A commission that spent one year determining the proper structure of the Air Force released a report that recommends a greater role for the Air National Guard. The chairman of the commission tells NATIONAL GUARD that he thinks the Air Force is prepared to implement some of the panel’s recommendations. Read about it in the current issue of NATIONAL GUARD.
The National Guard has experienced a building boom lately with dollars for military construction flowing in large amounts. But that has come to an end in this tough fiscal environment. Read what Guardsmen have to say about the MILCON budget in the NGAUS membership publication.
The Adjutants General Association of the United States gathers in Washington, D.C. The leader of that group of 54 discusses the issues that are on the minds of the state National Guard leaders.
Nine Hawaii National Guardsmen who received the Medal of Honor are honored by the National Guard Educational Foundation. Read about these heroes in NATIONAL GUARD.
A chemical spill contaminates drinking water in West Virginia and the National Guard responds….An adjutant general becomes a senator….The NGAUS chairman encourages participation in state association conferences and the NGAUS conference in Chicago.
Read all of this and more in NATIONAL GUARD, now available online at www.nationalguardmagazine.com.
An Air National Guard colonel used his high-ranking position to defraud the military of “hundreds of thousands of dollars,” U.S. Attorney David Hickton said on Wednesday.
Investigators from the Air Force and the FBI documented amounts exceeding “$200,000 and approaching $300,000,” he said, predicting the figure will grow.
“With all that is going on in the world … it is particularly repugnant that someone would steal from the Air Force in a manner such as this,” Hickton said.
Agents arrested Col. Gerard Mangis, 60, of Shaler on Wednesday on 110 counts of conspiracy, wire fraud, filing false claims with the government and theft of government property. U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Mitchell released him on a $10,000 unsecured bond and scheduled a March 13 arraignment.
Read more http://ow.ly/ukB2Y
Tricare Prime, Standard and Extra would go the way of the dodo, replaced by a single Tricare plan with a fee structure adjusted to where beneficiaries get medical care, under the Pentagon’s proposed fiscal 2015 budget.
The proposed $47.4 billion health care budget would consolidate the three major Tricare programs into a single program starting in January 2016.
It would introduce fees for retirees who use military treatment facilities, add enrollment fees for future Tricare for Life beneficiaries and increase prescription drug co-pays for nearly everyone who uses Tricare’s retail or mail order pharmacy benefits. Read more http://ow.ly/ui8oH
What’s in seniors’ wallets? Most likely, a Medicare card that leaves them vulnerable to scams and fraud.
It’s a peculiar anachronism in this era of digital insecurity: Social Security numbers are printed on every Medicare card, and the back of the card instructs seniors to carry it with them at all times. (Medicare’s identification number is called the Health Insurance Claim Number, but your HICN is your Social Security number.) Read more http://ow.ly/ucVI9
Five Vietnam veterans who claim they became afflicted with combat-related anxiety –- decades before PTSD became a common term –- assert in a new, class-action lawsuit that the Pentagon should upgrade the less-than-honorable discharges they and “tens of thousands” of other troops received during that era.
Since 1980, the U.S. military has steadily gained a better grasp of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But the Defense Department has refused to apply that same medical standard when reviewing the cases of Vietnam veterans who show PTSD symptoms caused by their military service, the lawsuit filed Monday in Connecticut alleges.
“I know there are a lot of us,” said plaintiff James Cottam, 63. He served in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970, later experiencing night sweats, nightmares and anger issues. When he left the U.S. Army in 1974, he received an undesirable discharge, causing him to lose his rank of sergeant.
His doctor eventually diagnosed Cottam with PTSD, he said.
“Give me back what I worked for,” Cottam said in a phone interview. He now lives in Southern California.
“I wandered about for years after the war, not knowing what was going on,” Cottam said. “Real good jobs, but I would walk off and away from them.”
“But there was nothing wrong with me, according to the VA back in the ’70s,” he said.
A Pentagon spokesman declined to comment on the litigation, as did a VA spokeswoman.
The lawsuit, which includes a three retired Marines and a second Army veteran, seeks the milltary’s record corrections boards to “implement consistent, medically appropriate standards” under which discharge upgrades can be considered for PTSD-afflicted Vietnam veterans, said Thomas Brown, a law-student intern with the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at Yale Law School. The suit was filed by the clinic.
Five Vietnam veterans who claim they became afflicted with combat-related anxiety –- decades before PTSD became a common term –- assert in a new, class-action lawsuit that the Pentagon should upgrade the less-than-honorable discharges they and “tens of thousands” of other troops received during that era.
Since 1980, the U.S. military has steadily gained a better grasp of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But the Defense Department has refused to apply that same medical standard when reviewing the cases of Vietnam veterans who show PTSD symptoms caused by their military service, the lawsuit filed Monday in Connecticut alleges.
“I know there are a lot of us,” said plaintiff James Cottam, 63. He served in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970, later experiencing night sweats, nightmares and anger issues. When he left the U.S. Army in 1974, he received an undesirable discharge, causing him to lose his rank of sergeant.
His doctor eventually diagnosed Cottam with PTSD, he said.
“Give me back what I worked for,” Cottam said in a phone interview. He now lives in Southern California.
“I wandered about for years after the war, not knowing what was going on,” Cottam said. “Real good jobs, but I would walk off and away from them.”
“But there was nothing wrong with me, according to the VA back in the ’70s,” he said.
A Pentagon spokesman declined to comment on the litigation, as did a VA spokeswoman.
The lawsuit, which includes a three retired Marines and a second Army veteran, seeks the milltary’s record corrections boards to “implement consistent, medically appropriate standards” under which discharge upgrades can be considered for PTSD-afflicted Vietnam veterans, said Thomas Brown, a law-student intern with the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at Yale Law School. The suit was filed by the clinic.
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/mental-health/ptsd-it-had-name-vietnam-vets-sue-u-s-military-n44301
As expected, commissary customers would foot the bill for operating the stores, according to details of the 2015 defense budget proposal released on March 4.
The three-year plan to shrink the annual commissary budget from $1.4 billion to $400 million would raise prices to cover the costs of operating stores, expand the variety of products sold and reduce transportation costs.
Raising prices would require a change in law, as would expanding the product assortment. The exchange services have traditionally opposed expanding the variety of items sold in commissaries — such as beer and wine — because it would cut into their business. Read more http://ow.ly/ui6Qe
The announcement of the government’s proposed reimbursements for the private Medicare plans, which now cover a third of all Medicare beneficiaries, has become an annual battle since the passage of the Affordable Care Act.
Seniors enrolled in Aetna’s Medicare Advantage plan In Baltimore County, Md., saw their monthly premiums rise from $33 to $51 this year.
Enrollees in HealthNow New York, a Medicare HMO in upstate Erie County, saw their premiums jump from zero to $28 a month. Those in UnitedHealthcare’s plan in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, pay $15 more to see a specialist this year, bringing their total co-pay to $45. Read more http://ow.ly/ucW4F
If you own a Roth IRA, you may be under the impression that withdrawals are always income-tax-free. Not true. Even worse, some withdrawals can be socked with a 10% penalty on top of the income tax bill. Here’s what you need to know if you took some Roth withdrawals last year. Read more http://ow.ly/ucZ1Y
Thanks for the following new registered readers whose email address did not include a recognizable name: miurag004
Social media can be a lifeline for U.S. service members missing home – but that also sets the stage for scandalous behavior. A string of photo-sharing posts over the past two weeks has brought dishonor to the uniform and created a barrage of controversy for the military.
Observers say that should compel the Department of Defense to revisit its social media policies. Read more http://ow.ly/u59Be
Air Education and Training Command recently began a beta test at Columbus AFB, Miss., to gauge the viability of using commercial electronic tablets as part of the curriculum for specialized undergraduate pilot training. “No other base is doing exactly what we are doing,” said 1st Lt. Justin Davison of Columbus’ 14th Communications Squadron in the base’s mid-February release. “As far as training goes, this is the first time these have been deployed in a SUPT class,” he said. The beta test began on Jan. 15 when seven SUPT students from 50th Flying Training Squadron received Samsung tablets for their T-38 curriculum. “It is a new way of education and a new way of learning,” said Capt. Bill Staley of the 14th Student Squadron. The beta test will conclude in July when these airmen are scheduled to graduate. If adopted, the use of tablets could also save the Air Force money on printing costs, states the release. (Columbus report by 2nd Lt. Joshua Benedetti)
State of Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the United States Postal Service proudly present National Consumer Protection Week Fair.
When: Wednesday, March 5, 2014 Time: 10:00 to 1300 Where: King Kalakaua Building Courtyard 335 Merchant StreetLocal, State, and Federal Agencies will offer FREE consumer education information highlighting resources for consumers of every age. Learn about mortgage foreclosure resources, spending and managing money wisely, protecting your identity, and steering clear of frauds and scams.
Stop by and pick up valuable tips from community organizations offering consumer information.
As travelers digest Delta Air Lines’ announcement that it will become the biggest U.S. carrier to award frequent-flier miles based on airfare rather than distance flown, the switch is getting extra scrutiny from passengers who have turned earning miles into an art form.
Travel hackers — frequent fliers who try to accumulate the most points while spending as little money as possible — will be losing one major way of boosting their accounts: mileage runs. For them, cheap fares with long routes will no longer produce the same mileage bonanza under Delta’s new system. Read more http://ow.ly/u4ORS
The Marine Corps’ senior enlisted adviser told lawmakers Wednesday that he believes focusing on the commissary benefit as a potential source of defense budget savings is a mistake.
“I’m a fan of [the commissary],” Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Micheal Barrett told the House Appropriations Committee’s military construction and veterans affairs panel at a hearing that focused on quality-of-life issues.
“I personally think it’s ridiculous that we’re going after something that saves a young lance corporal $4,500 a year,” said Barrett, who testified alongside the senior enlisted advisers of the other services.
He was not the only one to cut against the grain of a new defense budget plan that calls for reducing the annual commissary subsidy by more than two-thirds, which advocates say would inevitable drive up customer costs.
Read more http://ow.ly/u4hT2
