VFW Washington Weekly, April 4, 2008

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VFW Washington Weekly
April 4, 2008

In This Issue:
1. New GI Bill Needs Our Help
2. House VA Committee Hearings
3. Women Veterans' Bill
4. VA Home Loan Fix
5. VA Names Acting Benefits Chief
6. Soldier Missing in Iraq Identified

1. New GI Bill Needs Our Help: Now is the time to push for a GI Bill for the
21st Century, one that will cover all education costs, to include tuition,
fees, books and a subsistence stipend. Two bills introduced last year would
provide these benefits: S. 22 and HR 2702, "The Post-9/11 Veterans
Educational Assistance Act of 2007." Yet only half the Senate and a quarter
of the House have signed on as co-sponsors. Please call or visit your
Congressional offices at home or on Capitol Hill and urge your legislators
to sponsor this VFW priority goal. Both bills would:
. Increase education benefits for members of the military serving on active
duty since September 11, 2001. Qualifying veterans must have served at least
two years on active duty. Members of the Reserve and National Guard need a
total of two years of active duty service.
. Provide a powerful transition assistance program by allowing veterans to
readjust to civilian life and improve their ability to care for themselves
and their families. The subsistence stipend will also help ease a tough
decision new veterans with families have to make: school or food and rent.
. Create additional tax revenue generated by better-educated veterans, which
will likely pay for the program, as it did with the WWII GI Bill.
. Increase military recruitment efforts, broadening the socio-economic
makeup of the military, and strengthening our national security.
A new GI Bill for the 21st century is the right thing to do for those who
are now serving in harm's way. To view our Alert and contact your elected
officials, go to:

http://capwiz. com/vfw/issues/ alert/?alertid= 11232976
To read a joint opinion editorial by VFW National Commander George Lisicki,
and Paul Rieckhoff, the founder and executive director of Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America, go to:
http://www.vfw. org/index. cfm?fa=news. newsDtl
<http://www.vfw. org/index. cfm?fa=news. newsDtl&did= 4526> &did=4526.

2. House VA Committee Hearings:
On Tuesday, the Subcommittee on Health held a hearing on PTSD treatment and
research options. PTSD has been diagnosed in more than 60,000 veterans from
Iraq and Afghanistan, yet a recent Institute of Medicine report showed that
there are not enough studies on PTSD identification and treatment options.
VFW submitted written testimony that called for more research into PTSD
causes, identification and treatment. VA must ensure that current and
previous generations of veterans have full access to a wide range of
treatments. VFW also testified for improved services and outreach to women
veterans and their families, who are a critical support base for recovery.
On Wednesday, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations heard
testimony from veterans and VA about Traumatic Brain Injury and vision
issues facing wounded service members. TBI is considered one of the
signature injuries of the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Witnesses said research being conducted by physicians; psychologists and
blind rehabilitation specialists at VA have found that TBI causes vision
issues in many veterans with 20/20 vision who show no signs of injury to the
eye. Companies working with VA to provide innovative treatment for
TBI-related vision deficits, and physicians from DOD and VA were also on
hand to talk about what they are doing to identify and help patients
suffering with this type of injury.
For more on the hearings or to view the live webcast, visit the House VA
website at: http://veterans. house.gov/

3. Women Veterans' Bill: Legislation to improve care, services and outreach
to women veterans was introduced at a press conference Wednesday held by
Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA), Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX), Blanche Lincoln
(D-AR), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). VFW strongly supports the bill, as it
will address the unique needs of female veterans by authorizing programs to
improve care for Military Sexual Trauma, expand women veteran coordinator
positions at VA, and increase research on barriers to care. Women currently
make up 14% of the total force, and it is estimated that the number of
female veterans entering the VA system will double in the next five years.

4. VA Home Loan Fix: The Economic Stimulus Package signed by the President
last month also increased loan limits for federal home loan programs,
including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA. VA Home Loans, however, were not
included. Congress has introduced legislation to fix the problem. H.R. 5561
and S. 2768 would extend the home loan guarantee to 125% of metropolitan
medium home prices (about $730,000 in the highest cost areas) through
December 31, 2011. The fix would enable veterans to utilize their VA benefit
to purchase homes of higher value while the housing market remains
unpredictable. For more information on the legislation, type the bill number
in the search box at: http://thomas. loc.gov/

5. VA Names Acting Benefits Chief: The VA announced this week that Patrick
W. Dunne, a retired Navy rear admiral and a senior official within VA, would
be named acting Under Secretary of Benefits. He replaces retired Vice Adm.
Daniel L. Cooper, who resigned effective April 1. Admiral Dunne will be
responsible for a $52 billion budget that provides compensation and pensions
to nearly 4 million veterans and survivors, along with administering the
Montgomery GI Bill educational program, VA home loan guaranties, among other
programs.

6. Soldier Missing in Iraq Identified: The Department of Defense announced
the change in status of a soldier supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom from
missing-captured to deceased. The armed forces medical examiner confirmed
March 29 that human remains recovered in Iraq were those of Staff Sgt. Keith
M. Maupin, 24, of Batavia, OH. Maupin had been listed as missing-captured
since April 16, 2004. His convoy came under attack by rocket-propelled
grenades and small arms fire on April 9, 2004. He was assigned to the 724th
Transportation Company, Bartonville, IL. Maupin's loss incident remains
under investigation, as well as those associated with the three other
American soldiers currently listed as missing-captured.