FDA Reaffirms Previous Conclusions That Vaccine Prevents Anthrax
The military services will continue anthrax vaccinations on a voluntary basis for eligible servicemembers with the option to refuse…

DoD Announces Implementation of Traumatic Injury Protection
The program is designed to provide financial assistance to service members during their recovery period from a serious traumatic injury…

New Members Appointed to Panel on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses
Six new members have been appointed to the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses for the VA…/FONT>

New VA Initiative
The VA announced a new initiative called "Fulfilling the Commitment - Coming Home to Work"…

New Benefits Guide Available on Pre-Order
It detailing benefits, including helpful shortcuts, insider tips, and answers to frequently asked questions…

Prescription Scam Surfaces
The VA reports that "Patient Care Group" is conducting a scam operation against veterans who receive VA prescriptions…

More Tricare Drugs Eyed For $22 Copay
The trickle of drugs moving to Tricare's third tier -- at a copay of $22 -- may become a flood…

DoD Announces Recruiting and Retention Numbers for September
The Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force met or exceeded their recruiting goals in September…

VA Prescription Fraud Alert
Never give out personal information including social security numbers and credit card numbers to any organization without first verifying their legitimacy…

Senate Votes to Halt PTSD Investigation
The legislation passed the Senate 98-0 and will go to a House-Senate conference committee…

VA Evacuates Patients from Hurricane Area
"The safety of our patients is paramount for all VA employees," said the Honorable R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. "The professionalism and bravery of VA employees is allowing us to evacuate our patients from two facilities, without mishap, during an unprecedented catastrophe."…

Online Military Record Access
Military veterans and the next of kin of deceased former military members may now use a new online military personnel records system to request documents…

PTSD Survey Shows Increase
Recent surveys of returning Iraq and Afghan units show that about 20 percent of troops who have returned from combat deployments meet the clinical criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)…

Panel Votes to Close Walter Reed, Offices Defense Jobs Would Move to Belvoir, Other Bases
The federal base-closing commission voted yesterday to close the storied Walter Reed Army Medical Center and move more than 20,000 defense jobs…

PTSD Highlighted in House Committee
The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a hearing to assess how effectively the VA identifies veterans at risk for PTSD…

Brain Cancer Linked to Gulf-War Sarin
Brain cancer death rates of Gulf War veterans possibly exposed to the nerve agent sarin have been more than double the rates of unexposed soldiers…

Benchmarks: Hard to find good news in Iraq
It was another very bad week indeed in Iraq…

Group calls for changes in mental health care
Groups urged House and Senate members to forget about the stigma surrounding mental illness and look at changing its health care system just like they would for any other disease…

Congressman Says Veterans Need for Mental Health Treatment Urgent
Congressman Tom Udall, D-N.M., who serves on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, said the military's health care system is not equipped to diagnose and treat mental health conditions…

Groups lay out plan to transform US mental health
The US can start to transform its fragmented mental health care system requiring insurers to treat mental illnesses like any other disease…

Last Comanche Code Talker passes away; Chibitty was 83
Chibitty was one of 17 Oklahoma Comanches attached to the 4th Infantry Division, 4th Signal Corps, during WWII…

Kentucky Launches Women Veterans Registry
Kentucky State Women Veterans Coordinator and Army veteran Pamela Luce is traveling the state hoping to boost women's participation in veterans programs…

VA Hospital in Texas Fights to Stay Open Veterans Show Support During Secretary's Visit
Now it is on the chopping block, scheduled along with 17 other VA hospitals to be closed or downsized as part of an agency plan to restructure the health care system…

DoD Announces Recruiting and Retention Numbers for June, 2005
The Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force met or exceeded their recruiting goals in June, 2005…

Healing The Mind, Punishing The Body - Doctors Beginning To Warn Mental Patients About Drug Side Effects
Doctors have come to recognize that many of the drugs they prescribe for mental illnesses may have some serious and even life-threatening side effects…

DoD Announces Increase in Death Gratuity and SGLI
The Department of Defense announced today a significant increase in the death gratuity for the survivors of service members killed in action…

Senator, VA Disagree Over VA Access
Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan who leave active duty are authorized free access to medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs for two years…

Lawmakers work to fill $1 billion gap in funding for VA
Veterans Affairs is short $1 billion for veterans health care…

Funds for Health Care of Veterans $1 Billion Short 2005 Deficit Angers Senate Republicans, Advocacy Groups
The Bush administration, already accused by veterans groups of seeking inadequate funds for health care next year, acknowledged yesterday that it is short $1 billion for covering current needs at the VA…

Wounded Warrior Project signed by Bush
Servicemembers who have sustained a traumatic, life-altering injury a one-time payment of between $25,000 and $100,000 within days after being wounded…

The National Personnel Records Center Opens Sealed Records
The Records Center has opened and made available numerous military records that have not been available before now…

VA Lays Blame In Disability Disparities
Staffing shortages and an outdated system for assessing claims are among the reasons for wide differences in disability payments for veterans. More...

DOD Announces Monthly Recruiting/Retention Numbers
The Army missed its May recruiting goal of 6,700 by 1,661 recruits (75 percent)…

Veterans Groups Seek Asbestos Litigation Reform
national veterans organizations sent a letter asking the Senate Judiciary Committee to take the first step toward reforming the nation's asbestos litigation system…

House Clears Funding Bill for Veterans Medical Care
The legislation includes record increases for treatment services for veterans living with mental illness…

Addiction Treatment Bills Introduced
Two bills have been introduced in the U.S. House that would improve the addiction treatment services delivered by the DoD and VA…

Fact Sheet Medical BRAC Recommendations for the National Capital Region
The 2005 BRAC recommendations afford this department the opportunity to transform and improve how medical care will be delivered to the department's 9.1 million beneficiaries in the 21st Century…

DoD BRAC Recommendations Expected to Save Nearly $50 Billion
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld announced today that the department's recommendations to close or realign military facilities in the United States will better position U.S. forces to confront this century's threats…

Wounded Warrior Legislation On It's Way To The President
House and Senate negotiators have agreed to legislation that will benefit traumatically injured Military personnel…

Veterans Disability Commission Begins Work
The Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission held its first meetings May 9 and 10 in Washington, D.C.…

DoD to Resume Anthrax Vaccinations
Based on the implementing memorandum signed on April 29, military commanders may resume the vaccination program upon authorization by their service…

DAV: VA Health Care Defeat Bitter Disappointment
Less than half way through the current fiscal year, VA medical facilities across the country have already run out of money…

Larry Scott: Are You Really a Veteran? Rep. Steve Buyer is redefining your status
Buyer is trying to redefine "veteran," and in so doing, reshape benefit programs to meet his new definition. In short, this means fewer benefits for fewer veterans…

Veterans' COLA Bill Introduced
This bill would provide a cost-of-living adjustment to veterans' benefits effective December 1, 2005…

New VA Fee Seems Certain
The Bush administration has proposed to charge users of the VA health system an annual $250 enrollment fee and hike co-payments…

Amendment For Special Consideration In Bankruptcy For Low-Income Veterans
Offers special consideration in bankruptcy for low-income veterans, active-duty military, and people who have serious medical conditions…

Bill Seeks Funds For Veteran Health Care
The bill would adjust the amount based on the number of enrolled veterans and the number of other persons eligible…

VA Reaches Out to Veterans Exposed to Mustard Agents
The VA has announced a national outreach campaign to locate veterans who were exposed to mustard gas or the chemical weapon Lewisite…

Recently resigned RSA Official Joanne Wilson is now protesting Bush Administration policies.
She says "could set people with disabilities back 50 years." President Bush issued his budget proposal on February 7. The head of the largest federal job-training program for people with disabilities quit on February 8…

New VA Fee Seems Certain
Bush administration has proposed to charge Priority 7 and 8 users of the VA health system…

An amendment that will help low-income veterans gained passage in the Senate.
The amendment offers special consideration in bankruptcy for low-income veterans…

2.4 Million Veterans Will Pay New Fee
Republican majorities on the House and Senate veterans' affairs committees have voted to impose an enrollment fee of at least $230 a year…

VFW Calls VA Budget Completely Unacceptable
The Veterans of Foreign Wars has gone on record opposing the President's budget request…

Bush Budget Targets VA Copays
This is not acceptable. It's nothing more than a health care tax designed to increase revenue at the expense of veterans who served their country…

Bush's FY2006 Budget Proposal Will Increase Health Charges To Vets
The president's budget includes a proposal to more than double co-payment charges for veterans receiving prescription drugs, while requiring some veterans to pay a new annual fee of $250 to use government health care…

Base Closures Announced
According to a knowledgeable official who spoke to the Armed Forces News on grounds of anonymity, as of mid-December the following bases were being considered under the Base Realignment and Closure round of 2005…

DoD Expands Health Assessment Program Following Deployments
The assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, announced Monday the implementation of a new clinical program to assess the health of service members three to six months after redeployment…

Vets Groups United in Call for Full Funding of VA Health Care Joint News Release
Representing more than 7 million military veterans, The American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans and the Veterans of Foreign Wars today reaffirmed their unanimous support for fully funding the veterans health care system…