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WASHINGTON REPORT
VA to Refund Money to Survivors
In 1996 Congress passed a law
directing that the VA provide a
deceased veteran’s full compensation
benefit to the spouse on the month
of the veteran’s death, but due to
an error, the department has
continued to demand money back from
the survivors.
Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee
Chairman Sen. Daniel Akaka, (D-HI)
was recently made aware of the
problem by one of his constituents,
and he asked the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to look into and
fix the problem.
Secretary Jim Peake has set up a
special task force is to review VA
payment records for veterans who
died after Dec. 31, 1996, and are
survived by a spouse. The review
will identify those to whom VA owes
retroactive benefits for the month
of the veteran’s death. Current
address information is being
obtained for as many of these
beneficiaries as possible.
According to VA, retroactive
payments to eligible surviving
spouses will begin by the end of
December. Payments will continue to
be issued as additional unpaid
beneficiaries are identified.
A special Survivors’ Call Center has
been established for spouses who
believe they may be entitled to this
retroactive month-of-death benefit.
Surviving spouses are encouraged to
contact the Call Center (toll-free)
at (800) 749-8387. Call
Center agents will assist surviving
spouses in providing VA with the
information needed to determine
their eligibility.
The Call Center is open Monday
through Friday from 7:00 am to 7:00
pm central standard time. Inquiries
may also be submitted electronically
by clicking
Here.
Military Family Readiness
This afternoon NAUS Legislative
Director Rick Jones will participate
as a panel member in a meeting of
the Military Family Readiness
Council at the Pentagon. As a
mandate from the 2008 National
Defense Authorization Act to prepare
a new family readiness plan, DoD is
now beginning to work on the plan.
They will be getting input from each
of the services as well as military
family members and veterans and
military organizations. NAUS will
report any developments in
establishing a new Family Readiness
Strategy.
Status of Un-passed Legislation
A change from one Congress to the
next “wipes the slate clean” and
un-passed legislation must be
reintroduced or it becomes
inactive. Typically, Members of
Congress resubmit bills that they
want considered in the next session
but the bill number usually
changes. We are working with House
and Senate sponsors now to ensure
key NAUS-supported legislation
protecting the military healthcare
benefit, enhancing wounded warrior
care, assuring veterans funding,
expanding concurrent receipt, and
eliminating the SBP/DIC offset
(among others) is introduced early
in the first session of the 111th
Congress. We will report the new
bill numbers once that information
becomes known
Battle of the Bulge
As major snowstorms and bad weather
sweep across the country this week,
we are reminded of a similar weather
pattern that affected northern
Europe during the winter of
1944-1945 when the Nazi war machine
made its counteroffensive from the
Ardennes Forest along a 75 mile
front, later called the Battle of
the Bulge.
Beginning on Dec. 16, 1944, and
lasting through Jan. 25, 1945, over
19,000 Americans were killed
following an instance of
intelligence failures, which lead
American and Allied leaders to
believe that the Germans were
incapable of this type of effort.
As we approach this Christmas, we
encourage you to take a few minutes
to reflect on and remember the
sacrifices made by our troops during
WWII and then to also remember our
troops today, fighting on two
fronts, who are taking on the
enemies of our country and are
guaranteeing the same freedoms that
their fathers and grandfathers
fought for in WWII.
One lesson hopefully learned,
despite today’s political
correctness, is that victory is not
delivered on a silver platter. The
enemy is always dangerous. NAUS
thanks all current and former
members of the military for your
service. We are very grateful for
your previous and continuing
sacrifices.
Tracking Santa
For those of you with young children
or grandchildren, the North American
Air Defense (NORAD) Command will
start tracking Santa Claus on
Christmas Eve. If you want to have
a great family affair open the
NORAD Tracking Center
on your computer and follow Santa as
he travels around the world.
TRICARE Contact Information
You can usually find answers to your
questions pertaining to your health
care benefits simply by visiting the
TRICARE Web site. But you also
have the option of calling the
respective contractor for
information. Listed below are some
of the most commonly requested phone
numbers. It would be a good idea to
print this list out and keep it
handy.
q
Health Net Federal Services (Health
Net):
(877) 874-2273
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Humana Military Healthcare Systems
(HMHS):
(800) 444-5445
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TriWest:
(888) 874-9378
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TRICARE Latin America & Canada
(TLAC), TRICARE Pacific, and TRICARE
Europe:
(888) 777-8343
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TRICARE For Life (TFL):
(866) 773-0404
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TRICARE Mail Order Pharmacy:
(866) 363-8667)
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TRICARE Retail Pharmacy:
(866) 363-8779)
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TRICARE Dental Program:
(800) 866-8499
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TRICARE Retiree Dental Plan:
(888) 838-8737
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Defense Enrollment Eligibility
Reporting System:
(800) 538-9552
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Fraud and Abuse Reporting:
(800) 977-6761
Online Resources for Wounded
Warriors
Here’s a pair of online resources
available to inform wounded service
members, veterans and their families
on benefit programs available to
them:
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National Resource Directory
– An online guide that provides
information and access to the
many benefits, programs,
services and more for wounded
Service members. It is
maintained by the departments of
Defense (DoD), Labor and
Veterans Affairs (VA) and
includes information from
federal, State and local
governmental agencies and many
other private and non-profit
organizations.
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Compensation and Benefits
Handbook
– A printed and online resource
produced by DoD and VA, that
details the steps wounded
service members can take to
access the many benefits
available to them and their
families.
Help for Holiday Stress
The holiday season can be pretty
demanding. Two of the biggest
issues affecting people this time of
year are stress and depression.
Stress and seasonal depression, also
known as the “holiday blues,” can
ruin celebrations and damage
health. Dr. Joseph Kelley, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Clinical and Program Policy and
Acting Chief Medical Officer for the
TRICARE Management Activity offers
readers a few tips to help balance
work, home and the holiday season in
his latest segment of
The Doctor Is In.
All KIA to Receive Full Arlington
Honors
Starting next year, the Army will
provide full military honors for all
military members killed in action
when they are laid to rest at
Arlington National Cemetery.
The change in policy means funerals
for enlisted members now will also
include the horse-drawn caisson and
other honors previously given only
to certain soldiers such as officers
and Medal of Honor recipients.
An Army spokesman said that the full
honors also adds an escort platoon,
a colors team and a band, whereas
standard honors uses a firing party,
bugler and chaplain.
The policy change applies only to
Arlington because it is unique in
having a caisson.
Though the full honors will be
offered to families, it takes more
time to arrange such services and so
those who want the funerals more
quickly are likely to decline. The
new policy will take effect early
next year.
Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) to
Increase
Housing allowances for active duty
military members will go up an
average of 6.9 percent, or about $95
per month, in 2009. For more
information click on
New BAH
Rates.
Free Internet on Christmas Day
For U.S. Troops stationed in Iraq
and Kuwait, who can’t be home for
Christmas this year, free Internet
connections with family and loved
ones are being provided. The Army &
Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES)
and Internet service provider
Resolute Partners are teaming to
provide troops with free Internet
access on Christmas Day.
Access to email and web chat will be
provided through Resolute’s 11
Internet Café locations in Iraq and
Kuwait known as CZee CyberZones,
with more than 500 computer
terminals available. Each Internet
Café features dozens of PCs with web
browsers, web cams and even on-line
games.
Normally, there is a per-minute
charge for Internet usage at CZee
CyberZone Internet Cafés. For this
holiday event, a special access code
will be posted in the Internet Cafés
allowing free access for the 24-hour
period.
VA Urges Vets to Sign-up for Direct
Deposits
The VA is urging those veterans and
family members who continue to
receive paper checks to join nearly
3.1 million others whose VA payments
are safely deposited electronically.
“VA is teaming up with the Treasury
Department in a new campaign to
protect government beneficiaries
against the theft of funds and of
their identities,” said Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Dr. James B.
Peake. “Veterans earned -- and rely
on -- the financial support we send
them every month. I urge them to
help VA ensure they get those funds
reliably and safely by signing up
for direct deposit.”
Peake cited several easy ways to
sign up for direct deposit --
calling toll-free at (800) 333-1795
or enrolling online at
GoDirect. Veterans, and family
members who receive VA payments,
also can sign up by contacting a VA
regional benefits office or their
financial institution. Information
about direct deposits will be
included in VA’s monthly
compensation and pension envelopes
throughout 2009.
Direct deposits relieve worry about
mail delivery being delayed by
severe weather or natural
disasters. The deposits also
eliminate trips to banks or credit
unions to deposit checks, while
providing immediate access to money
at the same time each month.
Reservists May Qualify For Early
Retired Pay
The Department of Defense has issued
new guidelines for early receipt of
retired pay for members of the
reserve components. Instead of
having to wait until age 60 to
receive Reserve retired pay,
eligible members may receive retired
pay prior to age 60 but not before
age 50.
Under interim changes to Department
of Defense Instruction 1215.07,
Service Credit for Reserve
Retirement, issued under a law
passed by Congress effective Jan.
28, 2008, reserve component members
are able to reduce the age at which
they are eligible to receive
retirement pay by three months for
each cumulative period of 90 days
served on active duty in any fiscal
year.
Under the new law, members eligible
to receive retired pay earlier than
age 60 must still wait until age 60
to receive health-care benefits.
Involuntary mobilization and
voluntary active duty in support of
a contingency qualify, but there is
no requirement to be involuntarily
mobilized, to support a contingency
or to serve on active duty outside
the continental United States to
receive credit under the law. Most
active-duty time qualifies,
including training, operational
support duties and school tours. It
does not matter whether active-duty
time is paid for under military or
reserve personnel appropriation
accounts, provided such active duty
is performed under the authority of
10 U.S. Code § 12301 (d).
Also included is full-time National
Guard duty served under a call to
active service by a governor and
authorized by the president or the
secretary of defense under 32 U.S.C.
§ 502(f) for purposes of responding
to either a national emergency
declared by the president or a
national emergency supported by
federal funds.
Qualifying active-duty service
performed after Jan. 28, 2008, the
date on which the fiscal 2008
National Defense Authorization Act
was enacted, is creditable.
NAUS is working with members of The
Military and Veterans Alliance and
The Military Coalition to expand
current law to provide credit for
time served on or before that date.
Holiday Messages
Want to share some joy by letting
hospitalized veterans and military
service members know you are
thinking of them during this holiday
season? Sending greeting cards,
“care packages” and Internet
messages of thanks for their service
are some of the ways to do that. A
number of corporations and
non–profit organizations are
pitching in to help brighten the
holidays for service members and
hospitalized veterans. To see how
you can participate,
Click Here.
NAUS Holiday Hours of Operation
NAUS Headquarters will operate on
the following schedules for the
Christmas and New Year Holidays:
Christmas:
Office will close at 1:00 p.m. on
Christmas Eve, remain closed Dec.
25-26, and reopen at 8:00 a.m. on
Monday, Dec. 29.
New Year:
Office will close at 1:00 p.m. on
New Years Eve, remain closed Jan.
1-2, and reopen at 8:00 a.m. on
Monday, Jan. 5.
During the coming week most of us
will spend the holidays at home,
surrounded by the ones we love.
Please remember those who are away
from home, serving with the
Uniformed Services. Remember, too,
their families and the difficulties
they face this holiday season with
their loved one in a distant and
hostile land. They are making a
tremendous sacrifice for us, and we
truly have much to be thankful for!
The value of their service is
enormous, and we owe them our
continued support and the thanks of
a grateful nation.
President Matz and the entire NAUS
staff wish all of our members,
readers and associates and their
families a very Merry Christmas and
a prosperous and joyous New Year.
The next Weekly Update will be
published Jan. 9, 2009.
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