March 11, 2009

Highlights from VA News Briefing for March 11, 2009

Lawmakers Warn Shinseki Not To Seek Approval Of Private Insurance Plan. In continuing coverage, the CNN (3/10, Levine) website said that when Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki testified before a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing Tuesday on the VA's 2010 budget, he "confirmed...that the Obama administration is considering a controversial plan to make veterans pay for treatment of service-related injuries with private insurance." Lawmakers, however, "say they'd reject" such a proposal, which "would be 'dead on arrival' if it's sent to Congress," according to US Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). A "second senator, North Carolina Republican Richard Burr, said he agreed that the idea should not go forward." CNN added, "Eleven of the most prominent veterans organizations have been lobbying Congress to oppose the idea." The groups also "wrote a pre-emptive letter last week to President Obama voicing their opposition...after hearing the plan was under consideration."
Rieckhoff: Despite High Funding, Obama Budget Has Some Problems. In an opinion piece appearing on the Huffington Post (3/10), Paul Rieckhoff, executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), said that while his organization is pleased to see that Obama has budget a lot of money for the VA, his proposal "is still not a slam dunk for veterans. First, Obama hasn't opened up VA health care coverage to every veteran. This is a major misstep," but just "as important, new veterans are disappointed that the President has not opted to include advance appropriations for the VA in his budget proposal." There have also "been rumors of new fees and premiums veterans will have to pay to get health care." That is "bad policy" and "bad politics, because every veterans group in the country" will "vigorously" oppose such a plan.
Impact: VA Budget, Veterans Private Insurance Policy

College Studying Mental Health Of Veterans. The Buffalo News (3/10, Michel) said, "Soldiers who survive the battlefield too often return home only to kill themselves," but now, "researchers at the University at Buffalo are trying to find a way to determine which veterans are most likely to harm themselves." In addition, because "little is known about the long-term consequences facing veterans who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, which sometimes coincide with mental-health issues," the school will use a $1.4 million grant from the US Department of Veterans Affairs to "study some 500 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans over the next four years" in order to "determine the reliability of the VA's screening tool for brain injuries, how the patient utilizes available health care for the symptoms and quality-of-life issues." The study will be conducted by Kerry T. Donnelly, an adjunct assistant professor in UB's department of psychiatry and a VA clinical neuropsychologist.
Local Official Not Surprised By Increase In Military Suicides. In a related story, Ohio's News-Herald (3/10, Jones) said Jonathan R. Warmeling, director of the Lake County Veterans Service Commission, "isn't surprised that the reported number of suicides among Army soldiers went from 102 in 2006 to 115 in 2007 and 128 in 2008, the highest since the Vietnam War. 'We had a case a little over a year ago where a good friend of mine committed suicide,' said Warmeling," who added that his friend "had real good treatment and support from the Veterans Administration, but he had fallen away from that." Warmeling "noted that military forces are upgrading and expanding counseling and medical help in regional offices," including the Louis Stokes Veterans Affairs Clinic in Cleveland.
Impact: Suicide, Mental Health

AFGE 3197

March 11, 2009