Sierra Club Offers Outdoor Leadership Opportunities to VFW Members

The Sierra Club has long recognized that veterans and their families have a great love for the outdoors. Now the Sierra Club is working hard to get our veterans outside to enjoy the freedom of the lands they defended through the Mission Outdoors Military Family and Veteran Initiative, and has asked the VFW to help spread the word.

The Sierra Club’s mission statement is simple:  “Explore, enjoy, and protect the planet,” while at the VFW:  “No one does more for veterans.” At first glance, some may be surprised that the Sierra Club would look to the ranks of the VFW to support their new initiative, but when you get down to the core values of both organizations, working to offer unique outdoor opportunities to veterans is a natural fit.

Outdoor activities can be a fundamental step in helping service members and their families reintegrate into their communities and mitigate issues related to post-traumatic stress, depression, and other physical, mental, and emotional disabilities. Whether it is a short walk in the woods or a multi-day expedition into one of America’s great wildernesses, outdoor recreation allows our service members and veterans the opportunity to come home and enjoy the beauty they helped protect.

Unfortunately, a lack of trained leaders to take our veterans into the great outdoors often creates a significant access hurdle to outdoor activities. Without experienced leaders who are trained to safely take other people into our heartland, veterans can miss out on the beauty America has to offer. To actively combat this Sierra Club is excited to pilot its first leadership training course in coordination with the National Outdoor Leadership School. The course runs from April 25 through May 2 in the Gila National Forest in Arizona; the world’s oldest officially designated wilderness area; and participants from the VFW taking part in the training. What new veteran leaders will learn together on this course, they will be able to implement in other outdoor opportunities.

In keeping with the strong traditions of grassroots organizing, the Sierra Club will also be offering weekend training opportunities in August in Washington State; October in Colorado; and November in North Carolina to train new outings leaders to lead military, veteran, and other community members outside. Details on these additional outings will be available in the coming months on this blog and the Sierra Club’s military Web sites.

Participation is free, and VFW members are encouraged to sign up. However, space is limited, so contact Stacy Bare from Sierra Club, stacy.bare@sierraclub.org, to learn more about these opportunities or to reserve your spot today.

It is the VFW’s sincere hope that we can continue to work together to ensure our veterans and their families have all the opportunities to get outside as often possible, and our aim is to work with you side by side to get you out on the trail.

For more information and opportunities to get outside please check out: www.sierraclub.org/military or http://sierraclub.typepad.com/military. Meanwhile, we’ll update you in this space when we get back home from Arizona in early May!

(Images: Veterans participate in a variety of outdoor expeditions as part of the Sierra Club's Mission Outdoors Military Family and Veteran Initiative. Photos courtesy of the Sierra Club.)

Watch Live: Senate Hosts Hearing on Vets' Mental Health Care

UPDATE: The archived webcast from yesterday's hearing is now available on the Senate VA Committee's Web site. To view a full list of witnesses, read their prepared remarks, and view the archived webcast, click here. 

This morning the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee will host a hearing to evaluate the ease-of-access for veterans seeking mental health care at VA facilities. The hearing comes in the wake of an alarming report from the VA's Office of the Inspector General, indicating that VA may have misled Congress and the veterans' community on how it ensured prompt access to care for veterans seeking treatment for mental health conditions.

Your VFW will be on hand when the hearing is scheduled to commence at 9:30 a.m. in Senate Dirksen Office Building room 138. To view a live webcast of the hearing on the committee's home page, click here.

VA policy dictates that veterans who seek treatment for mental health must be seen with 14 days of requesting treatment. However, the report, which can be read here, claims that VA misrepresented how it tracked whether or not veterans received treatment in a timely manner, many times only starting the 14-day clock from the earliest date on which a veteran physically entered a VA facility for treatment.

For example, if a veteran were to contact VA on April 1 to seek treatment, VA could offer an appointment date on April 16. If the veteran accepted the April 16 appointment and was actually treated in a VA clinic on April 16, VA would report that the veteran waited zero days for his or her treatment, as opposed to the actual 15-day waiting period.

As a result, OIG determined that VA's reports on wait times and treatments were neither accurate nor reliable, and called on the VA Undersecretary of Health to revise policies to clarify how patient scheduling and treatment should be tracked and identify staffing shortfalls that may impede timely treatment.

Senate VA Committee Chairman Patty Murray, D-Wash.,  and Ranking Member Richard Burr, R-S.C., called for the IG report. The results come less than a week after VA pledged to hire an additional 1,900 mental health care personnel to include marriage and family therapists and licensed professional mental health counselors.

VFW leaders were disturbed at the report that VA may have misled the public and the veterans’ community on how it delivers mental health care. Your VFW will continue to keep its finger on the pulse of this critical issue, putting pressure on VA officials and leaders in Congress to take decisive action. Check back regularly for updates.

Why VA Programs Will Be Exempt from Sequestration Cuts

Yesterday afternoon the U.S. Office of Management and Budget released a letter to the Government Accountability Office unequivocally stating that all Department of Veterans Affairs programs would be exempt from budget cuts resulting from sequestration set to take effect in early 2013. The VFW had expressed concerns that VA programs -- particularly VA health care -- could be subject to deep budget cuts as a result of unclear language in last year's Budget Control Act of 2011, or BCA.

In yesterday’s letter, OMB explained that BCA amendments to the Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 had no effect on preexisting exemptions of VA programs, including a specific exemption added through tht Pay-As-You-Go, or PAYGO, Act of 2010, which effectively ensured that all VA programs would be exempt from any budget sequestration, to include health care programs.

The letter, however, did not address whether VA administration accounts would be exempt from sequestration of “Federal Administrative Expenses.” Even with potential cuts to VA administration, the VFW stresses that this decision is a win for the veterans’ community that will ensure preservation of the earned care and benefits millions of veterans rely on each day.

“Disabled veterans can breathe a sigh of relief today knowing that VA programs are exempt from sequestration,” said VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard L. DeNoyer in a statement yesterday afternoon. “Today’s decision means the healthcare plans and programs the VA currently provides to millions of disabled veterans will continue unabated, as will claims processing and veterans’ burial benefits.”

With assurances that VA programs are now safe from sequestration, the VFW must now focus its efforts on preserving military personnel and quality-of-life programs, which face serious cuts in this year's defense budget cycle as a way to avoid deep cuts through sequestration.

To contact your members in Congress and tell them to support and preserve military quality-of-life, visit the VFW Action Corps by clicking here, and check back regularly with this blog for updates.

(Image: First two pages of OMB's three-page letter explaining why VA programs would be exempt from sequestration in 2013.)

VA Introduces VOW to Hire Heroes Act Web Site

The VA today launched a new Web site, highlighting the latest programs implemented through last year's VOW to Hire Heroes Act, the comprehensive veterans' employment bill that VFW helped sign into law.

The new site, benefits.va.gov/VOW,  focuses on four specific improvements to VA programs designed to help veterans find quality careers or hone the skills necessary to compete in a cut-throat civilian job market. Each section describes new programs in detail, offering specific eligibility information and policy changes that will allow veterans to more easily access available employment and job training resources.

Two of the most significant programs are the extension of additional G.I. Bill-style education benefits for unemployed veterans between the ages of 35-60 through the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program, or VRAP, and the extension of additional Vocational Rehabilitation benefits for unemployed disabled veterans.

Unemployed veterans who qualify for VRAP will be offered an additional 12 months of education benefits to help develop new job skills. Program enrollment is limited to 45,000 veterans during fiscal year 2012, and to 54,000 participants from October 1, 2012, through March 31, 2014.

Department of Labor and VA will begin to accept applications for VRAP starting on May 12, 2012. Your VFW will keep you posted with details on how to apply.

Unemployed disabled veterans who have already completed Vocational Rehabilitation will also be eligible for an additional year of Voc Rehab benefits starting June 1, 2012, and VA is already accepting applications to participate in the new program.

The VFW has made veterans' employment a top priority for the last few years and scored a major victory for veterans with last year's passage of the VOW to Hire Heroes Act. With this in mind, we encourage all eligible veterans to learn about the new programs included in the law and take full advantage of the benefits and programs you have earned.

Field Report: Sen. McCain Visits Ohio VFW to Support Local Veteran

On Monday, Sen. John McCain spoke at VFW Hilliard Memorial Post 4931 in Colombus, Ohio, voicing his support for a local veteran, Josh Mandel, who hopes to represent Ohio in the United States Senate.

Mandel, a Marine Corps reservist who served two tours in Iraq, currently serves as the Ohio State Treasurer and is running as the endorsed Republican candidate against incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

Post Commander Charles Adkins, Jr., had the honor of welcoming and leading all in the pledge of allegiance prior to the comments of the invited speakers.

Though the VFW is prohibited from endorsing specific candidates, the VFW has a long tradition of encouraging its members to actively engage in the political discourse and encouraging posts to open their doors to hear directly from political candidates on veterans' issues. McCain's visit to speak alongside Mandel is just another example of how the VFW can foster constructive political discourse among candidates.

To submit your Field Reports for consideration on the VFW’s Capitol Hill blog, simply fill out our online form here, or send photos and stories directly to vfwac@vfw.org. Information for this story was provided by Ohio VFW Legislative Chairman Larry Moore.

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.

Field Report: Nevada VFW Joins Veterans' Congressional Town Hall

Members of Congress are in their home districts this week, and VFW advocates are once again taking the opportunity to meet directly with their elected leaders on veterans’ issues.

Members of the VFW Department of Nevada, including Nevada Legislative Chairman Gil Hernandez, joined a Congressional veterans' town tall meeting with Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., in Elko, Nevada, on Tuesday, April 3.

Amodei took the time to hear from dozens of area veterans and veterans' advocates, who focused primarily on the VA disability claims backlog. Veterans reported that the VA Regional Office in Reno can take up to 300 days to properly process a disability claim for a veteran; more than double the 125-day benchmark VA has set for reasonable claims-processing.

Hernandez said that he believes the VA Regional Office in Salt Lake City faces similar backlog issues, but  that Salt Lake City was in the process of converting to a paperless claims system and streamlining their ratings decisions, which could result in better service and shorter wait times for Nevada's disabled veterans.

Amodei later took to the local news to discuss why the veterans' town hall was important to him.

"It seems to me that Congressman Amodei stands ready to help veterans in any way he can," said Hernandez after the event.

To submit your Field Reports for consideration on the VFW’s Capitol Hill blog, simply fill out our online form here, or send photos and stories directly to vfwac@vfw.org. Information for this story was provided by Nevada VFW Legislative Chairman Gil Hernandez.

(Image: Nevada VFW Legislative Chairman Gil Hernandez poses for a photo with Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., and a fellow Nevada veteran during last week's veterans' town hall meeting in Elko. Photo courtesy of Gil Hernandez.) 

VFW Marine Completes Walk to Arlington

On Monday afternoon, VFW member and Marine Corps veteran Justin Kuhel walked onto the grounds of Arlington National Cemetery and into the arms of his mother, Nancy, completing a 17-day, 400-mile trek from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, to help raise the nation's awareness of wounded veterans.

Kuhel, an active member of VFW Buckeye Post No. 1598 and a veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan, set out on the journey as a way to raise funds to support wounded veterans through the Wounded Warrior Project. Kuhel's goal was to raise $10,000 to support his brothers and sisters-in-arms, and surpassed his goal shortly after arriving at Arlington with a $2,000 pledge from Azalea Charities in Fairfax, Va.

VFW Washington Office staff were on hand to greet Kuhel as he reached his destination, and accompanied the Marine to Section 60 so he could pay his respects to a fallen comrade.

In order to successfully complete the journey, Kuhel walked about 25 miles each day, followed closely behind in a car by fellow Marine veteran Steve Stucky. Family, friends, veterans and supporters came out at points all along the journey to cheer on Kuhel, who proudly carried the American flag along his route.

Kuhel chronicled his journey via Facebook, posting photos and messages along the 400-mile route.

(Image: Marine Corps veteran and VFW member Justin Kuhel hugs his mother, Nancy, upon his arrival at Arlington National Cemetery, completing his 400-mile walk to support wounded veterans. Photo by Joe Davis.)

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.