RAO BULLETIN 1 November 2018 PDF Edition THIS RETIREE ACTIVITIES OFFICE BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES Pg Article Subject . * DOD * . 05 == Overseas Holiday Mail ---- (2018 Deadlines) 05 == DoD MSEP ---- (VA Joins Military Spouse Employment Partnership) 06 == DoD Budget 2020 ---- (First Cut Under Trump | Limited to $700B) 07 == Iraq War [01] ---- (Unvarnished History to be Published by Xmas) 08 == DoD GPS USE Policy ---- (Deployed Servicemember Apps Restrictied) 08 == INF Russian Treaty ---- (Post-INF landscape) 10 == DoD/VA Seamless Transition [37] ---- (Cerner’s EHR Will Be Standard) 13 == Military Base Access [02] ---- (Proposal to Use for U.S. Fuel Exports to Asia) 14 == Military Base Access [03] ---- (American Bases in Japan) 15 == DoD Fraud, Waste, & Abuse ---- (Reported 16 thru 31 OCT 2018) 17 == Agent Orange Forgotten Victims [01] ---- (U.S. Prepares for Biggest-Ever Cleanup) 18 == POW/MIA Recoveries & Burials ---- (Reported 16 thru 31 OCT 2018 | 21) 1 . * VA * . 21 == VA AED Cabinets ---- (Naloxone Addition to Reverse Opioid Overdoses) 22 == VA Pension Program [02] ---- (Entitlement Regulations Amended) 22 == VA Transplant Program [04] ---- (Vet Denied Lung Transplant | Too Old) 23 == Agent Orange | C-123 Aircraft [16] ---- (Exposure Presumption Now Official) 24 == Right to Die Program ---- (Denied to Vets Residing in California Veteran Homes) 25 == VA Essential Equipment ---- (Availability Delays) 26 == VA Pension Poachers ---- (Crooked Financial Planners Target Elderly Vets) 26 == VA Claims Processing [18] ---- (Significant Modernization Effort) 27 == VA Debt [05] ---- (DMC Call Wait Times Reduced to Under 5 Minutes) 28 == VA Debt [06] ---- (Debt Waiver Request) 29 == Adoption Expense Reimbursement ---- (Eligibility) 29 == PTSD Assistance [04] ---- (Telemedicine Outreach for PTSD Program) 30 == VA Community Care [04] ---- (Three Steps to Access) 31 == VA Medical Marijuana [52] ---- (Canadian Legalization) 32 == VA Cemeteries [19] ---- ($3 Million Spent on Security since AUG 2017) 34 == VA Motto [01] ---- (Does Not Include Women | Should It be Changed) 35 == Trump VA Plan [05] ---- (Former VA Secretary Shulkin’s Opinion) 36 == VA Blue Water Claims [54] ---- (House to Senate | Pass the Bill Already) 37 == VA Fraud, Waste & Abuse ---- (Reported 16 thru 31 OCT 2018) 40 == VAMC Washington DC [11] ---- (Get the Hospital off the VA's "Critical" List) 40 == VAMC Omaha NE [05] ---- (Wrong Number Gives Right Results) . * VETS * . 42 == Vet Mental Health [02] ---- (CVN Expanding to 25 Clinics by 2020) 43 == Vet Fraud & Abuse ---- (Reported 16 thru 31 OCT 2018) 44 == Vet Health [08] ---- (Vets Still Face Significant Health Risks) 44 == PTSD [248] ---- (Wounded Warrior Project Pledge) 45 == Vet School Rankings ---- (Top Ones for 2019) 48 == Homeless Vets [89] ---- (New Initiative Offering Them Tiny Houses 49 == GI Bill [264] ---- (Court Ruling Makes Easier Path to Loan Forgiveness) 51 == GI Bill [265] ---- (SIT-REP Bill Could Eliminate Current Payment Problem | Stalled in Senate) 52 == Vet Toxic Exposure | Palomares Spain [01] ---- (Appeal Court Arguments Heard) 53 == Civil War Vets ---- (Julius Kroehl | Submarine Inventor) 54 == WW2 Vets 176 ---- (Cecil Bolton | A Capable Leader) 55 == Vets/Troops Targeted Online ---- (Social-Media Misinformation) 57 == Obit: Harry Ettlinger ---- (21 OCT 2018 | Monuments Men Member) 57 == Vet Hiring Fairs ---- (Scheduled As of 31 OCT 2018), 58 == Military Retirees & Veterans Events Schedule ---- (As of 31 OCT 2018) 58 == State Veteran's Benefits ---- (Connecticut 2018) . * VET LEGISLATION * . 59 == VA Burial Benefits [47] ---- (H.R.6734 | Full Military Honors Act of 2018) . * MILITARY* . 2 60 == Army Drones [02] ---- (Black Hornet) 61 == Pilot Laser Protection ---- (Required Due To China’s Emerging Laser Threats) 62 == Cluster Bombs ---- (North Korea Reason U.S. Kept Them) 63 == Navy Fleet Size [14] ---- (CBO Questions Ability to Reach 355 Ships) 64 == Military Toxic Sites ---- (Cannon AFB NM) 64 == Military Snipers ---- (USCG Outshoots USMC 2nd Year in a Row) 65 == Military Coffee Cups ---- (USAF Spent $1,280 Apiece to Replace 25 In-Flight Reheating Cups) 66 == Navy Carrier OPS ---- (Return to Arctic Circle after 30 Years) 67 == U.S. Space Force [04] ---- (Proposal Acceptance Survey) 68 == U.S. Space Force [05] ---- (Trump Plan Is Grounded In Real Needs, But Hazy) 69 == U.S. Space Force [06] ---- (Pentagon Plan | Early Draft) 70 == Tyndall AFB ---- (Hurricane Michael Impact) 71 == Tyndall AFB [01] ---- (Trump Administration Has Vowed To Rebuild) 73 == Ellsworth AFB ---- (Bird Abatement System) 73 == Navy Supply Ships ---- (IG Probes Maintenance Issues) 74 == Tricare ECHO [03] ---- (Benefit Year Changing to Calendar Year) 75 == Iran Military ---- (Land-To-Sea Ballistic Missiles) 76 == Russia Missile Program ---- (Putin Claims They Have the Military Edge) 77 == Navy Terminology [05] ---- (Origins) 78 == Warships That Will Change the Future ---- (The USS America (LHA-6) . * MILITARY HISTORY * . 78 == Road Map Exhibitor ---- (1905 In-Car Navigation Aid Patented by Retired Army Officer) 79 == WWII Night Witches ---- (Russia’s All Female Bomber Squadron) 81 == WWII Vets 175 ---- (Bert Schwarz | Bataan Death March Survivor) 82 == Venona Project ---- (Codebreaker Angeline Nanni’s Involvement) 84 == They Shall Not Grow Old ---- (WWI Documentary A Groundbreaking Cinematic Achievement) 86 == Every Picture Tells A Story ---- (Forced Landing) 87 == Post WWII Photos---- (Hiroshima Aerial View One Year Later) 87 == Operation Crazy Horse ---- (Vietnam | Battlefield Chronicles) 89 == Military History Anniversaries ---- (01 thru 15 NOV) 89 == WWII Bomber Nose Art [17] ---- (Double Trouble) 90 == Medal of Honor Citations ---- (Sherwood H. Hallman | WWII) . * HEALTH CARE * . 92 == TRICARE Open Season ---- (Period to Enroll In or Change your Health Plan) 93 == Bile Duct Cancer [01] ---- (VA Tasked to Research Vet Prevalence & Treatment) 94 == PTSD Sleep Impact [01] ---- (Energy Drinks Found to be Contributing Factor) 95 == FLU Prevention [07] ---- (Facts You Need to Know) 97 == West Nile Virus [02] ---- (Prevention | Limit Exposure to Mosquitoes) 98 == Health Care Cost [01] ---- (Anticipated | Retired Couple Age 65 to 85) 99 == Trump Drug Price Plan [01] ---- (Price Transparency | Lacks Enforcement Mechanism) 100 == Hearing Aids [04] ---- (Obtainment through RACHAP program) 101 == Shingles [09] ---- (Have You Had Your 2nd Shot) 102 == Medicare Premiums | 2019 ---- (What You Will Pay Monthly) 103 == Mental Health Assessment [01] ---- (Social Media Impact) 104 == Prescription Drug Costs [11] ---- (Trump Wants TV Ads to Disclose Prices) 3 105== Prescription Drug Costs [12] ---- (Insulin Makers Deceptive Drug Pricing) 106 == Women’s Health ---- (Taking Care of Yourself) 107 == Caregiver Flossing ---- (Tips That May Make Flossing Patients Easier) 108 == TRICARE Podcast 472 ---- (ECHO | Open Season Differences | Cost Compare Tool) 109 == TRICARE Podcast 473 ---- (Women's Health Month - Understanding EOB's - Open Season) . * FINANCES * . 111 == Health Insurance ---- (Should Congress Limit Company Profits?) 111 == Social Security Taxation [10] ---- (2019 COLA Impact) 112 == Army Emergency Relief ---- (Dealing With Financial Emergencies & Scholarship Needs) 113 == Pay ---- (How Much the 25 Biggest U.S. Retailers Paid Workers/CEOs in 2017) 113 == Remember When ---- (Nostalgia (8)) 115 == Social Security Fund Depletion [14] ---- ($128,400 Taxable Earnings Limit) 116 == Cryptocurrency Investment Scam ---- (How it Works) 117 == Hijacked Webcam Scam ---- (Don’t Pay Them) 117 == Mega Million Scams ---- (Record Breaking Jackpot is Gone, But Not the Scams 118 == Tax Burden for Massachusetts Retired Vets ---- (As of OCT 2018) . * GENERAL INTEREST * . 119 == Notes of Interest ---- (16 thru 31 OCT 2018) 121 == ISIS [02] ---- (Ohio Recruit Arrested) 121 == 911 Terrorists [02] ---- (Mounir el-Motassadeq Released from His German Jail 15 OCT) 124 == Russia’s Aircraft Carrier ---- (Admiral Kuznetsov (063) Damaged) 124 == GTMO Detainees [05] ---- (Two Refused to Leave, Now They Can’t) 126 == Afghan Taliban [01] ---- (Five Freed GTMO Detainees Join Taliban) 127 == Syria [01] ---- (Russia Alleges U.S. Attempted Drone Attack on Their Syrian Base) 128 == Syria [02] ---- (DoD Pushing Back Hard Against Russian Drone Attack Claims) 129 == Korean War End [02] ---- (Panmunjom Demilitarization Effort) 130 == F-16 Mishap ---- (Belgian Air Force Mechanic Opens Fire by Mistake) 131 == Federal Deficit FY 2018 ---- (Largest Since 2012 | $779B) 131 == Social Security Number [02] ---- (Digital Update Needed) 132 == Newspaper Shut Downs ---- (The United States Has Lost Almost 1,800 since 2004) 133 == Car Blunders ---- (7 That Could Cost Drivers This Winter) 134 == USAF Captain SoCalGas Lawsuit ---- ($46 Million Settlement Reached) 135 == Interesting Photos ---- (Mount Rushmore Prototype) 135 == Have You Heard? ---- (Prescription | The Old Rancher | Poker Pair) NOTE 1. The page number on which an article can be found is provided to the left of each article’s title 2. Numbers contained within brackets [ ] indicate the number of articles written on the subject. To obtain previous articles send a request to [email protected]. * ATTACHMENTS * . Attachment – Connecticut Vet State Benefits Attachment – Military History Anniversaries 01 thru 15 NOV Attachment – 25 Biggest U.S. Retailers 2017 Pay 4 * DoD * Overseas Holiday Mail ► 2018 Deadlines Military postal officials and the U.S. Postal Service have issued their suggested mailing deadlines