NAUS Weekly Update for Nov 8, 2007

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR UNIFORMED SERVICES

NAUS WEEKLY UPDATE FOR NOVEMBER 8, 2007

www.naus.org

(The Weekly Update is being sent a day early due to the NAUS Board of Directors Meeting on Friday)

“If there is peace today in Europe, it is because of you … you did your duty, and we will never forget what you did for France. ”

~French President Nicolas Sarkozy ~

WASHINGTON REPORT

Veterans Day
“On this Veterans Day, I ask all of us to reflect upon the many sacrifices made by our nation’s veterans. Every American owes a debt of gratitude to those who have served in uniform and fought so courageously to protect and preserve the freedoms we cherish.”

- Bill Matz
President, NAUS

National Defense and VA/MilCon Bills Inching Forward
Thursday, the House approved 400 to 15 the conference agreement on the $471 billion fiscal year 2008 Defense Appropriations Bill (HR 3222). Attached to the bill is a “stopgap” funding measure that will keep the government running until December 14. Although several minority party members indicated that they were frustrated at not being able to include war-funding measures in the bill, they did not indicate they would vote against it. Majority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO) said, “I’m not totally happy with some of the emergency spending in the bill, but I would expect to be supportive of it.” NAUS hopes that this bill will be soon sent to the President.

In other action on Wednesday, an attempt by the majority to add the 2008 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs spending bill (HR 2642) to the funding bill on Labor/HHS/Education (HR 3043) was rebuffed when the effort abridged Senate rules. A point of order was raised under the Senate rule, which bans the addition to conference reports, appropriations or other provisions that were not part of either chamber’s version of the original legislation. The Senate then voted to send the Labor/HHS/Education bill back to the House for final action. This now leaves the MilCon/VA bill in limbo. Roll Call, a Capitol Hill newspaper, reported a senior Democratic aide said that veterans funding “could be held back if there’s some help to get us to an end game.” According to the report, among the strategies being considered is “not moving the bill until at least mid-December in order to keep the measure as leverage with the White House.” NAUS urges the Senate to stop the “strategies,” complete final action on the bill and send it to the President, who’s already said he’d sign it, by Veterans Day.

Christmas Greetings to Wounded Service Members
In response to numerous requests from many well meaning people who want to do something for our “wounded warriors” at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Bethesda Naval Medical Center and all the other military medical facilities where these brave men and women are receiving care, there are several appeals going around the internet. Please read the below statement taken directly from the Walter Reed website. As you can see there are many other ways to show your support. Please consider one of them.

“Walter Reed Army Medical Center officials want to remind those individuals who want to show their appreciation through mail to include packages and letters, addressed to “Any Wounded Soldier” that Walter Reed will not be accepting these packages in support of the decision by then Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Transportation Policy in 2001. This decision was made to ensure the safety and well being of patients and staff at medical centers throughout the Department of Defense.

In addition, the U.S. Postal Service is no longer accepting “Any Service Member” or “Any Wounded Service Member” letters or packages. Mail to “Any Service Member” that is deposited into a collection box will not be delivered.

Instead of sending an “Any Wounded Soldier” letter or package to Walter Reed, please consider making a donation to one of the more than 300 nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping our troops and their families listed on the "America Supports You" website, www.americasupports you.mil .

Other organizations that offer means of showing your support for our troops or assist wounded servicemembers and their families include:
http://www.usocares .org/
http://www4. army.mil/ ocpa/tooursoldie rs/
http://www.redcross .org

For individuals without computer access, your local military installation, the local National Guard or military reserve unit in your area may offer the best alternative to show your support to our returning troops and their families. Walter Reed Army Medical Center will continue to receive process and deliver all mail that is addressed to a specific individual.

As Walter Reed continues to enhance the medical care and processes for our returning service members, it must also must keep our patients and staff members safe while following Department of Defense policy. The outpouring of encouragement from the general public, corporate America and civic groups throughout the past year has been incredible. Our Warriors in Transition are amazed at the thanks and support they receive from their countrymen.”

HEALTH CARE NEWS

Legislation Affects TRICARE Supplements (TMA Press Release)
Many TRICARE beneficiaries are getting letters from their employer stating they will no longer offer TRICARE supplements as an employer sponsored medical option effective January 1, 2008. TRICARE beneficiaries should look closely at their health care options.

A provision of the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2007 prohibits employers from offering employees financial or other incentives to use TRICARE rather than the company’s Group Health Plan (GHP). The legislation applies to any employer, including States and local governments with 20 or more employees, and mirrors the same prohibition that currently applies to Medicare.

Beneficiaries have earned their right to TRICARE benefits through their service and this remains unchanged. TRICARE beneficiaries should take measures to understand and look closely at all of their health care options offered by TRICARE and their current employer before deciding what is best for them and their families. Eligible beneficiaries can enroll in TRICARE on their own without taking employer incentives if desired.

The employer can still offer, “cafeteria plans” to their TRICARE eligible beneficiaries as long as the plans are offered to all of their employees, including those that are not eligible for TRICARE. The legislation does not have an impact on “TRICARE Supplement” plans that are not offered by the employer but are sold by beneficiary associations or commercial insurers.

A cafeteria plan is defined as a fringe-benefit plan under which employees may choose among various benefits that best fit their needs, up to a specified dollar value.

The legislation was initiated after evidence showed many employers were consciously working to shift their health care costs to TRICARE by offering financial incentives urging eligible employees to use TRICARE rather than the employer’s GHP.

For more information about TRICARE supplements visit http://www.tricare. mil/mybenefit/ home/Medical/ OHI/Supplemental Insurance.

Kick the Habit
Are you thinking about quitting smoking but not sure you're ready to take the plunge? Then maybe the Great American Smokeout is right for you. It's an opportunity to join millions of other smokers in saying "no thanks" to cigarettes for 24 hours. The American Cancer Society started the Great American Smokeout as an annual day to spotlight the dangers of smoking and challenge people to stop using tobacco for a single day. This year’s event, which is scheduled for November 15, 2007, marks their 31st Anniversary. For more information, go to http://www.cancer. org/docroot/ subsite/greatame ricans/Smokeout. asp.

DoD health care officials encourage smokers within the military community to participate in this year’s Great American Smokeout and suggest they visit DoD’s web-based program to assist www.ucanquit2. org, in advance of the event. Ucanquit2.org is the official Web site of the “Quit Tobacco, Make Everyone Proud” educational campaign sponsored by DoD. The mission of the site is simple—to help Uniformed Service personnel quit tobacco—for themselves and for the people they love.

According to a recent DoD survey, smoking among military personnel remains high, particularly amongst 18–25 year olds. “Despite decades of efforts to reduce the use of tobacco, it remains firmly entrenched in a segment of the Military population, with new smokers and chewers starting every day,” said Army MG Elder Granger, Deputy Director, TRICARE Management Activity. “The Great American Smokeout is a great time for Service Members and Federal employees to begin their quit plan.”

ACTIVE DUTY NEWS

Happy Birthday Marine Corps
On November 10th please join NAUS in wishing the Marine Corps a Happy 232nd Birthday!
Semper FI and OOORRRRAAAAAHHHH! !!

Help for Families Affected by California Wildfires
The Navy Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS) is offering financial assistance for any military servicemember who has been evacuated due to the wildfires in California and might need money for food of gas. The NMCRS can be reached at (760) 725-5337 or visit the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society website to find the nearest office. For further aid, the American Red Cross can be contacted at (760) 725-6877.


DoD Consolidates Abuse Policies
The Defense Department has consolidated 14 previous domestic abuse policies into one document entitled "Domestic Abuse Involving DoD Military and Certain Affiliated Personnel," which more clearly defines roles and training requirements for those the department calls "key responders." Key responders include local commanders, law enforcement officials, legal representatives, victim advocates, health care providers, family advocacy staff and chaplains. The publication is the result of an effort to help the department stop domestic violence within its ranks. DoD Instruction 6400.06, "Domestic Abuse Involving DoD Military and Certain Affiliated Personnel" is available at this link in PDF format.

Organization Assists Texas Caregivers
Operation Life Transformed in Harker Heights, Tex., provides training and education for caregivers of war wounded servicemembers to promote financial independence and well being within the military community. For more information, visit the Operation Life Transformed website at http://lifetransfor med.org/default. aspx .

VETERANS NEWS

VA and DoD Sign Major Agreement
In a landmark agreement to simplify life for service members with medical problems as they leave the military and return to the civilian world, the VA and the DoD signed a memorandum this week to pilot a single physical examination to be used by both Departments.

The agreement, signed Nov. 6 by Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H. Mansfield and Dr. David S.C. Chu, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, calls for a pilot program to evaluate a single physical examination that would be used by DoD to determine the medical fitness of injured personnel to remain in uniform and by VA for awarding disability compensation.

This program continues progress on the recommendations of the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors, co-chaired by former Sen. Robert Dole and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala.

The pilot program, which begins late this month, involves VA and DoD facilities in Washington, D.C. Service members from the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, and the Air Force’s Malcolm Grow Medical Center at Andrews Air Force Base will participate in the pilot.

Medical evaluations will be performed by VA, although the agreement notes the physicals could actually take place in VA medical centers, military installations, VA contracted examination centers or other facilities.

The memorandum says the process “lays the foundation for building a network of qualified providers and resources that will meet both DoD and VA requirements and ease the transition of members from military service to veteran status.”

The evaluations will be based upon VA’s system for disability examinations and include an examination of medical conditions identified by military physicians that call into question a service member’s fitness for duty, as well as other applicable medical conditions identified by the service member together with VA.

History of Veterans Day
Our friends at Military.com have put together a short but very thorough history lesson about the Veterans Day holiday. We pass it on to you so you can tell your children and grandchildren how the day came to be:

November 11, or what has come to be known as Veterans Day, was originally set as a U.S. legal holiday to honor Armistice Day - the end of World War I, which officially took place on November 11, 1918. In legislature that was passed in 1938, November 11 was "dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day.' As such, this new legal holiday honored World War I veterans.

In 1954, after having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

In 1968, the Uniforms Holiday Bill ensured three-day weekends for Federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. Under this bill, Veterans Day was moved to the last Monday of October. Many states did not agree with this decision and continued to celebrate the holiday on its original date. The first Veterans Day under the new law was observed with much confusion on October 25, 1971.

Finally on September 20, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed a law that returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of November 11, beginning in 1978. Since then, the Veterans Day holiday has been observed on November 11.

NAUS NEWS

NAUS HQ Closed for Holiday
NAUS Headquarters will be closed Monday and Tuesday November 12 and 13. We will be back on Wednesday the 14th at 8 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.
HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

Our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen stand in harm’s way around the globe to defend our nation and our cherished liberties. NAUS asks you to please pray for their continued strength and protection—and pray as well for their families, who daily stand in support of their spouses, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters.

GOD BLESS AMERICA

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Remind your Representatives and Senators of the following
failures of the 2006 & 2007 National Defense Authorization Acts
-375,000 retirees with less than 50% disability denied CRDP
-327,000 retirees age 70 & 30 years still paying SBP premiums
-188,000 Chapter 61 with less than 20 years denied CRDP
- 55,000 widows denied relief from SBP/DIC
- 28,000 IU denied 100% benefit under CRDP
- 17,000 POW who died in captivity denied the Purple Heart
All of this legislation has bills held hostage in committee.

Visit http://usdr.org
USDR Action Alerts http://capwiz.com/usdr/