VA HQ Veterans News for Tuesday, September 27, 2011.  Thanks to Kevin Secor at VA HQ!

1.    Boston Scientific Unit to Pay U.S. $9.25 Million in Settlement.  Bloomberg  Guidant allegedly reneged on credits owed to the US Department of Veterans Affairs for replacement of units still under warranty and is accused of over-charging hospitals for the devices, causing them to over-bill Medicare, according to an e- mailed ...

2.    Eugene Proposes Amendment to Land Use Code.  KEZI TV  The US Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for a place to build a new outpatient clinic in either Eugene or Springfield, and Eugene wants that to be in their city. But there's a little issue with Eugene's zoning. The VA needs a minimum of 13 ...

3.    Specter of big defense cuts prompts big worries.  The boom times are over for the nation's military. After more than doubling in the past 10 years, Pentagon budgets are in for big cuts from Congress in coming years. No one yet knows exactly what will be cut or how deeply the cuts will go, but everyone knows they're coming.

4.    Remains of WWII vet being repatriated from Bosnia.  For 67 years, the only people who knew about the presence of the American were the residents of the village in western Bosnia-Herzegovina where he was buried.

5.    NYU Langone Leads Clinical Evaluation of Study on Effects of PTSD on Veterans.  Newswise   Abt was recently awarded $6.7 million in funding by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct the research. As part of that funding, Abt has provided $1.6 million to NYU Langone Medical Center to lead the clinical evaluation component of ...

6.    RI Veterans Journal: Agent Orange benefits go to Vietnam War veterans.  Providence Journal  Also, veterans may enroll through their myPay or MyHealtheVet accounts by visiting the local VA regional office (380 Westminster Mall in Providence) or veteran service organization, or by calling (800) 827-1000. For more information about Agent Orange ...

7.    VA purchases 4.4 acres from Silver Cross, will open Hines clinic.  Nurse.com  The existing ED at Silver Cross in Joliet, Ill., is part of the 4.4 acres purchased recently by the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital plans to open an outpatient clinic for veterans after the US Department of Veterans ...

8.    Collateral Damage: War Veterans Struggle To Fit Back Into Society.  Fayetteville (NC) Observer  "Advocates for veterans and the homeless say they are seeing a lot more" problems in people who served in Iraq or Afghanistan. But even as the US Army, "Veterans Affairs and the community have stepped up efforts to help soldiers and veterans who are struggling, the evidence is mounting that many are falling through the cracks." The Observer added, "At a VA summit in August, officials announced that shelters in Fayetteville would get 23 more beds for homeless veterans."

9.    State VA Hosting Veterans Outreach Day At Dyersburg Armory. Dyersburg (TN) State Gazette  "The Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs (TDVA) is inviting veterans, their spouses and their dependants to Hometown Heroes Salute, a veterans outreach day to be held at the National Guard Armory in Dyersburg on Friday, Sept. 30." The goal of the event "'is to help get veterans paired up with vendors to help with their needs whether it be Social Security, veterans benefits or housing,' said Larry Simmons, a veterans benefit representative with TDVA."

10.General: Arlington Cemetery Fixing Burial Problems. AP  Maj. Gen. William McCoy, the US Army's acting inspector general, "says there has been a dramatic turnaround in the operation of Arlington National Cemetery, just one year after his office issued a harsh assessment that cited misplaced remains among dozens of problems caused by mismanagement." McCoy told a joint subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee that he is "confident Arlington National Cemetery is being run as well as possible." Still, some "committee members questioned whether the Army should be stripped of its management role over the cemetery and replaced by the Department of Veterans Affairs."

11.Vet Center Hosts Community Party. North County Times  "Doug Allmen and his team of licensed therapists counsel hundreds of veterans each month, men and women dealing with traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, marital disputes and other problems. Those vets, and other local military families, deserve a little fun, said Allmen, the Temecula Vet Center's team leader." The Times noted that on Saturday, the Temecula Vet Center hosted a community party that "offered free lunches, ice cream, entertainment, a resource fair, arts and crafts and other activities."

12.Social Media Bridging Gap Between Troubled Vets And Treatment. Stars And Stripes  "Mental health experts say social media websites are game-changers when it comes to reaching out to veterans. While they shouldn't be viewed as replacements for actual clinical treatment, sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America's 'Community of Veterans' are providing veterans and their families an outlet for referrals, advice and helpful programs, according to the experts." The sites, Stars And Stripes, added, "have also become a way for vets to keep in touch and share their experiences with others - something the experts say is invaluable for recovery."

13.How About One Website For Combat Stress Info?  NextGov  The "Senate Appropriations Committee in its report on the 2012 Defense budget bill...found the Pentagon and military services have set up a confusing mess of websites that purport to provide support for service members and their families struggling to deal with combat stress." The "committee believes the Army, Navy and Air Force, as well as the Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, and the Department of Veterans Affairs need to work together with the private sector to consolidate these efforts and develop a single portal. Getting all these folks into the same room let alone reaching an agreement sounds like a task that could take years."

14.Cemetery Supporters Raising Money For Lincoln Statue. Chicago Sun-Times  "The Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery Support Committee is raising $110,000 to pay for a life-size bronze statue of Lincoln to be erected on the grounds of the Will County cemetery that bears his name. In the committee's first week, it raised $3,500 toward the effort, which could last 12 to 18 months, committee chairman Don Walden said." Walden added, "This will be the first and the only statue of a president in any national cemetery."

15.Facility For Homeless Veterans To Open In Fairfield County. Columbus (OH) Dispatch   Homeless male "veterans in Fairfield County will have a place to go when the county opens a center for them in November. A two-story house at 843 N. Columbus St. will accommodate eight men." The US Department of Veterans Affairs is "paying for 65 percent of the $165,000 project, which includes the purchase cost and remodeling fees." The rest of the project's cost will be covered by Lutheran Social Services.

16.Veterans Forum Set Up For Oct. 1. Quad-City Times  Duane Honeycutt, who directs Veterans Affairs' Chicago regional office, "will be in the Quad-Cities next month to gather information and address issues about veterans benefits and processes." Honeycutt "will appear at a forum hosted" by US Rep. Bobby Schilling (R-IL). The event is scheduled to take place "from 10 a.m. to noon Oct. 1 at American Legion Post 246, 1623 15th St., Moline."

17.Stand Down For Homeless Vets In Abilene Offers Helping Hand. Abilene (TX) Reporter-News  "Among the 100-plus volunteers at the Stand Down for Homeless Veterans Resource Service Fair on Saturday morning at the Goodwill Store, 2200 North First St., was Michael Self, who less than a month ago was a homeless veteran desperately in need of help." But Chuck Wilson, coordinator of Veteran Services for Goodwill West Texas, "got Self to enroll in the Housing and Urban Development - Veterans Affairs Supported Housing program, which found a place for Self to live, and Wilson was able to find Self a part-time job." The Reporter-News added, "Stand Down for Homeless Veterans was a joint effort of West Texas Veterans Affairs, 211 Texas, the Military Partnership of West Central Texas, the US Department of Labor, Goodwill, United Way and Salvation Army."

18.Aircrews Use Tablets As "Electronic Flight Bag." Air Force Times "Air Mobility Command is taking the lead" on tablet computers, using them "to help lighten the load of aircrews. No more heavy manuals for maintainers to lug around or mounds of paper for pilots to sift through." Veterans Affairs, meanwhile, has an "Oct. 1 deadline for making tablet computers, likely to include the iPad, available for use on the department's network. VA CIO Roger Baker said users will be able to view information through such VA applications as its electronic health record system VistA and from external sources, but the information cannot be stored on the device. Users must be authenticated before gaining access." Baker added, "VA is looking at the policies that have to be in place before turning the devices loose."

19.New VA Clinic Opens Monday. Chicago Sun-Times "The new, larger Adam Benjamin Jr. VA Outpatient Clinic will open its doors to military veterans at 8 a.m. Monday." Among the "features in the replacement clinic, which was built with the next generation of veterans in mind, is a new women's health care suite." Mark Weisenberger, the clinic's administrative officer, "said a mobile MRI unit will come to the Crown Point clinic at least twice a month and there will be more medical teleconferencing offered."

20.Dogged Effort Will Put Area Man's Dad's Name On Viet Memorial Wall. Houston Chronicle

21.Area Mother Named National President Of Military Organization. Dayton Daily News  Dayton resident Robin Barnes McCarthy "has been elected national president of The Blue Star Mothers of America, an organization comprised of mothers who have children serving in the US military and National Guard & Reserve, as well as honorably or medically discharged veterans." McCarthy is a "member of the Miami Valley Chapter" of the organization. The chapter supports "veterans at the Dayton VA and families of deployed troops."

22.Special Coins Given To Thank Native American Veterans. Syracuse (NY) Post-Standard