FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

To:                   Secretary Alvin C. Collins

                        Department of General Services

 

From:               Brian R. Moe, Deputy Secretary of State

 Date:               October 1, 2010

           

Re:                   Lowering of the United States Flag and Maryland

State Flag to Half Staff

                        LT (SEAL) Brendan J. Looney, USN

 

This is to advise you that Governor Martin O’Malley has ordered the United States Flag and Maryland State Flag flown at half-staff on Monday, October 4, 2010, from sunrise to sunset.   This is in memory of LT (SEAL) Brendan J. Looney, USN of Owings, Maryland, who died on September 21, 2010 during combat operations in the Zabul province, Afghanistan, while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. 

 

This action is taken under the Protocol for the United States and Maryland State Flag.  Any questions on the above should be directed to the Office of the Secretary of State.

 

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Following important information sent in by Mr. Joseph Loddo at SBA HQ.  PLEASE disseminate widest! This information can result in our folks receiving some financial support.  Information is contained in the attached PowerPoint Presentation. Thank you Mr. Loddo!

 

Subject: Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan (MREIDL)

 

The  US Small Business Administration (SBA) renewed the Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan (MREIDL) for one year.   This loan assistance from SBA is very unique  for several reasons:

 

1.       Loan limit is two million dollars

 

2.       Interest rate: four percent

 

3.       Term of the loan can be up to thirty years

 

4.       When a reservist (key personnel) has been called to active duty then non veteran Business owners and veteran business owners are eligible for the MREIDL

 

5.      Direct loan from SBA

 

If you would enclose the PowerPoint information in your email newsletter then we could let the veteran community know of this important loan program that business owners who employ veterans as well veteran owned businesses could utilize.

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VA News for Friday, October 1, 2010

 

1.      VA To Review Agent Orange Claims Submitted By "Brown Water" Vets. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser (9/30, Cole) reported, "The Department of Veterans Affairs has agreed to review the cases of 16,830 'brown water' Navy and other Vietnam-era veterans whose disability claims related to the herbicide Agent Orange were denied, US Sen. Daniel Akaka's office said." Akaka, who "said...VA denied claims without properly determining whether veterans served in Vietnam's inland waterways, referred to as 'brown water,' or in other locations where they may have been exposed to Agent Orange," had expressed concern about the rejected claims in a letter to VA Secretary Eric Shinseki. According to the Star-Advertiser, Akaka praised VA for agreeing to conduct the case reviews.
     Meanwhile, the syndicated "Military Update" column, appearing in Stars And Stripes (9/30, Philpott), said a recent hearing allowed Shinseki to "explain his decision to add three diseases - ischemic heart disease, Parkinson's disease and B-Cell leukemia - to the list of ailments presumed caused by herbicide exposure in the Vietnam War. He did so, noting how the law directs him to establish presumption of service connection 'without regard to the projected costs or the existence of independent risk factors.' Days after the hearing," a spokesman for Akaka said Akaka is "studying possible improvements to the presumptive disability decision-making process."

 

2.      VA Using Innovation Competition To Develop Pilot IT Projects. In its September-October 2010 issue, Government Health IT (10/2, Buxbaum) magazine said an idea from a Veterans Affairs doctor to display "patients' mug shots prominently" in their electronic charts, in the hopes of ensuring that healthcare providers choose the correct patient records, was "one of 26 winning" ones "submitted in the Veterans Health Administration Office of Information and Technology Innovation Competition announced by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki earlier this year. The department has earmarked $15 million to develop pilot projects with an eye toward an eventual national rollout of the successful ones." According to the magazine, the winners of the innovation competition "sought to incorporate existing technologies to make VA healthcare better."

 

3.      Vet's Mom "Elated" By Congressional Passage Of Burial Legislation. The AP (10/1, Miga) says Denise Anderson, a "Massachusetts mother who lost her only son in Iraq," has "won her nearly two-year fight...to be buried alongside" him. Anderson, who "said in a phone interview Thursday with The Associated Press," that she is "elated" with the result of her effort, was the "driving force behind" the Corey Shea Act, a "bill that Congress approved on Wednesday allowing some parents of fallen soldiers to be buried next to their children in national military cemeteries." Under the bill, which "now goes to President Obama's desk," parents "would be allowed burial space if their deceased veteran sons and daughters," who "must have been killed in battle or in preparation for battle," had "no living spouse or minor children, and if there is available...gravesite" space.

     The Attleboro (MA) Sun Chronicle (10/1, 17K) notes that Anderson, a Massachusetts resident, was Corey Shea's mother, while the Mansfield (MA) News (10/1, Gallotta) points out that a spokesman from the office of Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) "said the act should be signed by the president within about a week." The Boston Globe (10/1, Bender, Fish, 253K) says the bill was sponsored by Kerry and US Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA). WBZ-TV Boston, MA (9/30, 11;10 p.m. ET) broadcast that while the Corey Shea Act "covers national cemeteries managed" by VA, it "does not include Arlington National Cemetery, which is managed" by the US Army.

 

4.      Bill Passed In House Would Require Jobs-Related Drop-Down Menu On VA Website. In its "Death, Taxes & Politics" blog, the Jacksonville-based Florida Times-Union (9/30, Dixon, 126K) noted that on Wednesday, the US House passed a bill that "would require the Veterans Administration to develop a drop-down menu on its homepage to give veterans easier access to job options." The Times-Union said the bill, which "passed on a unanimous 425-0 vote," was sponsored by US Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), who said in a statement that VA's online job portal was "built...without thinking about the customer, our veterans."

 

5.      Congress Approves Extension For Stop-Loss Payment Applications. The Army Times (10/1, Maze, 104K) reports, "Congress is giving service members and veterans a little more time - until Dec. 3 - to apply for the extra pay that is owed them if their active service was involuntarily extended between the 9/11 terrorist attacks and Sept. 30, 2008." The extension for stop-loss payment applications is "part of the stop-gap spending bill that keeps the government running because lawmakers left the Capitol without passing any of the 13 regular appropriations bills needed to fund federal agencies, including the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs Department. Under the temporary spending bill, most agencies will be able to keep spending in the new fiscal year at fiscal 2010 levels."

 

6.      Schwarzenegger Signs Vets Cemetery Legislation. The Salinas Californian (10/1, 14K) reports, "The Central Coast Veterans Cemetery planned for the former Fort Ord got a major boost Thursday," as California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger "signed Assembly Bill 1757 into law." The legislation "allows state money to be released as it becomes available for each phase of the construction project, and it authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs to proceed with design, development and construction as needed." The KSBW-TV Monterey, CA (9/30) website published a similar story."

 

7.      Construction May Start Soon On New Vets Cemetery In Alabama. The WKRG-TV Mobile, AL (9/30, 5:10 p.m. CT) broadcast, "Construction on a new, state-operated veterans cemetery in Baldwin County could begin in less than a month," because on Thursday, county officials said they have been able to acquire all mineral rights from landowners in the area where the cemetery will be built. According to WKRG, the county officials said they will finalize paperwork next week.

 

8.      Virginia AG Distributing Campaign Funds To Several Veterans Support Programs. According to the Roanoke (VA) Times (10/1, Sluss), Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is "giving several veterans support programs," including the "Virginia Veterans Care Center in Salem and the Southwest Virginia Veterans Cemetery in Dublin," the "campaign funds he received last year from an alleged identity thief who ran a suspect veterans charity organization." On Thursday, Cuccinelli "said...he is distributing $55,700 to 'outstanding programs where we know the money will make a positive impact and benefit veterans and their families around the commonwealth.'" The "donations slightly exceed the total contributions Cuccinelli received last year from a man who used the name Bobby Thompson and claimed to be the director of a nonprofit group called the US Navy Veterans Association," which became the subject of investigations by "Virginia and several other states...after news reports raised questions about the existence of its members and how the group spent millions of dollars in reported donations." The "Virginia Politics" blog for the Washington Post (10/1, Helderman, 605K) notes that the Fisher House in Richmond, Virginia, will receive $10,000 from Cuccinelli.

 

9.      VA Chooses Maine, Montana For Project Access Received Closer To Home. The Bangor (ME) Daily News (10/1, Lynds, 50K) says a US Department of Veterans Affairs "pilot program in northern Maine will allow veterans in that region to receive greater access to health care closer to home." In a Thursday announcement, US Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME) "said...that health care services will be contracted with a non-VA provider in Aroostook County. The pilot program, called Project Access Received Closer to Home, or Project ARCH, was included by Michaud in a bill he worked to pass in 2008 called the Veterans' Mental Health and Other Care Improvements Act." The Billings (MT) Gazette (10/1) reports, "Billings has been selected" by VA "as a pilot site" for Project ARCH.

 

10.    White House Apologizes For Denying Tour To Decorated Vet's Family. The AP (10/1) reports, "The White House apologized Thursday for turning the family of a Medal of Honor recipient away from an exclusive tour last week because the late veteran's 10-year-old grandson was wearing shorts." Along with his grandson, the widow of Vernon Baker, the "last surviving black Medal of Honor winner from World War II, were turned away, as was another "winner of the military's top award," Thomas Norris, "because he was not previously cleared for the tour." The AP points out that White House spokesman Adam Abrams said the Baker family and Norris have been invited back to the White House.

 

11.    Event Raises Money For Golden Age Games. According to the Great Falls (VA) Connection (9/30, McVeigh), the "latest edition of Military Appreciation Monday," which "has been going on for the past year-and-a-half," took "place at the Old Brogue Sept. 27, this time with the goal of raising money for the Golden Age Games, a national multi-sport event designed" by the "Department of Veterans Affairs...for 55-and-over veterans." Stephanie Burns, "chief of Voluntary and Recreation Therapy Services" at the VA hospital in Washington, DC, said, "Military Appreciation Monday has really been great for us" because it "gets the veterans out...and brings them to people who really appreciate what they have done."

 

12.    Recent Deaths Contribute To High Suicide Rate At Fort Hood. In continuing coverage, the Washington Post (10/1, Gerhart, 605K) says that while leaders at Fort Hood, a US Army post in Texas, "have tried nearly everything to stop" it from happening, soldiers on the base "keep killing themselves. This past weekend, four more were dead at the Texas post, all of them decorated veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, three of them officers, two of them fathers of young children." According to the Post, the suicide "rate at Fort Hood...is nearly four times that of the civilian population." Fox News' Fox Report (9/30, 7:11 p.m. ET) also aired a report on the suicide problem at Fort Hood and in the rest of the US military.
     Medications Blur Line Between Soldier Suicides, Overdoses. In this week's issue, the National Journal (10/2, Khan, 12K) magazine reports, "The arsenal of medications that many soldiers are prescribed to help them deal with stress, trauma and other demons of war has been linked to a spike in military suicides." While some "soldiers misuse the drugs accidentally -- taking them in fatally large quantities or with other contraindicated medications," there are also some soldiers who "deliberately use the drugs to overdose. In the end, the line between accident and suicide can be hopelessly difficult to discern."
     Concern Expressed About Dangers Of Taking Some Antidepressants. A related story in the same issue of the National Journal (10/2, Dreazan, 12K) magazine says the wife of deceased Iraq veteran Tom Bagosy, who had been taking an antidepressant called Neurontin at the time of his death, "believes that her husband's medication caused, at least in part, his suicide." The widow, however, is "far from the only person to see a link between military suicide and the psychiatric medications that doctors are prescribing to growing numbers of troops." According to the magazine, a July report from the Army's suicide-prevention task force states, "Research needs to be done to determine those specific medications that will reduce anxiety and depression without increasing suicidal risk."
     Report Criticizes El Paso VA's Efforts To Assist High Suicide Risk Patients. On its website, KTSM El Paso, TX (9/30, Rivers) said a "recent report from the Department of Veteran's Affairs criticized the El Paso VA" for not providing a plan to each patient at high risk of suicide. The "local office agreed, and has taken steps to improve the process."
     A separate story on the KTSM (9/30, Ortega) website also briefly took note of the report, adding, "There's new hope for local soldiers suffering" from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), because a "program run by Mental Health Mental Retardation will train clinicians in cognitive processing therapy, or CPT," which is the "preferred treatment for PTSD."

 

13.    Chillicothe VAMC Hosts Assistance Event For Homeless Vets. According to the Chillicothe (OH) Gazette (9/30, Berman, 12K), "homeless veterans found...refuge" Wednesday at the "Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center's inaugural Homeless Stand Down." After noting that vets attending the event received, among other things, "free health screenings" and "housing assistance information," the Gazette added, "In November 2009, US Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki announced an initiative to end veteran homelessness in five years."
     Local Organizations Host Similar Event In Florida. The WJHG-TV Panama City, FL (9/30, Southard) website reported, "The latest statistics show one out of every four homeless men in Northwest Florida is a military veteran. A number of local organizations gathered" together on Thursday at the "3rd annual Homeless Veterans' Stand Down," which provided homeless veterans with numerous opportunities, including the "chance to find jobs."

 

14.    Former POWs Honored At Dorn VAMC. In continuing coverage, the WSAV-TV Savannah, GA (9/30, Hummer, Scarpelli) website reported, "Former prisoners of war and those still missing in action were honored" Thursday with a luncheon at the Dorn Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Columbia, South Carolina. The event was "also held to celebrate National POW/MIA Recognition Day which was officially on September 17, 2010."
     

15.    VA To Open New Care Center In Harlingen, Texas. The KGBT-TV Harlingen, TX (9/30, Vega) said veterans in South Texas will "have a new place to turn to for medical treatment," because the US Department of Veterans Affairs is going to the open a "new state of the art health care facility...in Harlingen." The South Texas Veterans Affairs Health Care Center is "set to open in January of 2011."

 

16.    Vets Ask Canandaigua VAMC To Stop Shutting Down Programs, Services. The Greece (NY) Messenger Post (10/1, Sherwood) reports, "Veterans are petitioning officials to stop shutting down programs and services" at the Canandaigua Veterans Affairs Medical Center, "following what they say is the elimination of a bus service and a ceramics shop at the center on Fort Hill Avenue." On Wednesday, however, a "spokeswoman at the VA...denied the programs had been eliminated."

 

17.    Spokane VAMC, Libby Clinic To Celebrate Partnership.  The Western News (10/1), a paper based in Libby, Montana, reports, "The Spokane Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Libby Clinic will host a reception from 1-3 p.m. Saturday to celebrate their partnership to offer health-care services to veterans in the region. Among those planning to attend the event at Libby Clinic (211 E. Second Ave.) are...Kirby Campbell, Congressional staff member for Sen. Max Baucus; and Bruce Knutson, Congressional staff member for Sen. Jon Tester." Veterans "who need more information about the clinic or VA health-care benefits are encouraged to attend."

 

18.    Following Rain Delays, Vets Hospital Project Resumes Earlier Construction Pace. The Columbia-based Missourian (10/1, Stevenson-Grund, 17K) reports, "Construction of a $25 million project that includes a new operating room at Truman Veterans Hospital in Columbia has resumed its earlier pace after rains caused seven months of delays." The Missourian adds, "The most recent estimate for the completion of the first phase of construction is June 2011, Stephen Gaither of the public affairs office said."

 

19.    VA Hospital To Celebrate Dog, Spread Word About Pet Therapy Program. The Sioux Falls (SD) Argus Leader (10/1) reports, "Area residents are invited to help Allie, a therapy dog, celebrate her sixth birthday on Friday" at Veterans Affairs hospital in Sioux Falls. Those who attend the celebration can also "learn more about the pet therapy program and how to become certified," because dog "owners and their therapy dogs who visit hospitalized and outpatient veterans at the medical center will be present."

 

20.    VA Moves To Aid Chronically Ill Veterans. An op-ed in the Opelousas (LA) Daily World (10/1) by veteran Link Savoie.

 

21.    Matt Kenseth Recovers Over Dover, Salutes Military In DC. An op-ed in USA Today (10/1, 1.83M) by professional race car driver Matt Kenseth.

 

22.    Health Care Center Named After Lovell To Open Friday. The Proviso (IL) Herald (9/30, 3K) published a story that first appeared in the Lake County (IL) News-Sun (9/28, Moran, 14K), under the headline, "Health Center Named For Astronaut Lovell Ready For Liftoff."

 

23.    County Ready To Put Vets' Van Into Use. The Seguin (TX) Gazette-Enterprise (10/1, Maloney, 5K) reports, "Now that Guadalupe County has a van for the purpose, officials are looking for veterans who need rides to medical appointments" at San Antonio Veterans Affairs facilities.

 

24.    Beaumont VA Clinic Donated Van To Help Transport Patients. The KYTX-TV Tyler, TX (9/30) website reported, "Veterans who need health care in Houston got a boost" Thursday from "local organizations who banded together." The Beaumont Veterans Affairs "outpatient clinic accepted the donation of a 12 passenger van to enhance" its "free transportation services for veterans commuting" to the Michael DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston.

 

25.    Disability Fraud Nets Man $800K Fine. The Longview (TX) News-Journal (10/1).

 

26.    Veterans Home Celebrates Birthday. The KTSM-TV El Paso, TX (9/30) website noted that on Thursday, the "Ambrosio Guillen Texas State Veterans Home turned five years old."

 

27.    Disabled Veterans Ride Free On Green Bay Buses. The WBAY-TV Green Bay, WI (9/30) website.

 

28.    Marines Put New Focus On Treating Brain Injuries. The San Diego Union-Tribune (9/30, Kovach, 264K).

 

29.    The Fundraising Cup Overflows For Hero Brendan Marrocco. The Staten Island (NY) Advance (9/30, Harrell).

 

30.    Remember Our Boys. The New York Daily News (9/30, Hirshon, 527K) notes that on Saturday, two mothers who both lost sons in Iraq will "host a unique tribute on Long Island for fallen soldiers from across the state who have died in the war on terror. Mourning friends and relatives will read 258 names of the state's lost veterans during the 3 p.m. ceremony," which will be held at "Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, L.I."

 

31.    Elizabeth's War. The Charlotte (NC) Observer (10/1, Leland, 179K).

 

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