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VA News for Monday, November 1, 2010

1.      VA Issues New Medical Forms To Streamline Claims Process. New Andrews Air Force Base's Capital Flyer (10/28) reprints a VA release announcing the agency's issuance of three new disability benefits questionnaires for physicians of veterans applying for VA disability compensation benefits. Intended to streamline the claims process, the new guides are "a major step in the transformation of VA's business processes that is yielding improvements for veterans as we move to eliminate the disability claims backlog by 2015," according to VA Secretary Eric Shinseki. Shinseki has set the goal of processing all claims by 2015 in fewer than 125 days, with a decision quality rate of at least 98 percent. The first three questionnaires, the first of 79 planned, are designed to tie in with VA's automated health records system and have are available to VA regional office claims adjudicators, and have been place on the Internet for access by private practitioners. The three new guides cover B-cell leukemia, Parkinson's disease and ischemic heart disease, the three new conditions covered under a regulation that took effect October 30 making them presumed eligible for disability claims for Agent Orange exposure.

2.      World Series Game Dedicated To Veterans Initiative. On its website, Major League Baseball (11/1, Newman) notes that it "dedicated Sunday's Game 4 of the 106th World Series to its ongoing role in the Welcome Back Veterans initiative with an all-day effort, honoring and encouraging support of returning military members and their families." After noting that Sunday's events included a "morning appearance by 15 former Rangers and military brass at VA North Texas Health Care System," the website adds, "Welcome Back Veterans is an MLB Charities initiative...designed to support returning Iraq and Afghanistan veterans and their families in helping them make a successful transition to civilian life."
     Former Major Leaguers Visit Vets At VA Facility. The WFAA-TV Dallas, TX (10/31, Norton) website noted that on Sunday, former players with the Texas Rangers, one of the teams competing in this year's World Series, "used their star power to say thanks to some real heroes during a morning visit to the VA North Texas Health Care System facility in Dallas." Major League Baseball "organized the visit and dedicated Game 4 to the vets, who got a few autographs from the array of ex major leaguers." In turn, those players "did their best to convey their appreciation." KDAF-TV Dallas, TX (10/31, 9:09 p.m. CT) also aired a report on the former Rangers' VA facility visit.
     Mobile Vet Center Stationed Outside Stadium During Game. In its "Rangers" blog, the Dallas Morning News (10/31, Mosier , 257K) said that during Sunday's game, the Veterans Affairs Department was going to "have a mobile Vet Center outside" of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas, where Sunday's World Series game was played, "as an outreach to combat veterans needing readjustment help." The website for Texas Cable News (11/1, Mosier) publishes a similar story.

3.      State Suicide Prevention Conference Set For New Hampshire. A Media Newswire release (10/30) announces that the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is pleased to announce a New Hampshire Suicide Prevention Conference will held in Lincoln on November 5. It also notes that the Mobile Vet Center, National Guard and the VA Medical Center "will all be in attendance."

4.      South Carolina Group Gets VA, State Funds To Expand Housing For Homeless Vets. The Charleston (SC) Post Courier (10/31) reports that the Good Neighbor Center, a non-profit providing transitional housing for homeless veterans, "soon will expand to accommodate 14 additional veterans," thanks to a $800,000 expansion being funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the state of South Carolina. The construction is set to begin next month and be finished in six months, according to the group's executive director.

5.      Study: Apnea Usually A Problem For Combat Vets With PTSD. MedPage Today (10/31, Phend) reported, "Combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) almost universally suffer sleep problems -- with more cases of sleep apnea than might otherwise be expected -- US Army researchers found. In a group of 135 young, otherwise healthy combat veterans with PTSD, 98.5% reported sleep complaints, Nick Orr, MD, and colleagues at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center...reported" during the "annual international scientific meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST)."

6.      Former Dallas VAMC Psychiatrist's Effort To Help Vets Noted. The Dallas Morning News (10/31, Horner, 257K) reports, "Over the years, as many as 200 homeless veterans visited Dr. Joel Feiner's cluttered office at the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center." The "outspoken, award-winning Dallas psychiatrist helped transform many" veterans' lives. Feiner "recently retired as medical director of the VA's Comprehensive Homeless Center and as a professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center, making for some tearful goodbyes."

7.      VA Study Finds Gender A Key Factor Post-War Mental Health Issues. AOL News (10/29, Drummond) reports, "According to a new study, a gendered distinction in the mental health problems that plague military servicemembers might help experts identify effective prevention and treatment strategies. Female veterans are more likely to be diagnosed with depression after serving in a war zone, while men appear more prone to post-traumatic stress disorder. The San Francisco VA Medical Center study of 330,000 veterans, all of whom served between 2002 and 2008, found a clear divergence between male and female diagnoses. Female veterans suffering from mental health problems were also, on average, younger than their male counterparts."

8.      VA Holds Women's Summit In Arkansas. KTHV-TV Little Rock, AR (10/30, Abubey, 7:46 p.m. EDT) reports on the first Women's Summit in Arkansas. Coverage begins with Rhonda Norman, a Gulf War veteran who, the reporter says, "has a host of medical problems that serves as a constant reminder." Norman says that there are "a lot of names for my problems: "connective tissue disorder, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, things of that nature." While now receiving care from the local VA hospital, Norman adds that "I fought the VA system for nine years before I could really get somebody to listen that hey, I am disabled and I do have some issues." Also appearing on camera are VA regional director Cheryl Rawls, who says that "Women don't typically don't see themselves as veterans. and women typically when they are done serving, they come back and they go into their traditional roles as the caretaker, and not as a person that should be taken care of." Dr. Betty Brown, the associate director of the VA Women's Center in DC, also appears briefly. The report notes that Arkansas "now has more than 20,000 of the nation's 1.8 million women veterans."

9.      Women's Clinic Opens At DeBakey VAMC. The Montgomery County (TX) Courier (10/30) reports that the Women's Health Center has been moved from the fifth floor of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center to a new, completely renovated space located on the first floor. The new 2,800-square-foot clinic will have seven exam rooms, a larger waiting area and its own private entrance; the "one-stop" women's clinic provides routine primary care, gynecological services, patient education and preventive medicine.

10.    Virginia-Based Company Wins VA Construction Contract. At the end of "Government Contracts Awarded," the Washington Post (11/1, Mizell, 605K) reports, "Gormley/Hi-End Joint Venture of Alexandria," Virginia, "won a $1.5 million contract from the Department of Veterans Affairs for construction of structures and facilities."

11.    Australian Veterans Protest Government's Refusal To Recognize Gulf War Syndrome. The Canberra Times (10/31, Inman) reports that the Australian government "has rejected the pleas of war veterans to recognise the existence of Gulf War Syndrome, thwarting the hopes of hundreds for extra medical aid and compensation. Despite being recognised in both the United Kingdom and the United States, an investigation by the Repatriation Medical Authority, the results of which were announced in the authority's annual report, found the syndrome was not an injury or disease as defined by Veterans' Entitlements Act. Veterans' groups said yesterday they were devastated by the ruling and felt abandoned by the country they had risked their lives to protect." Over 1,800 Australian troops served in the 1990-91 conflict. Radio Australia News (10/31) adds that the Australian government "says it has not denied support to any veterans of the Gulf War, and says 'Gulf War Syndrome' has been fully investigated."

12.    Chicago Area Youth Raises Funds For Honor Flight. The Chicago Daily Herald (10/30, Daday) reports, "A little ingenuity and a desire to help World War II veterans like his grandfather have fueled a novel bar mitzvah project for a Buffalo Grove seventh-grader. He calls it 'goblin insurance.' Just in time for Halloween, 12-year-old Sam Herzog is selling insurance to area homeowners to cover any suspicious trick-or-treat pranks that might turn up on their property this weekend." Asking for donations of $5 or more, he has already raised over $800, which will go to Honor Flight Chicago. The youth got the idea from seeing his grandfather "return to a hero's welcome at Midway Airport after an Honor Flight in August."

13.    Florida Veterans Seek Funds To Bring Vietnam Wall Scale-Model Replica. The Northwest Florida Daily News (10/30, Hughes) reports, "This time next year, north Okaloosa County residents could be paying their respects to fallen war dead at a reproduction of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Fletcher Williams, representing the Crestview's Veterans Affairs committee, told the City Council last week of a proposal to bring the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to Crestview on Oct. 26-31, 2011."

14.    VA To Offer Services To Homeless Vets In Virginia. WVEC-TV Norfolk, VA (10/31, 12:09 p.m. ET) broadcast that on November 13th, at the Y.H. Thomas Community Center in Hampton, Virginia, the US Department of Veterans Affairs will help put on a Stand Down event that will offer services to homeless veterans.

15.    VA Involved With New Vets Court. The Ventura County (CA) Star (10/29, Hernandez) reported, "A new criminal court that will be tailored to hear the cases of veterans who suffer from the effects of combat-related psychological injuries or substance abuse will hold its first session Monday, according to court officials." The Veterans Court Intervention Program is a "collaborative effort by the Ventura County Superior Court, the District Attorney's Office and the Public Defender's Office. Also involved are the Veterans Benefits Administration, the county Probation Agency, Behavioral Health and other veterans' groups, officials said."

16.    DeBakey VAMC Will Co-Sponsor Conference For Parkinson's Caregivers. The Cypress (TX) Times (10/29) reports that the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center Parkinson's Disease Research, Education and Clinical Center and the Houston Area Parkinson Society will co-sponsor a free conference in Houston for caregivers and families of patients with Parkinson's disease on Saturday, Dec. 4 Among the subjects to be covered are on speech, swallowing, community resources, stress reduction, cognitive issues, equipment to help independence, and ways to help patients overcome disease-related motor problems. The paper also notes that the DeBakey VAMC is home to one of six Parkinson's Disease Research, Education and Clinical Centers set up by the VA to improve patient care and research a cure for the disease.

17.    Businesses In VA Hospital Construction Area Suffer. The website of WVUE-TV New Orleans (10/31, Braxton) reports, "Bulldozers are on all four sides of Robert Rogers home and business which sits in the middle of the V.A. Hospital in the soon to be downtown medical district. In 82 days Robert Rogers and 14 employees will have to vacate his lawn-care business, but in the meantime the workplace is unbearable." Businesses in the construction zone complain that they are not being compensated for income they are losing, merely being offered assistance in moving, although will be compensated for selling their buildings.

18.    Atlanta VAMC Holds Stand Down For Homeless Vets. WXIA-TV Atlanta, GA (10/30, Wolfe, 9:55 a.m. EDT) publicized the Stand Down event being held at the Atlanta VAMC with a report that notes that an estimated 1,500 military veterans "are homeless in metro Atlanta. Two VA homeless counselors appear briefly on camera, and one notes that "the economy has played a part in the availability of services."

19.    VA Mulling Bids For Brunswick Clinic. The Wilmington (NC) Star News (10/30, Eckenrode) reports, "Veterans Affairs officials are in the process of reviewing bids from providers to run the proposed health clinic for veterans in Brunswick County. The agency decided to contract with an existing health care provider for the facility, which is expected to be open three days a week, instead of building a new clinic."

20.    Martinsburg VAMC Hosts Hospice Open House. The Martinsburg (WV) Journal (10/31) reports that the Martinsurg VAMC will hold its fourth annual Hospice Open House on November 3 to acquaint veterans and their families with services provided.

21.    Mid-Missouri Quilters Donate Their Crafts To Columbia VA Hospital. The Moberly (MO) Monitor-Index (10/29, 5K) reports, "Early this year Mid Missouri Quilt Guilds were challenged by Sharon Clark, President of the Missouri River Quilt Guild of Jefferson City to produce 50 quilts, twin bed size and machine quilted, to brighten the long term unit of the VA Hospital in Columbia, Missouri. Six members of the Magic City Piece Makers Quilt Guild of Moberly quilted 6 of the 70 quilts which will be presented on Veterans Day, November 11, 2010. Seven other area quilt guilds also participated. One of the quilters, when presenting her quilt in an October 18 ceremony, recalled that another quilter said that she "couldn't believe that I would make it and then part with it because of all the work that went into it. ... My reply to her was, 'Yes, but I gladly give this quilt to a Veteran in honor of their service to our country for the sacrifice they gave to me and our country so that we can live in freedom. My small sacrifice and time put into this quilt is nothing in comparison to the sacrifice of the serviceman or woman who will receive it. What an honor that I can give back a little bit of something to one of our brave countrymen.'"

22.    San Diego Seeks Pilot Program For Veterans' Court. KGTV-TV San Diego, CA (10/31) reports, "As more veterans get in trouble with the law, San Diego wants to establish a court system to hear cases specifically involving veterans." Public defender Steve Binder says that, while many veterans are charged with a variety of offenses, ""You incarcerate them for any period of time... they are still dealing with post traumatic stress or traumatic brain injury when they are released." The city if one of 10 nationwide that is actively looking at creating a military specialty court to hear cases involving veterans; it hopes to have a pilot program operating within six months.

23.    Bath VA Using New Mobile Clinic. According to the Bath (NY) Courier (11/1, Perham), Bath Veterans Affairs "hopes to treat a lot more veterans right, with their new mobile clinic. The $250,000 unit was purchased through federal Homeland Security funds...according to VA Fire Chief Larry Day." The Courier adds, "The well-equipped mobile clinic, which just arrived at the VA last week...will provide non-emergency services to veterans located the medical center's service area, VA spokesman Brandon Gardner said."

24.    Tomah VAMC Using Vehicle To Expand Intensive Clinical Care Management Program. In continuing coverage, the La Crosse (WI) Tribune (10/29, Hubbuch) noted that beginning in January, the Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center's Intensive Clinical Care Management (ICCM) program will use a "custom 40-foot" recreational vehicle to "make weekly stops in La Crosse, Vernon, Wood and Marathon counties."
     The WEAU-TV Eau Claire, WI (10/29, Boehm) website reported, "Tomah VA Nurse Practitioner Peggy Dwyer says the mobile clinic is able to travel...thanks to a $1.3 million grant from the Veterans Health Administration. 'So we're'" expanding "'our program in Tomah and this vehicle was purchased...to be able to bring this ICCM out to veterans who have difficulty accessing the campus,' Dwyer said."

25.    Organizers: Stand Down Turnout Indicates Lack Of Improvement In Economy. In continuing coverage, the Charleston (SC) Post Courier (10/29, Kropf) noted that in North Charleston on Thursday, when "Veterans Affairs and Goodwill held" the first day of a scheduled two day Stand Down Against Homelessness, "more than 1,000 people" showed "up seeking medical care, clothing and a dental checkup. That's as many as showed up" to the annual event in "two days just a few years ago. Organizers say the numbers mean the economy isn't showing signs of improvement for those at the bottom, especially among women."

26.    U Scientists Find Definitive Indicator Of PTSD. The University of Minnesota's Minnesota Daily (11/1, Feuerherm).

27.    Navy SEAL Memorial Dedication Set For November 7. A PR Inside release (10/29) announces that November 7 has been set for the dedication on the U.S. Navy SEAL Memorial in Fort Pierce, Florida. The Memorial will honor the SEALs and their predecessors, including Underwater Demolition Teams, frogmen, and amphibious scouts and raiders, and will include the names of the 252 SEALs and frogmen who have died in the line of duty since World War II.

28.    The 150-Year War. In an op-ed for the New York Times (10/31, 1.01M), Tony Horowitz, an author who has written two books about the Civil War, says that "as we approach the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's election, on Nov. 6, and the long conflict that followed, it's worth recalling" the "reasons that era endures." Horowitz goes on to discuss some background on those who fought in the Civil War.

29.    New Dioxin Rules Might Force More Cleanups. The AP (11/1) reports, "The government has spent many millions of dollars in recent decades cleaning up sites contaminated with dioxin and, in extreme cases, relocating residents of entire neighborhoods tainted by the toxin. But tough new pollution standards proposed by the Obama administration could require additional dioxin cleanups at scores of abandoned factories, military bases, landfills and other locations declared safe years ago, officials say." The AP adds, "One form of dioxin was in Agent Orange, the defoliant used" by US "forces during the Vietnam War."

30.    Trial Reset In Purple Heart Case. The AP (11/1) reports the trial of Charles Welshans, who has been "accused of falsely claiming to be a Purple Heart recipient to collect benefits," has "been rescheduled for Jan. 24." Welshans' trial had been "scheduled for Monday in federal court" in Greenville, Mississippi, on "charges he defrauded $24,844" from the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Welshans has "pleaded not guilty."

31.    Soldier Suicides A Call To Action. The Houston Chronicle (11/1, Wise, 363K) says that with US military "suicides at an all-time high," the parents of Iraq veteran Ryan Presnal, who lost two of the men he commanded in Iraq to suicide, "decided to start" Armor of God Military Ministry, a "faith-based organization to help troops and their families cope with post-traumatic stress and the everyday pressures of deployment."

32.    No Tricks, Big Treat: A White House Halloween. The AP (11/1, Metzler) notes that on Sunday evening, President Obama and the First Lady "handed out Halloween treats to area children and military families at the White House." Local "students between 6 and 14 years old, along with children from military families, were invited to celebrate Halloween on the North Lawn."

33.    Jacob Bradosky Wins Marine Corps Marathon. The Washington Post (11/1, Hage, 605K) reports, "With a strong push just past the 20-mile mark, Air Force 2nd Lt. Jacob Bradosky dropped defending champion Navy Lt. Cmdr. John Mentzer," and Ronald Kurui, a "Kenyan civilian who aspires to join" the US military, to "win the 35th Marine Corps Marathon" on Sunday. Kurui "visited veterans at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center last week and promised to donate his award, a silver laurel wreath he hoped would be gold, to the hospital's trophy case. After spending two years in the United States, Kurui wants to gain citizenship and join the military as a translator."