Majority of Veteran Suicides Are 50 and Older – We Still Don’t Know Why | Vietnam Veterans of America VA Updates Its Suicide Report – Majority of Veteran Suicides Are 50 and Older – We Still Don’t Know Why | Vietnam Veterans of America — “Healthcare in Our Community” News Read more…
On July 29, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that District Court has no jurisdiction to review actions of the Secretary of the VA. This case was on appeal from an earlier ruling by the Federal District Court on the matter. The Read more…
Last Veterans Day 2015, the Department of Veterans Affairs launched with little fanfare a new website, www.vets.gov, though it is still under development and not anticipated to be finally complete for a year. It is part of the ostensibly transformative MyVA initiative and is being done in response to the federal government’s acknowledgment that there is are far too many “helpful” websites, call centers and 1-800 numbers out there. The end result is “the VA customer experience is fragmented, frustrating and confusing.” The VA is attempting to develop a simplified website “which provides useful information that’s clearly written and presented and tools that are easy to find and use” in all one place. This is no easy task.
One of its better efforts on this website seems to be the The Veterans Employment Center™ (VEC). Its intention is to connect veterans and their families with meaningful employment and career-development opportunities. (more…)
Veterans may now apply to enroll in the VA’s healthcare system by picking up the phone and dialing 1-877-222-8387 (VETS) between Monday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today it has eliminated paper signature requirements for military veterans wishing to enroll in VA healthcare. That door was opened through an amendment to its regulations. (more…)
For the first time in the Bethlehem area, the Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center will be conducting a Community Town Hall — one of many such meetings the Veterans Health Administration is hosting nationwide on a quarterly basis. The event will be held on 29 June starting at 5 p.m. on Northampton Community College’s north main campus in the Gates Center’s Alumni Hall (Room 130) just off 3835 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem. (more…)
The subject of the effect of hazardous, toxic exposures of military veterans has milled around in the houses of Congress for far too many years. Involved is our our obligation to our veterans to find the root causes of birth defects, learning disabilities, and cancers afflicting too many of their children and grandchildren. Therefore, “mill around mill” is not a Congressional virtue on such a topic.
Unfortunately, for years certain public officials have insisted and held sway on the issue without sufficient research to back their claim. Their claim seems to revolve around the assertion that male veterans exposed to Agent Orange can not transmit genetic defects to their children. While the VA has made provision for the children of Vietnam War Vietnam women veterans for certain diagnoses (without acknowledging the effects of Agent Orange, we might add), it has made absolutely none for the children of its male veterans. In our opinion that is an awkwardly strange position and a discriminatory one. (more…)
On 1 June 2016 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert McDonald had granted “equitable relief to more than 24,000 Veterans following a national review of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) medical examinations conducted in connection with disability compensation claims processed between 2007 and 2015 … Equitable relief is a unique legal remedy that allows the Secretary to correct an injustice to a claimant where VA is not otherwise authorized to do so within the scope of the law.” (more…)
The Lehigh County Veterans Affairs Office is seeking donations of interment (casket) flags to be flown on the Avenue of Flags at the entrance to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Indiantown Gap National Cemetery located in the vicinity of Annville. The donations of these flags has dwindled over the years and the continuous need has not been well known. (more…)
Berks County Seeks Deputy Director of Veterans Affairs
We’ve just heard the Berks County’s Director of Veterans Affairs has announced he is seeking a Deputy Director of Veterans Affairs to assist him. He seems to be wisely developing a succession plan to ensure continuity of operations in Berks County. (more…)
VA Announces Community Care Call Center to Help Veterans with Choice Program Billing Issues
The joy of encountering the American private medical systems’ debt collectors has been taken on by the Department of Veterans Affairs in effort to make right with their veterans. On 14 March 2016, the VA announced the opening of yet another call center – this time to resolve debt collection issues resulting from problems created by the Veterans Choice [Card] program. Veterans have been experiencing adverse credit reporting or debt collection resulting from inappropriately billed Choice Program claims. The VA is now acknowledging that delayed payments and inappropriately billed claims are unacceptable and have caused stress for veterans and providers alike. (more…)