In the last part of 2023, the Department of Veterans Affairs may have started a healthcare revolution for veterans living in military communities. The first headlines on this issue focused on a VA partnership with Naval Hospital Pensacola to provide outpatient surgical services to more than 35 thousand veterans living along the Gulf Coast. Those… Read more »
The Pentagon has announced reforms to its guidelines for those who win military medical malpractice claims against the Department of Defense. Those who successfully bring a case against the DoD may now get up to $750 thousand in damages unrelated to awards for “economic damages,” which have no cap. The $750 thousand cap announced on… Read more »
The Department of Veterans Affairs has updated its mission statement to better reflect its’ 21st century goals to care for all who have served, their families, care providers, and survivors. The VA serves well over 600 thousand women vets, 600 thousand surviving family members, and approximately 50 thousand caregivers in addition to the rest of… Read more »
Are United States military members getting a 5%-plus pay raise in 2024? The short answer at the time of this writing is NO. That is not to say a 2024 military pay chart isn’t forthcoming, but the dollar amounts depend greatly on negotiations over the 2024 defense spending budget. And there lies the issue. There has… Read more »
In 2022, the Air Force issued a press release announcing a “THC retest pilot program,” which allows applicants a second chance if they test positive for marijuana use as part of their inprocessing through a Military Entrance Processing Station or MEPS. When the program was first implemented, the Air Force wasn’t facing a recruiting shortage… Read more »
The looming government shutdown crisis has been averted, at least for now. On the last day of September 2023, Congress found a way to sidestep partisan bickering, political posturing, and budget crisis theater long enough to pass a continuing resolution that keeps the federal government fully funded for an additional 45 days into the new… Read more »
UPDATE: Jan 8 2024: The budget crisis was temporarily averted by a continuing resolution (CR) that funds the government in a two-part process with an initial deadline of January 19 and a second deadline on February 2, 2024. The House and Senate agreed to a basic framework for the federal budget over the weekend of… Read more »
The Department of Veterans Affairs is reviewing its PACT Act claims process due to a large number of 0% disability ratings related to those claims. A report published by Military.com notes that while the VA has approved most PACT Act claims submitted since the program began, more than 30% have received a 0% disability rating… Read more »
An increase in VA benefits scams aimed at those claiming new benefits or appealing VA decisions has prompted action from the federal government. The Department of Veterans Affairs has responded to increased VA benefits scams by launching an awareness campaign on its official site and in VA facilities. The VA added a page to VA.gov… Read more »
Do military members continue to get paid during a government shutdown? The short answer is no, they do not. But that situation changes if Congress passes a funding resolution for military operations to keep money flowing to the Department of Defense even during a shutdown. It’s happened before and is likely (according to some) to… Read more »