VA Women Vet Programs Update:

The Department of Veterans Affairs has published a regulation officially amending VA’s medical benefits package to include up to seven days of medical care for newborns delivered by women Veterans who are receiving VA maternity care benefits. ―The regulation change makes formal the commitment VA made to women Veterans,‖ said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Erik K. Shinseki. ―This falls in line with the broad range of services VA is proud to offer women Veterans who have served this nation.‖ Newborn care includes routine post-delivery care and all other medically necessary services that are in accord with generally accepted standards of medical practice. The effective date of the rule is Dec. 19, 2011, but the regulation applies retroactively to newborn care provided to eligible women Veterans on or after May 5, 2011. VA has women Veterans program managers at every VA medical center to help women Veterans learn more about the health care benefits they have earned with their service. For more information about VA healthcare for women Veterans, visit http://www.womenshealth.va.gov.

Related articles

• Women Veterans Medical Benefits to Include Newborn Care (offthebase.wordpress.com)
• Sec. Shinseki: VA on Track to Break Claims Backlog (takingonacause.com)

VA Claims Update: 4/5/12

The Department of Veterans Affairs is moving a step closer to fixing a disability claims system that for years has taken in more claims than are processed. The department is about to rollout nationally a new automated Veterans Benefit Management System to make claims determinations faster and more accurate. In 2009, VA produced 900,000 claims decisions, but took in 1 million new claims. VA increased its claims decisions to 1 million in both 2010 and 2011, but then took in 1.2 million and 1.3 million new claims, respectively. The new automated system will be launched in 16 of the VA's 56 regional offices this fall to complement ongoing manual efforts, with the rest of the ROs brought onboard by 2014. VA's intent is to have no claim older than 125 days, and for every rating decision to be 98 percent accurate. Read more at http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=67793.

Related articles

• Sec. Shinseki: VA on Track to Break Claims Backlog (offthebase.wordpress.com)

Attention Women Veteran's

From: Bob Kozberg rjk@cbsnews.com The CBS Weekend News, which airs Saturday/Sunday evenings at 6:30 p.m. EST (5:30 p.m. CST/PST), is putting together a story about the high unemployment rate among female veterans, according to the latest numbers released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While there may be some explanations as to why the 22% rate is so alarmingly high, compared to the national average... even when all the explanations are factored in, the rate remains alarmingly high. What we're looking for is to profile one or two women who have recently served in the military, who have seen combat, and who are continuing to have problems getting employment. What were your expectations upon returning home? What's the reality been like? What is your sense of why returning vets are finding it disproportionately harder to get jobs? Is there an (unspoken) fear by potential employers of dealing with PTSD? Is it an (unspoken) concern about future redeployments? We are producing this story out of Lo! s Angeles, soour preference for interviews would be those who live west of the Rockies. We would do any interview on site (coming to you, instead of conducting it in a studio). Our goal is to put a story together that looks behind the numbers. The person(s) we interview will be speaking for herself, not on behalf of the group, but she will be emblematic of what a growing number of female combat veterans are experiencing. If you meet the criteria and don't mind sharing your current situation (as difficult as it is) with a national audience, please contact me. Our deadline is ASAP. Thank you so much, Bob Kozberg, Producer, CBS News, Los Angeles Bureau (323) 575-3425(office) rjk@cbsnews.com

Stop Loss Pay Extended:

Stop Loss Pay Extended: Retroactive Stop Loss Special Pay (RSLSP) has been extended to Oct. 21, 2012. The Office of Enlisted Personnel Management believes many qualified individuals have not applied for the pay and hopes that the extension will allow those eligible more time to apply under the program guidelines. RSLSP was established to compensate for the hardships military members encountered when their service was involuntarily extended under Stop Loss authority between Sept. 11, 2001, and Sept. 30, 2009. Eligible members or their beneficiaries may submit a claim to their respective military service in order to receive the benefit of $500 for each full or partial month served in a Stop Loss status. To apply for the pay, or for more information on RSLSP, including submission requirements and service-specific links, go to http://www.defense.gov/stoploss

VA Women Veteran Programs Update

The Department of Veterans Affairs has published a regulation officially amending VA’s medical benefits package to include up to seven days of medical care for newborns delivered by women Veterans who are receiving VA maternity care benefits. ―The regulation change makes formal the commitment VA made to women Veterans,‖ said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Erik K. Shinseki. ―This falls in line with the broad range of services VA is proud to offer women Veterans who have served this nation.‖ Newborn care includes routine post-delivery care and all other medically necessary services that are in accord with generally accepted standards of medical practice. The effective date of the rule is Dec. 19, 2011, but the regulation applies retroactively to newborn care provided to eligible women Veterans on or after May 5, 2011. VA has women Veterans program managers at every VA medical center to help women Veterans learn more about the health care benefits they have earned with their service. For more information about VA healthcare for women Veterans, visit http://www.womenshealth.va.gov.

Here is A good Link I enjoy very much one weary soldier

Physician Reimbursement Cuts Avoided:

On Wednesday, the president signed H.R. 3630 into law to extend current physician payment rates under Medicare and Tricare through the end of the year. In 1997 Congress instituted a plan known as the Sustainable Growth Rate to keep Medicare and Tricare reimbursement rates in line with inflation; however, the cuts envisioned have never been instituted. The bill signing averted an “all-at-once” cut of 27.4 percent in the amount reimbursed to doctors, which could have prompted more physicians to opt out of accepting Medicare and Tricare patients.

New Veteran Health Benefits Handbook:

The VA began mailing a personalized Veteran Health Benefits Handbook the last week of FEB to all veterans enrolled in VA health care. The new handbook is tailored specifically for each veteran and provides detailed information about the VA health services the veteran may be eligible to receive. The Veteran Health Benefit Handbook provides answers to common questions such as contact information for the Veteran's local facility, instructions on how to schedule appointments, guidelines for communicating treatment needs and an explanation of the veteran's responsibilities, such as co-pays, if applicable. For additional information about the Veterans Health Benefits Handbook refer to "http://www.va.gov/healthbenefits/assets/documents/publications/faq_veterans.pdf" or call VA at 1 877-222-VETS (8387).