Forward Observer

Forward Observer — Not There Yet, Almost … VA Preparing to Allow Compensation for Camp LeJeune Water Contamination

VA Plans to Issue Regulations for Presumptive Conditions Which Will Expand Disability Benefits Eligibility for Veterans Exposed to Contaminated Water at Camp Lejeune

LVMAC Poster Art 2005We’ve reported on this previously.  While someone located at Camp Lejeune during the period in question could seek and obtain healthcare from the VA,  compensation was another matter.

However, on 17 December the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced it plans to propose expanded disability compensation eligibility for veterans exposed to contaminated drinking water while assigned to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.  From 1953 to 1987, water sources at the base were contaminated with industrial solvents that statistically correlate with certain health conditions. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — Change 2 to the Veterans Choice Program – Further Tinkering This Time …

But Expect More to Come

LVMAC Poster Art 2005On 1 December, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that it again was making changes to its Veterans Choice Program after “learning from our stakeholders what works and what needs to be refined …” It is the second major announcement, since the program began on 5 November 2014.  As previously reported, the “as the crow flies” 40 mile rule was changed to actual driving distance on 24 April 2015.  A back story to this last announcement has been barely noticed. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — Understanding Veterans Real Estate Tax Exemptions in PA and NJ

LVMAC Poster Art 2005Real Estate tax exemptions for veterans have come up more than once at veterans group meeting. Confusion often reigns. Word of mouth frequently leads to misunderstandings.  Perhaps the worst part is surviving spouses are often forgotten – to include the surviving spouses of a servicemembers killed in action. This article is an attempt to clarify the situation for our members who live in Pennsylvania and that other country, New Jersey.  While it is beyond the scope of this article to determine with certainty any local ordinances regarding exemptions exist (none are currently known), the existing laws in both states are discussed.

First, the belief that real estate tax exemptions for a disabled veteran are federal law is not true.  Any real estate tax exemption, waiver or reduction (hereafter, called “exemption”) is the result of a local ordinance or state law. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — Finally! Pennsylvania In-State Tuition Rate Now Applies to “State-less” Veterans

LVMAC Poster Art 2005After years of foot dragging, the General Assembly has finally acted.  The one-year residency requirement to receive the in-state tuition rate at a public institution of higher leaning in Pennsylvania is now officially waived.  Act 11 of 2015 was signed into law by the Governor on 29 June.  It amends Act 287 of 1982 by requiring community colleges and state related/state-owned institutions to provide in-state tuition rates for veterans, their spouses and dependent children wanting to use their GI Bill benefits regardless of how long they have resided in the state. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer: More USAF Veterans Finally Get Needed Recognition for Agent Orange Presumptive Conditions

VA Extends Disability Benefits to Air Force Personnel Exposed to Contaminated C-123 Aircraft

LVMAC Poster Art 2005On 18 June, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) published a long-awaited regulation that expands eligibility for some benefits for a select group of Air Force Veterans and Air Force Reserve personnel who were exposed to the herbicide Agent Orange through regular and repeated contact with contaminated C-123 aircraft that had been used in Vietnam as part of Operation Ranch Hand (ORH). (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — The Spending of Your Veterans Trust Fund Donations

LVMAC Poster Art 2005In 2012 the Veterans Trust Fund was established in Pennsylvania.  We thought you might want to know how it is being used this year.

In 2015, fifty-five organizations applied for grants, the sum of which would have amounted to nearly $4.7 million in funding for veterans’ services and programs. Of these, ten grants were subsequently awarded.  Since all were competing for $350,000 in grant money, there is an implication: there are needs state government is failing to recognize through the usual means. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — Put the Bastards in Jail

LVMAC Poster Art 2005We have written before concerning the presence of scamming when it comes to veterans.  You would think us targeted prey because it is an ongoing and widespread problem nationally.  Pennsylvania’s Office of Attorney General, specifically its relatively new Office of Military and Veterans Affairs, has become more involved of late — an indication that the problem is particularly acute in the commonwealth.

PWVC Wanted Poster May2015Now we hear that some firms and persons in Pennsylvania, veterans among them, are charging for filing a VA compensation or pension claim for a veteran or a survivor.  (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — The VA Fixes the Veterans Choice Card’s “How the Crow Flies” Issue

LVMAC Poster Art 2005Few doubt that Congress had a point in wanting the Veterans Choice Card provision in the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 (VACAA) — excessive delays in service merited this temporary measure — but it seems also to have  rushed the Department of Veterans Affairs, whether unfairly or not.  In its haste to respond to short deadlines, the VA has made some poor regulatory decisions along the way. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — VA Perhaps Takes a Significant Step Towards Future Reforms Under MyVA Initiative

VA Announces Single Regional Framework under MyVA Initiative

Internal Organizations to Realign Their Existing Structures

LVMAC Poster Art 2005As a result of last year’s scandals, Washington Headquarters announced on 26 January that is taking the first steps under the MyVA initiative to realign its many organizational maps into one map with five regions utilizing state boundaries to better serve military veterans.  We will be part of Region 1 (the New England, Mid-Atlantic, and a couple of South Atlantic states). (more…)

By LVMAC, ago

Forward Observer — LVCIL to Conduct Allentown Stand Down

LVMAC Poster Art 2005Mini-Stand Downs are becoming increasingly popular in the Lehigh Valley as a means of finding and assisting the homeless.  Various social work agencies, contracting with and responsible to the Department of Veterans Affairs in assisting in eliminating veterans homelessness, are beginning to work together in a more integrated fashion.  It’s about time.

The Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living is lead agency for the 24 January event in Allentown. (more…)

By LVMAC, ago