as to whether the chemical had ever
been stored there.
9. New Mexico
Holds Conference For Women Veterans. KRQE-TV Albuquerque (7/23) reports on its website that the
New Mexico Department of Veterans' Services "is presenting the Four
Corners Women Veterans' Conference in Farmington on July 23 which focuses on
issues affecting women military veterans." Topics that will be covered at
the conference include post-traumatic stress disorder and military sexual
trauma. Representatives from the Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center in Albuquerque
will also be there to discuss available veterans' medical benefits and
services, and Dr. Betty Moseley-Brown, associate director of the VA's Center for
Women Veterans, was also scheduled to speak.
10. Paper:
"It's About Time" For VA Registry To Track Hexavalent Chromium
Exposure In Iraq. In continuing coverage, The Oregonian (7/23, Francis, 276K) "Oregon At
War" blog, on the same day that newspaper reported the VA's decision to
establish a registry of US soldiers exposed to hexavalent chromium at Qarmat
Ali, Iraq, is 2003, calls the exposure "frankly, scandalous," adding
that "It's about time."
11. VA Hospital
Offering Help To Vets In Need Of Employment. The website of KGPE-TV Fresno, California (7/23, Arboleda) said that some
veterans are finding "themselves in a fight for a paycheck." The
"biggest resource in the Valley for vets" is the Veterans Affairs
hospital "in Fresno, a place where returning and past veterans can find
help with healthcare and disability benefits, education programs, job training
and counseling. Having a place to go for help is good but getting vets to ask
for help is the difficult part," a point stressed by "VA Vocational
Rehabilitation Specialist Violet Green," who said, "It takes the
courage of a warrior to ask for help."
12. Disabled
Iraqi Veteran Needs VA Action To Claim Habitat For Humanity Home. WCBS-TV
New
York (7/23, Cole, 6:14 p.m. ET) reports that "It's been a long 13-year
battle, and now a disabled Iraqi vet on the brink of getting a new home for his
family of five can't move in because of bureaucratic red tape." Len
Cottrell Jr. served in Korea and Bosnia and did three tours in Iraq before
suffering a disabling brain injury. Waiting to move into a completed Habitat
for Humanity home for a disabled veteran, he's trying to get through a
"mountain of paperwork and a bureaucratic nightmare to get right pay grade
so he can pay the mortgage and call this place home." He says he has been
trying for nine months to get an increase in his disability payment. The
Department of Veterans Affairs said that "we are looking into the issues
raised in this story and will pursue it further."
13. Undocumented
Military Award Claims Could Lead To Public Safety Director's Ouster. The Marietta (GA) Daily Journal (7/24, Camp) reports that
public safety director Mickey Lloyd is under fire for having claimed several
military decorations for which documentation has not been found, and the county
manager has given him until Wednesday to either document the awards or face
termination. A Vietnam-era Navy veteran, Lloyd reportedly filed two separate
military discharge documents in his personnel file; the most recently filed
version lists the Silver Star, two Bronze Star, a Purple Heart and other awards
not included on the version Lloyd originally submitted.
14. Maine
Commemorates Korean War Cease-Fire. The Bangor
(ME) Daily News (7/23, Saucier, 53K) reports that a July 27 ceremony will
be held at the Maine Korean War Memorial in the city marking the anniversary of
the cease-fire that halted the Korean War in 1953.
15. Schoomaker
Says For Mental Health, Troops Need At Least Two Years' "Dwell Time." The Watertown (NY) Daily Times.com (7/23, Heller) reports,
"Soldiers need at least two years at home, if not more, between
deployments to maintain their basic mental health, the Army's top medical
commander said Thursday. Lt. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, commander of the Army
Medical Command, said Army studies suggest that adequate 'dwell time' is even
more critical to mental health than the military may have realized, and that shortened
time at home is contributing to post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental
health problems that have grown during a decade of warfare." The account
notes that Army officials "still are working to achieve a two-year dwell
time across the Army sometime next year."
16. Higher
Incidence Of Mental Health Cases Shows Greater Stress, Resources. WVNS-TV Lewisburg, West Virginia (7/23, Smith) turns to a
mental health specialist at the Beckley VAMC to explain reports that mental
health problems are causing rising numbers of military discharges. Andrew
Caldwell, a Vietnam veteran himself, "points to several issues including a
new interest in mental health that didn't exist in the past, a different
atmosphere in Iraq and Afghanistan, and multiple re-deployments." Further,
mental health resources have increased (the Beckley VAMC has almost 40 mental
health providers) and expanded into areas closer to veterans' homes.
17. Call From
Albany VA Send Police To Possibly Suicidal Upstate Man. WWNY-TV
Watertown,
New York (7/23, 11:03 p.m. ET) reports that there was "a peaceful ending
to a three-hour standoff in Massena," which followed a morning call to
local police from a Veterans Administration clinic in Albany about a suicidal
man, possibly armed with a rifle." After the man was talked out of his
apartment and taken for psychiatric evaluation, police reported finding several
weapons in his apartment.
18. VA Eases Rules On Medical Marijuana Use. The New York Times (7/23, Frosch, 1.09M) reports that the
Department of Veterans Affairs "will formally allow patients treated at
its hospitals and clinics to use medical marijuana in states where it is legal,
a policy clarification that veterans have sought for several years. A
department directive, expected to take effect next week, resolves the conflict
in veterans facilities between federal law, which outlaws marijuana, and the 14
states that allow medicinal use of the drug, effectively deferring to the
states." Although VA physicians will not be permitted to prescribe
marijuana, the policy will no longer mean automatic denial of pain medications
to veterans using medical marijuana in states where it is legal.
WNBC-TV
New
York (7/23, 11:15 p.m. ET) and an LA Weekly (7/23, Romero, 174K) blog also note the policy
change.
19. Station For
VA Hospital Suggested For Newly-Approved San Diego Trolley Line. The San Diego Union-Tribune (7/23, Hawkins, 278K) reports that
the board of directors for the San Diego Association of Governments, a regional
planning group, has "selected the route for a $1.2 billion extension of
the San Diego Trolley north from Old Town to the UCSD campus and University
Town Centre." While the approved route won a unanimous vote over two
alternative proposals, several speakers "speakers encouraged trolley planners
to look closely at adding a stop at the Veterans Hospital near the UCSD
Campus," which is about a block away from the selected route; officials
noted that adding a station there would cost $5 million.
20. VA Dedicates
Clinic In Riverside, California. KGTV-TV
San Diego (7/23) reports that a dedication "was held Friday in Oceanside
for a new Veterans Affairs clinic that will serve as a solution for more than
80,000 military veterans."
20. Tuscaloosa
VAMC Now Has Its Own Service Dog, Eyes Wider Program. The Tuscaloosa News (7/2, Avant) reports that the Tuscaloosa
VAMC now has its "first resident therapy dog," that "will live
at the VA's community living center and belong to its residents." The
VAMC's director hopes to create "a companion dog program specifically for
young veterans who are returning from duty in Iraq or Afghanistan," and
the center "is in the process of applying for grants to pay for the
companion dog program."
22. Charleston
VAMC Gets State-Of-Art Imaging System. WCIV-TV
Charleston, South Carolina (7/23, McLean) reports that the Ralph A. Johnson VA
Medical Center "has added a $1.8 million dollar state-of-the-art PET/CT
imaging system," the first of its kind at the facility and one of the few
in the area.
23. Baltimore
VAMC's Cancer Center Wins Re-Accreditation. Via a PR Web (7/23) release, the VA Maryland Healthcare System
announces that the Baltimore VA Center "has been re-accredited by the American
College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer."
24. Letter
Writers Respond To LATimes Editorial Faulting VA Efforts On Homelessness. One letter to the Los Angeles Times (7/23, 776K) disputes a recent editorial
in the paper challenging VA Secretary Shinseki to do more on veterans'
homelessness, while another calls for "a comprehensive plan." Los
Angeles County supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky writes that the Times editorial
"was wrong on two fronts. First, after years of unsuccessful appeals to
the Bush administration to fund the rehabilitation of three underutilized
buildings at the VA, Shinseki used his executive authority to move $20 million
to rehab one of the buildings, committed to funding the seismic rehab of the
other two and provided a path to fund the balance of the refurbishment
next year." In addition, the letter writer faults the editorial's
"implied criticism of federal legislation that prevents the lease of VA
property to the private sector," since it aims prevent privatization, thus
preserving the property for veterans. The heads of two social agencies write to
call for a broad-scale plan and "a stronger sense of urgency," noting
that nearly a quarter of veterans in transitional housing "will need
permanent supportive housing, and others will require a housing subsidy."
25. PTSD
Procedure Changes Are Welcomed. The Bedford (NH) Journal (7/23) welcomes the recently-announced
change in VA procedures for PTSD claims, saying that "some false claims
have undoubtedly been filed, but when it comes to our veterans, we -- as a
nation -- should err on the side of belief. If we deny one legitimate claim
because we fear 10 false claims, that is wrong."
26. Weekend Of
Commemorations In Washington Set For Kin Of Iraq, Afghan War Dead Set. The AP (7/23, Cyr) reported that about 2,000 families of
military members killed in Iraq and Afghanistan "are expected to join a
Weekend of Remembrance activities in Washington. Organizers say the Friday and
Saturday events will be the nation's largest gathering of families of fallen
military members. The group Families United is hosting the event for the second
year."
27. Haley VAMC
Teams With Homeless Center For Stand Down Event. The West Pasco (FL) Suncoast News (7/24, Lowry) reports that
the St. Jude's Homeless Veterans Resource Center, along with James A. Haley
Veterans Hospital and Healthcare for Homeless Veterans Program, will host the
second annual 2010 Stand Down and Homeless Health Fair." The account notes
that over a fifth of Pasco County's 4,500 homeless persons are veterans.
28. Missing
Dementia Patient Returns Safely To VA Hospital. The SF Weekly (7/23, Eskenazi) reports, "Anthony Gardenal,
a 73-year-old dementia patient who loudly stormed out of his assisted care
facility on Saturday, has turned up safe, SF Weekly has learned. Social workers
at the VA Medical center in the city's northwest corner phoned the Araville
Residential Care Home today and informed him that Gardenal has turned up at the
hospital. His whereabouts for the past week are not known." A caregiver at
the hospital says that Gardenal had only lived there for around two months, and
was "always yelling and shouting."
29. Plans For Veterans
Court Advancing In Youngstown, Ohio. WFMJ-TV
Youngstown, Ohio (7/23) reports that the effort to establish a veterans court
in Youngstown "is moving forward and could be operating by the end of the
year. Judge Robert Milich is spear heading the effort to create a specialized
court docket to assist veterans who enter the criminal justice system." A
VA spokeswoman in Cleveland is quoted as saying that, if successful, the Youngstown
effort "really could be a model for the rest of the state."
30. Grass Fire
Ignites Near National Vietnam War Museum. The Mineral Wells (TX) Index (7/23, Cluett, 3K) reports that
sparks from a welder working on a new maintenance shed at the National Vietnam
War Museum ignited a grass fire, which consumed adjoining pastureland but did
not damage the museum.
31. Soldier,
Veterans' Advocate Given Full Military Burial. The Cherokee (GA) Tribune (7/23, 5K) notes the funeral of Jack
Perry Harrison, who was "known statewide for his volunteer work on behalf
of veterans and their families." The Vietnam veteran, after retiring from
the contracting firm he founded, became a full-time advocate for veterans and
is estimated to have assisted veterans with over 4,000 claims.
32. Florida
Foundation Gets $50K Grant For Veterans Memorial. The Orlando Business Journal (7/23) reports that the Central
Florida Veterans Memorial Park Foundation Inc. "has been awarded a $50,000
grant from The Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation Inc. in Winter Park for its
fundraising drive for a Veterans Memorial Park. The park will be located beside
the new Orlando VA Medical Center."
33. Defense
Employees, Contractors Snared In Child Porn Probe. The CBS
Evening News
(7/23,
story 9, 0:35, Couric, 6.1M) reported that, "Documents released today
showed dozens of Defense Department employees and private contractors were
caught with pornographic pictures of children on their computers. Some had
top-level security clearance. Officials say that put them and their agencies at
risk of being blackmailed."