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Old 06-19-2015, 05:38 PM
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Default More on OA and 7-more MIA's Identified - see below

VA Expands Agent Orange Exposure Coverage
VA Secretary Bob McDonald yesterday announced a new decision that could benefit as many as 1,500 to 2,100 Air Force and Air Force Reserve personnel who might suffer from any of 14 presumptive medical conditions that have been determined to be related to Agent Orange exposure aboard contaminated C-123 aircraft. He made the decision following a 2015 report by the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine. “The VFW has been pushing for this decision for years,” said VFW National Commander John Stroud, “because something inside these aircraft was making people sick years after the plane last flew a defoliating mission in Vietnam.” All airmen who were assigned to flight, ground or medical crew duties at Lockbourne/Rickenbacker Air Force Base in Ohio (the 906th and 907th Tactical Air Groups or 355th and 356th Tactical Airlift Squadrons), at Massachusetts’s Westover AFB (the 731st Tactical Air Squadron and 74th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron), or with the 758th Airlift Squadron in Pittsburgh, during the period 1969 to 1986, and who may have developed an Agent Orange-related disability, are encouraged to file a disability compensation claim through the VA’s eBenefits web portal or to seek the free and expert assistance of a national VFW Service Officer. Read more about Thursday’s decision here.
Senate Passes Defense Bill
For the first time in three years, the Senate has passed its own defense authorization bill. The Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2015 would authorize $612 million in spending for the Pentagon and national security programs at the Energy Department. It includes a proposal to transition the military retirement system from a 20-year annuity system to a "blended" plan that includes an annuity and a matching Thrift Savings Plan contribution for every service member, which the VFW has supported to ensure all service members have long-term financial security when they leave military service. It also includes a 1.3 percent pay increase for service members, which is one percent less than the pay increase under the House-passed bill. Yesterday, the Senate removed a provision of the bill that would privatize commissaries. The VFW is strongly opposed to privatizing commissaries and is glad the provision was stripped before final passage. However, the Senate bill still includes provisions that would reduce Basic Allowance for Housing benefits for service members. The Senate and House Armed Services Committees will now be able to conference the bills to mitigate any differences. Stay tuned to the Action Corps Weekly for updates on this important bill.
The VFW Participates in Congressional Roundtable
On Wednesday, VFW Legislative Director Ray Kelley participated in the quarterly Democratic Leadership roundtable discussion on veteran and military personnel issues. The discussion topic was the future of VA health care. Alongside congressional and VSO leaders, Kelley stated that 5, 10 or 25 years down the road, VA will look different than it does today. VA must be a blended system of care, using the VA health care system as the hub with public-private partnerships, shared space with other government facilities like DOD, and contracts with non-VA doctors as the spokes that will make access to care easier and more flexible for veterans. Kelley warned that even with these changes, protecting the VA health care system is important, and that VA must be the guarantor of care, and must be able to provide a full continuum of care for those veterans who need or choose to use VA exclusively. To learn more about what the VFW is doing to improve veterans’ access to care, visit our VA Watch webpage.
Seven MIAs Identified
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced the identification of remains and burial updates for six airmen and one soldier who had been missing in action since World War II and the Korean War, respectively. Returned home for burial with full military honors are:
• Army Air Forces 1st Lt. William P. Cook, 27, of Alameda, Calif.; Flight Officer Arthur J. LeFavre, 22, of Red Bank, N.J.; Staff Sgts. Maurice J. Fevold, 21, of Chicago, Frank G. Lane Jr., 21, of Cleveland, and Ward C. Swalwell Jr., 21, also of Chicago; and Sgt. Eric M. Honeyman, 21, also from Alameda. On Dec. 23, 1944, Cook along with five other B-26G Marauder crewmembers were on a mission to bomb an enemy bridge when they were shot down by antiaircraft fire near Seffern, Germany, near the Belgium border. Cook and Fevold were buried in October 2014 and Lane was buried in May 2015. Honeyman will be buried on June 22 in Trail, British Columbia, Canada. Swalwell, LeFavre and the group representing the crew will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery sometime this August. Read more.
• Army Cpl. Kenneth P. Darden, 18, of Akron, Ohio, will be buried June 27 in his hometown. In late 1950, Darden was assigned to Battery A, 15th Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division, in the vicinity of Hoengsong, North Korea, when their line was attacked by Chinese forces, forcing the unit to withdraw south to a more defensible position. Darden was reported missing in action after the battle. Read more.
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O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Old 06-20-2015, 11:03 AM
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reconeil reconeil is offline
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Boats,
Better late than never.
Still, it is a cryin-shame that it took so long for the VA to even recognize the
devastating effect of Agent Orange on the military and their families.
Many of The Brave died before the VA even took AO seriously.

Neil
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Old 06-20-2015, 04:15 PM
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Default AO got my brother Larry sometime ago

Died in the VA hospital in Denver, CO - Complications were so bad he bled out internally.
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Boats

O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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