VFW Joins House VA Committee Republican Roundtable

House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jeff Miller, R-Fla., hosted a roundtable discussion this morning with Republican committee leadership and leading veterans’ advocates in the committee’s chambers of the Cannon House Office Building. VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci was on hand to discuss a series of persistent veterans’ issues like mental health care, employment, and looming budget concerns.

Miller decided to host the roundtable as a way to evaluate progress over the 112th Congress, identify shortfalls in meeting the needs of veterans, and candidly discussing potential new ideas to ensure veterans receive the care and benefits to which they are entitled.

The morning’s discussion took place just as the VFW National Legislative Committee converged on Washington, asking Congress to “Finish Strong For Veterans,” by enacting meaningful legislation, providing oversight, and applying pressure on federal agencies to better serve the veterans’ community. This week, VFW advocates will visit every Congressional office discuss VFW’s outstanding issues for the 112th Congress relating to benefits delivery, health care, budget concerns, and education and employment. To learn more about these issues, click here.

Gallucci reiterated the VFW’s “Finish Strong For Veterans” message, encouraging Congress to pass bills like the H.R. 4057 to improve consumer information for student-veterans; provide oversight to ensure the military’s new transition assistance program, or TAP, provides relevant resources to transitioning service members; ensure VA can meet its mental health staffing requirements; and apply pressure to VA and the Administration to define “administrative accounts” potentially affected by mandatory sequestration budget cuts.

Chairman Miller also took the opportunity to candidly discuss a controversial proposal from Republican leaders designed to help veterans receive timely mental health care from TRICARE providers, paid for by VA. The idea comes on the heels of ongoing military and veteran suicide concerns, and reports that VA cannot meet the demand to deliver mental health care in a timely manner.

Veterans’ advocates expressed concern about how the proposal could not only increase care costs for VA, but could create more bureaucratic problems for veterans seeking care outside the VA system.

Gallucci explained that many times veterans cannot receive timely mental health care from VA because they never actively enrolled in the VA health care system before reaching out for help. If veterans sought out emergency care from TRICARE providers on the economy, Gallucci explained that they could be left with a hefty bill for services, and face additional bureaucratic hurdles when they seek reimbursement from VA.

Chairman Miller explained that the concept was designed to ensure veterans who need mental health care can find somewhere to go as a stop-gap measure, and ensured the veterans’ community that his committee would flesh out exactly how such a system could efficiently deliver care.

Other discussion topics this morning included alternative treatments for traumatic brain injury like hypobaric oxygen therapy, persistent processing delays for Post-9/11 G.I. Bill recipients, the effectiveness of peer-to-peer counseling for mental health issues, and empowering employers to find potential veteran employees.

(Image: VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci discusses VFW's call for Congress to "Finish Strong For Veterans" in the 112th Congress. Photo courtesy of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.)

House Moves Series of VFW-Supported Legislation

This week, each of the House Veterans Affairs subcommittees moved more than a dozen bills to the full committee for consideration, many of which the VFW has vocally supported in recent testimony.

House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs: 

On Wednesday afternoon, the House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs marked up and passed three bills, H.R. 5735, H.R. 5881, and H.R. 5880.

H.R. 5735, which the VFW helped to draft, was amended to not only commission a "Place of Remembrance" for unclaimed remains of American service members, but it will also clarify that burial proceedings at National Cemetery Administration facilities must reflect the wishes of the grieving family and that veterans convicted as Tier Three sex offenders or who receive life imprisonment will be excluded from burial in national cemeteries.

H.R. 5881, the Access to Veterans Benefits Improvement Act, was amended to reflect the wishes of the VFW to ensure that only properly vetted employees, such as VA employees, tracking officers, county service officers and VSO service officers, with proper need to access a veteran's claim information can have access to sensitive VA database information.

H.R. 5880, the Veterans Disability Examination Access Improvement Act, was passed without amendments. VFW vocally supported this bill in testimony before the subcommittee earlier this month.

To read VFW's full testimony on each of these bills, click here.

House VA Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations: 

On Wednesday morning, the House VA Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation marked up and passed three bills, H.R. 3730, H.R. 4481, and H.R. 5948.

H.R. 3740, the Veterans Data Breach Timely Notification Act, was amended and passed to require VA to notify the VA secretary of any data breach within 10 days, then notify the affected veteran within the next 10 days, finally notifying the public within the subsequent 10 days.

H.R. 5948, the Veterans Fiduciary Reform Act of 2012, was amended in the form of a substitute and passed to add further protections and oversight on VA fiduciaries to protect veterans. The amendment initiates harsher penalties to organizations and businesses that seek to scam or take advantage of VA beneficiaries or their fiduciaries.

H.R. 4481, the Veterans Affairs Employee Accountability Act, which would prohibit VA employees who violate federal acquisition laws from receiving bonuses, also passed the committee.

The subcommittee hosted a hearing on each of these bills earlier this month. To view a full list of witnesses and to read their prepared remarks, click here.

House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity: 

On Thursday morning, the House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity marked up and passed five bills, H.R. 4057, H.R. 4115, H.R. 4740, H.R. 3524, and H.R. 5747.

The VFW was paying close attention to H.R. 4057, the Improving Transparency of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act of 2012; a bill which VFW legislative staff worked diligently to introduce. The bill was amended to include specific disclosures VA would have to make to potential student-veterans as part of pre-enrollment counseling available to G.I. Bill recipients. The VFW has been the leading voice in Washington advocating for improved student-veteran consumer information and consumer protections, which is why the VFW has pushed for this bill and similar bills in the Senate.

H.R. 3524, the Disabled Veterans Employment Protection Act, was amended to allow disabled veterans not covered under the Family Medical Leave Act an additional four weeks of leave from work in a calendar year for treatment of service-connected injuries. The subcommittee originally proposed 12 weeks of additional leave, but was concerned that employers would balk at the prospect of hiring veterans with such a strong provision.

During testimony earlier this spring, the VFW pointed out that VA must adapt its treatment options to allow service-connected disabled veterans to schedule care around reasonable work schedules. The VFW contends that it is not fair to the veteran or to his or her employer if VA can only schedule appointments during the work day.

H.R. 4115, the HIRE at HOME Act, which the VFW helped to craft, passed favorably, along with H.R. 4740, the Fairness for Military Homeowners Act, and H.R. 5747, the Military Family Home Protection Act.

The VFW testified on each of these bills within the last few months. To read our testimony on H.R. 4057 and H.R. 3524, click here. To read our testimony on H.R. 4115, H.R. 4740 and H.R. 5747, click here. 

House VA Subcommittee on Health:

On Friday morning, the House VA Subcommittee on Health marked up and passed two bills, H.R. 3337 and H.R. 4079.

The VFW has been a vocal advocate for H.R. 3337, the Open Burn Pit Registry Act, helping to introduce the bill late last year, and even helping to introduce a companion bill in the Senate, with the help of the burn pit exposure advocacy group Burn Pits 360. The bill easily passed the subcommittee.

H.R. 4079, the Safe Housing for Homeless Veterans Act, was also amended and passed the subcommittee, ensuring housing for homeless veterans meets safe living standards.

The VFW testified on each of these bills in April. To read VFW's full testimony, click here.

The VFW will continue to track each of these bills as they move through committee, possibly to be included in another veterans' benefits omnibus package later this fall. Check back regularly for updates.

Watch: VFW Testifies on Veterans’ Assistance Bills

*Update: The archived webcast of yesterday's hearing is now available online by clicking here. 

Yesterday afternoon the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs hosted a hearing on pending legislation, and VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley shared VFW’s thoughts with the subcommittee on each bill under consideration.

The hearing came to order at 2 p.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office building on Capitol Hill. To view a full list of the bills under consideration, a full list of witnesses, and to read their prepared remarks, click here.

During his remarks, Kelley voiced the VFW’s support for bills ranging from properly honoring fragmented remains of our nation’s fallen heroes to extending critical benefit-delivery programs for veterans, such as the authority of VA to contract with non-VA doctors to perform examinations and the authority of VA to offer adaptive housing accommodations for veterans under the care of family members.

Kelley also expressed cautious support to a proposal that would allow congressional staffers and local government officials to access veteran-specific information on pending VA disability claims, calling for provisions in the bill to ensure information privacy and proper oversight on access.

Texas VFW District 4 Senior Vice Commander Jay Sanders also testified on the Houston VA Cemetery controversy and proposed legislation designed to clarify veterans’ burial rights. Sanders was on hand to offer his local perspective on the issue.

(Images: Top: House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Chairman John Runyan, R-N.J., delivers his opening remarks during yesterday's legislative hearing. Bottom: VFW National Legislative Director Ray Kelley, left, shares the VFW's thoughts on each bill under consideration during yesterday's hearing. Photos by Chase Collram.)

WATCH: VFW Testifies on Protecting Student-Veterans

UPDATE: The archived webcast from Wednesday's hearing is now available. to view the webcast, click here. VFW testimony starts at the 15-minute mark. To read VFW's prepared remarks in full, click here. 

The VFW testified on Wednesday at a House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity hearing on the implementation of the recent executive order to better protect student-veterans. The hearing took place at 2 p.m. in the committee's chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building.

To view a full list of witnesses and to read their prepared remarks, click here.

The executive order, entitled “Establishing Principles of Excellence for Educational Institutions Serving Service Members, Veterans, Spouses and Other Family Members,” comes after VFW legislative efforts called on the House, Senate and White House to improve consumer protections for veterans who seek to use their earned GI Bill benefits. VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer applauded the executive order in an official statement two weeks ago.

“The VFW has worked very hard to get these protections created, and the president’s executive order will go far to crack down on the predatory recruiting practices and poor performance of all schools who participate in the Post-9/11 GI Bill, but our fight isn’t over,” he said.

Over the past eight months, reports from the Senate and GAO have indicated that student-veterans may be victimized by schools that fail to deliver on their educational promises, creating a perception in Washington that military and veterans’ education dollars are being wasted, because student-veterans are not receiving the education they were promised.

“Veterans make responsible life and death decisions on the battlefield every day, but reports indicate that they aren’t making the same quality decisions about the schools they choose to attend on the G.I. Bill,” said VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci, who is scheduled to testify on behalf of the VFW. “The difference is preparation and information. We prepare our battlefield leaders to make these tough choices and we provide them with quality, accurate information. We fail to prepare our student-veterans for the life-changing decisions they’re about to make, and the information we make available is incomplete, inaccurate and sometimes downright misleading.”

At the hearing, Gallucci discussed why the VFW believes the executive order will serve as an important first step in ensuring student-veterans have all the information they need to make a responsible educational choice, and have proper recourse should they become victims of fraud, waste or abuse.

In January and February, the VFW worked to build consensus among veterans’ advocates and higher education, calling for improved consumer protections. Today, both the House and Senate have introduced bills to improve the landscape for student-veterans. The VFW believes the president’s executive order should serve as the impetus for Congress to quickly move legislation, ensuring consumer protections are written into law.

In his prepared remarks, Gallucci goes on to say that executive action is limited to current law and available resources, which is why the VFW believes legislative solutions remain the best option.

(Image: Screen grab from Wednesday's webcast of the House VA Subcommittee hearing on the president's recent G.I. Bill executive order.)

House Veterans Affairs Committee Questions VA on Mental Health Care Delivery

On Tuesday, the VFW was on hand as the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee held a hearing to discuss the findings of a recent VA Office of Inspector General report, highlighting serious concerns with access to mental health care within the VA system. At the request of Committee Chairman Jeff Miller, R-Fla., VA Secretary Eric Shinseki testified alongside Dr. Robert A. Petzel, VA undersecretary for health, and other distinguished members of the VA team.

To view an archived webcast of the hearing, click here. To view a full list of witnesses and to read their prepared remarks, click here.

The panelists defended VA efforts and practices against the recent damaging OIG report which found, among other things, that the measurements used by VA to calculate wait times for mental health appointments lack accuracy and reliability. The report explicitly said that the measurements offered “no real value” and should be replaced. OIG also found that nearly half of veterans seeking a mental health episode of care waited approximately 50 days -- a figure in stark contrast to the 14-day standard VA has regularly promoted.

Much of the hearing focused on VA’s recent announcement that the agency would hire 1,900 new mental health staff -- 1,600 clinicians and 300 support staff -- to help overcome shortfalls across the country that currently prevent veterans from receiving timely care.

Unfortunately, The VFW believes many questions remain unanswered. VA does not yet have a true staffing model to ensure the mental health contingent within VA is right-sized or properly distributed across the system. Because of that, many committee members and other witnesses questioned the effectiveness of VA’s response, and whether or not 1,900 is the optimal number of new hires. Questions of how VA would pay for the additional staff were also raised, and VA’s response that they would be taking the money out of the dollars allocated to the VISNs did not seem to satisfy many on the committee.

Shinseki admitted that VA had much to do to resolve this problem, and made clear his belief that the problem could get worse in coming years as the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan draw to a close and more service members seek VA care. Dr. Petzel offered that VA needed to do more fee-basis mental health authorizations, and more mental health contracting with private providers, especially in rural areas. VA also discussed a new and ongoing peer counselor program in which VA is currently training 400 veterans to become peer counselors. Tele-mental health and the future deployment of an integrated electronic health record were also mentioned as facets of VA’s plan to address the need to provide more mental health treatment for our veterans.

In the midst of all these efforts, committee members and veterans’ advocates did not seem satisfied. As your voice on Capitol Hill, your VFW will continue to keep VA’s feet to the fire to improve the delivery of mental health care for our veterans. Check back regularly for updates.

ICYMI: VFW Testifies on Veterans Health Bills

In Case You Missed It:  On Monday night, VFW Legislative Associate Shane Barker appeared before the House Veterans Affairs Health Subcommittee to discuss pending legislation to improve veterans’ health care. To view an archived webcast of the hearing, click here.

In his remarks, which can be read here, Barker expressed VFW’s support for bills that would create accountability within Department of Defense and VA for the Federal Recovery Coordination, or FRC, program (H.R. 3016); improve access to VA and DoD informational databases for Vet Centers (H.R. 3245); ensure caregivers for service members suffering severe illnesses also have access to VA caregiver program benefits (H.R. 3279); codify safety standards for homeless veterans’ transitional housing (H.R. 4079); and establish a burn pit registry for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans possibly exposed to toxins from open-air burn pits overseas (H.R. 3337).

Barker expressed VFW’s support for the concept behind one bill, H.R. 1460, which would automatically enroll service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with VA healthcare. However, Barker said that the VFW was concerned that veterans who do not deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan, but suffer service-connected injuries, would not be given the same priority for VA health care as their deployed counterparts. The VFW asked for the bill to be amended to include mandatory enrollment for non-deployed service members that satisfy the VA’s enrollment requirements.

The VFW opposed H.R. 3723, a bill that would overhaul VA’s fee basis system by insisting that VA enter into contracts with private health care providers. The VFW is concerned that VA could not successfully execute the types of contracts necessary to properly anticipate and successfully deliver the kinds of acute care needed by veterans that must utilize the fee-basis system. Barker also went on to say that the VFW was concerned that new business practices could encourage veterans to leave the VA health network entirely, threatening the viability of the VA health care system. The VFW suggested that VA instead focus on implementation of the Patient Aligned Care Team, or PACT, model and the Patient Centered Community Care, or PCCC, program to improve care delivery for current beneficiaries and veterans who need to utilize fee-basis care.

To view a full list of witnesses from Monday’s hearing and to read their prepared remarks on each of the bills, click here.

Your VFW will continue to work closely with the subcommittee as these bills move through Congress, ensuring all of our concerns are addressed before a subcommittee mark-up. To voice your opinion on these bills directly to your representatives in Congress, click on the VFW Action Corps page here, and as always, check back regularly with this blog for updates.

Watch Live: VFW to Testify on VA Claims Process

Update: To view the archived webcast of the hearing, click here, and to read highlights from the hearing, check out Military Times' coverage here.

This morning the House Committee on Veterans Affairs will host a hearing to examine the role of veterans' representatives throughout the VA disability claims process. Assistant Director for Veterans Benefits Policy Jim Wear will testify on behalf the VFW.

The hearing is scheduled to come to order at 10 a.m. in the committee's chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building. To watch the hearing live, click here.

During his remarks, Wear plans to fully outline how the 1,300 claims service officers accredited by the VFW help veterans navigate the complex VA disability claims process. Wear plans to highlight not only the 80-plus hours of training required of VFW service officers, but also the specific tasks with which service officers may assist veterans and dependents seeking service-connected benefits.

Wear also plans to discuss how the VFW's relationship has evolved with VA under the direction of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, and how the VFW believes transparency from the agency will improve outcomes in the future, helping to alleviate the current VA disability claims backlog.

To view a full list of witnesses from this morning's hearing and to read their submitted remarks, click here, and check back later today with this blog for updates from the hearing.

In 2011, the VFW's service officers helped more than 97,000 veterans and survivors receive more than $2 billion in compensation and pension benefits. VFW claims assistance is offered to all veterans free of charge at VA regional offices around the country. Veterans represented by the VFW were also more likely to be granted service-connection for their disabilities upon appeal than veterans represented by attorneys or veterans with no representation. To find a VFW claims service officer near you, click here.

VFW Joins Labor to Observe Redesigned TAP Program

Last week the VFW had the opportunity to sit in on the Department of Labor's latest iteration of the redesigned transition assistance program, or TAP. DOL Veterans Employment and Training Service, or VETS, is in the process of reworking the curriculum for its two-and-a-half day employment workshop in an effort to ensure that transitioning service members have all the resources necessary to pursue a meaningful civilian career after military service.

"Observing the latest iteration of the TAP redesign process was a critical step in offering insight into how the program is delivered," said VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci, who sat in on last week's TAP workshop at Fort Belvoir, Va. "VFW members expect us to have our fingers on the pulse of the veterans' community, offering this kind of insight to veterans' policy decision-makers, which is why the VFW is happy that VETS chose to include stakeholders within the veterans' community to not only observe the program, but to offer our unique perspective on how we believe the program should proceed."

The VFW will now offer its feedback on the program, as VETS continues to polish its latest product, slated for a complete roll-out this fall.

The VFW has long worked with VETS to ensure service members and veterans have access to the viable civilian careers through a wide array of services offered by VETS like TAP, or career one-stops in each state where Disabled Veterans Outreach Program specialists, or DVOPS, and local veterans employment representatives, or LVERS, serve as direct conduits for veterans in the community to connect with employers in their area.

Over the last few years, modernizing and mandating TAP participation have been top legislative priorities for the VFW. Last year, the VFW succeeded in mandating TAP for transitioning service members through the VOW to Hire Heroes Act, ensuring those who leave the military have a baseline of information with which they can make a successful transition. Now, the VFW is focusing on extending access to TAP resources for veterans who have since separated from the military, pushing for the TAP Modernization Act of 2012, a piece of legislation that would create a pilot program for states to offer TAP resources in places where veteran unemployment is highest.

Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Fla., introduced the bill, H.R. 4051, and the VFW offered its support during a recent hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity. To read the bill, click here. To read VFW's testimony, click here.

Veterans' employment opportunities remain a top priority for the VFW in light of daunting veterans' unemployment numbers over the last few years. Though recent numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate the situation is improving, the VFW will remain vigilant to ensure that veterans receive the kinds of career opportunities they have earned. Check back regularly with this blog for updates.

WATCH: VFW Testifies on Veterans' Jobs, Education and Cemetery Issues

Just a day after the 2012 VFW Legislative Conference came to a close, the VFW Washington office was still at it. VFW Deputy Legislative Director Ryan Gallucci testified before the House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity this morning. Gallucci discussed bills on veterans' jobs and education, several of which VFW played a major role in drafting, like H.R. 4057, which will improve consumer education for potential student-veterans and H.R. 3670, which will close a loophole in Transportation Security Administration policy that exempts the agency from USERRA.

Military Times discussed VFW's testimony in a story late yesterday afternoon, which you can read here.

Yesterday afternoon, Legislative Director Ray Kelley also testified before the House VA Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs. The hearing followed up on a recent National Cemetery Administration, or NCA, audit that discovered mismarked graves in VA cemeteries. Kelley asked the committee to review VA performance measures for NCA and to close gaps in funding so that veterans and their families have burial options and cemeteries remain protected and pristine.

Click here to watch a webcast of Gallucci's hearing.

Read Gallucci's testimony here, and learn more about the hearing here.

Click here to watch a webcast of Kelley's hearing.

Read Kelley's testimony here, and learn more about the hearing here.

VFW Supports Closing G.I. Bill Payment Loophole

This week the VFW sent a letter to Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., expressing support for his bill, H.R. 3483, the Veterans Educational Equity Act of 2011, which would offer student-veterans who do not meet residency requirements at public schools equitable reimbursement to finance their education through the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.

The purpose of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill was to offer a free, public education to today's war-fighters. Unfortunately, in an effort to ensure student-veterans have access to the highest quality educational programs, new reimbursement policies have created a loophole that potentially harms student-veterans who choose to attend certain public schools.

Recent changes to the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefit allow student-veterans attending private schools to receive up to $17,500 in tuition and fee payments from VA. However, student-veterans attending public schools are still only entitled to receive the highest in-state tuition and fee payments, regardless of whether or not they meet residency requirements for the state. As a result, many student-veterans who do not qualify for in-state tuition face significant out-of-pocket costs to attend the public school of their choice, unlike their counterparts whose education at a private school may nearly be fully financed.

In the letter, VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley said that many times the nature of military life makes it difficult for veterans to establish residency in areas where they may choose to attend college.

"Servicemen and women must constantly move across the country and even around the world,which can prevent them from establishing domicile in any one state," said Kelley. "We must take these extenuating circumstances into account and offer an equitable benefit for veterans who choose to attend both public and private schools."

Butterfield's bill would extend the $17,500 reimbursement cap for student-veterans attending public schools who do not meet residency requirements for in-state tuition. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 25,000-35,000 veterans are affected by this inequity, and closing the loophole could cost up to $134 million each year.

The VFW is scheduled to testify on H.R. 3483 and other pending legislation before the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity on Thursday, March 8.

To read the full text of Butterfield's bill, click here.

To read Butterfield's statement about the bill, click here.

The VFW played a critical role in passing the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill in 2008 and continues to have a vested interest in ensuring that today's student-veterans have an opportunity to use their benefits as intended to receive a quality education. Check back regularly with this blog for updates.

VFW Joins VA Nurses for Legislative Roundtable

On Friday VFW joined the Nurses Organization of Veterans Affairs, or NOVA, for their annual legislative roundtable at the Washington, D.C., office of the Disabled American Veterans, or DAV.

VFW Action Corps Manager Teresa Morris, who recently served on the NOVA foundation board, joined representatives from both the House and Senate Veterans Affairs committees, the American Nurses Association, Association of Veterans Affairs Nurse Anesthetists, National Association of Veterans Research and Education Foundations, and veterans advocates from the American Legion, DAV, Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Vietnam Veterans of America to discuss NOVA’s legislative priority goals for 2012.

The afternoon’s discussion centered around the fiscal year 2013 VA budget and the potential shortfalls in construction and research funding – particularly funding and availability of proper laboratory space. In addition to budget considerations, NOVA provided a handout of their legislative agenda for 2012 and discussed many areas of concern for nurses within the VA system, such as investment in proper IT infrastructure and programs to recruit and retain quality staff.

Morris discussed VFW’s role within the Independent Budget for VA, focusing on how inadequate funding for VA construction and infrastructure improvement could negatively affect veterans who rely on VA health care. The VFW testified on the VA’s budget proposal before the House Veterans Affairs Committee last week, expressing the same concerns.

Morris also focused on broader veterans’ health care issues outlined in the VFW’s 2012 Legislative Priority Goals including mental health, invisible wounds like post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, and proper training for all who serve in a patient care role to identify signs and symptoms related to these conditions.

House and Senate representatives talked about their committees’ priorities for the second session of the 112th Congress, stressing proper oversight of VA mental health programs and efficiencies within the department.

Next Wednesday, the VFW will appear before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee to once again discuss the FY2013 VA budget, continuing to advocate for proper VA funding and voicing similar concerns over proper infrastructure funding. As the 2013 budget process moves forward, check back regularly with this blog for updates.

Watch Live: VFW, Shinseki to Testify on VA Budget

*Update: To view the archived webcast of the hearing, click here. To read Stars & Stripes coverage of VFW's testimony, click here. 

This morning VA Secretary Eric Shinseki will appear before the House Veterans Affairs Committee to discuss the fiscal year 2013 VA budget. The VFW and our partners in the Independent Budget will also appear before the committee to present the veterans’ community’s views on how Congress should fund the department in the coming year.

The hearing will commence at 10:30 a.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building. To view a live webcast of the hearing, click here.

The Independent Budget is a roadmap drafted by some of the nation’s leading veterans’ advocates, which Congress has used for more than a quarter century to help determine how to best fund VA. The Independent Budget partner organizations include AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the VFW. The document also has the support of more than 50 other veterans’ organizations which have endorsed the Independent Budget recommendations. To learn more about the Independent Budget and to read this year’s specific budget proposal, click here.

National Legislative Director Ray Kelley will testify on behalf of the VFW, focusing on the VA’s construction and capital investment budget; an area in which the Independent Budget partners noticed considerable discrepancies between their analysis and VA’s budget proposal announced earlier this week.

Over the last two years, the VA budget has significantly scaled back capital investment projects in an effort to control spending during difficult fiscal times. In his remarks, Kelley plans to focus on why VA needs to properly invest in infrastructure to meet the ever-changing needs of a veterans’ population in flux.

To view a full list of panelists for this morning’s hearing, click here. Prepared remarks should also be available later today. Check back this afternoon for updates.

(Image: Cover of the FY2013 Independent Budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs.)

VFW Builds Coalition to Support Student-Veteran Success

VFW staff in Washington have been busy over the last month, building a robust coalition, pushing for student-veteran success in higher education. The coalition, comprised of 10 organizations vested in supporting student-veterans, recently sent a series of letters to leaders in the House, Senate, and the Obama Administration, calling for improved consumer education for potential student-veterans and a streamlined method of recourse for veterans who feel they were victims of fraud, waste or abuse while using their benefits.

The VFW first scored a major victory for student-veterans in 2008, pushing for the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, which now offers unprecedented educational opportunities to veterans of the current conflicts and the dependents of career service members. Unfortunately, recent reports indicate that some of today’s newest student-veterans may lose their benefits by enrolling in schools that fail to confer relevant educational credentials.

While some continue to point fingers at certain sectors of higher education, the VFW has chosen to look at the root causes of the problem – a potentially uninformed consumer inundated with bad information and no process for recovery. Over the last few months, the VFW has learned that enough quality information is available for veterans to make informed decisions about how to best use their education benefits, and both the Department of Education and VA have already taken steps to collect more. Unfortunately, most of this information never reaches student-veterans. Plus, if veterans feel they have been victims of fraud, waste or abuse, conflicts are resolved on an ad-hoc basis, with little knowledge or interaction from VA.

Under Chapter 36 of the G.I. Bill, VA is obligated to make educational and vocational counseling available to service members, potential student-veterans, and dependents eligible for any chapter of the G.I. Bill. Unfortunately, very few student-veterans are aware that this benefit exists, and even fewer choose to take advantage of it. In its current form, veterans must first discover that such counseling is available, fill out the requisite paperwork, mail it to their nearest VA regional office and wait for a response. This labor-intensive “opt-in” process resulted in only 6,400 veterans receiving counseling in 2011, compared to more than 800,000 veterans utilizing G.I. Bill benefits.

With so much at stake for these future leaders, the coalition has asked for an overhaul to VA’s educational counseling procedures, mandating VA to actively contact veterans eligible for such counseling, asking those who wish to waive the benefit to “opt-out.” On the back end, the coalition has asked that VA leverage its resources to create a formal complaint process to address student-veteran issues, allowing VA and other agencies responsible for student-veteran programs to take action.

In addition to the VFW, the coalition includes some of the nation’s leading veterans’ advocates, including the American Legion, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, and Student Veterans of America; as well as a diverse group of advocates in non-profit and for-profit education including American Association of College Registrars and Admissions Officers, American Council of Education, Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities, National Association for College Admission Counseling, National Association of State Approving Agencies, and the University of Phoenix.

The VFW believes that by ensuring veterans understand their benefits and can take action when a school breaks the rules, student-veterans will be able to use their G.I. Bill effectively, molding the next generation of American leaders, as we intended. Check back regularly with this blog for updates.

(Image: Coalition letter recently sent to House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jeff Miller, R-Fla., and Ranking Member Bob Filner, D-Calif., asking for improved consumer education and recourse for student-veterans.)

Watch Live: House Subcommittee Discusses VA Fiduciaries

*Update 1:45 p.m.: The archived webcast is now available here. 
*Update 11:05 a.m.: The hearing has reconvened. Tune in live now. 
*Update 10:13 a.m.: The hearing is in recess for votes in the House. We will keep you posted once the hearing reconvenes. 

This morning the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will host a hearing on the VA’s fiduciary system, which has come under scrutiny in recent years over concerns for severely disabled veterans’ financial interests.

The hearing commences at 10:00 a.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building. To view the live webcast of the hearing, click here.

VA assigns fiduciaries to oversee VA benefits paid to severely disabled and incapacitated veterans incapable of managing the funds. However, a 2010 report from the VA’s Office of the Inspector General indicated that loopholes persist in the program that keep VA from properly auditing fiduciary accountings and prohibit VA from balancing delinquent accounts.

The VFW most recently testified on these inequities during last spring’s legislative hearing before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, calling for improvements to the program, and VFW advocates in Washington will be watching this morning’s proceedings closely in the House.

This morning’s panelists include Dave McLenachen, VA’s director of pension and fiduciary service, alongside fiduciaries who have been tasked to represent veterans’ financial interests. To view a full list of panelists, click here.

Prepared remarks for each panelist should be available later this week. VFW will keep you posted through this blog on this morning’s hearing. Check back for updates.

Watch Live: House to Address Unemployment in the National Guard

*Update: The hearing adjourned shortly before 1 p.m. 
*Update: The hearing was delayed and came to order at 10:24 a.m. The live stream is now available. 

The House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity will host a hearing this morning to address growing concerns of unemployment among members of the National Guard. The hearing will come to order at 10 a.m. in room 334 of the Cannon House Office Building. To view the archived webcast from the proceedings, click here.

This morning’s hearing comes in the wake of persistent reports from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicating that military men and women serving in the National Guard and Reserve face unemployment at rates of up to 30 percent in certain states. The VFW, which has been vocal on the issue of unemployment in the Guard, will be on hand for the hearing and plans to submit testimony for the record.

Ted Daywalt, president and founder of the VFW-supported employment resource VetJobs, will testify before the subcommittee alongside National Guard leaders from the across the country and Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans Employment and Training Service Ismael “Junior” Ortiz. To view a full list of participants, click here.

The VFW is concerned that unemployment among the Guard and Reserve not only threatens the immediate readiness of the military’s operational reserve force, but also threatens the future viability of the all-volunteer force, which has relied heavily on the reserve component over the last decade.

Veterans’ employment remains a top priority for the VFW in the current Congressional session. VFW leaders hope to build on the success of last session’s passage of the VOW to Hire Heroes Act by ensuring that reserve component service members also have the kinds of job opportunities they deserve.

Updates and VFW reaction from today’s hearing will be available later today on this blog.

Watch Live: House Committee Questions VA on Pharmaceutical Contracts

*Update: Hearing adjourned at 12:25 p.m. Eastern. 

VFW is on hand for the House Veterans Affairs Committee hearing this morning on alleged contracting issues within VA’s prescription drug program. The committee called the hearing in response to concerns that VA may have purchased prescription drugs off-contract.

The hearing started at 10 a.m. in the committee’s chambers, room 335 of the Cannon House Office Building. To view the archived webcast from the hearing, click here.

Key witnesses include VA Deputy Secretary W. Scott Gould and VA Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Audits and Evaluations Linda Halliday.

To view a full list of witnesses, click here. Remarks for each witness should be available following today’s hearing. Check back later today for VFW reaction and updates.