RAO BULLETIN 15 November 2015 PDF Edition THIS BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES Pg Article Subject * DOD * . 05 == Individual Ready Reserve [01] --------------- (Radical Plan Unveiled) 06 == Exchange Online Shopping [04] ------------ (All Vet Proposal Status) 06 == ID Card Expiration Date [01] ------------ (Action Required if INDEF) 07 == DBIDS [02] -------- (Retiree, Family Must Register for Base Access) 07 == Commissary Elimination [04] ------ (DoD Concludes Not Necessary) 08 == Commissary Funding [23] ------------------------------------- (Catch 22) 09 == OPM Data Breach [07] ----------- ($133.3 Million Contract Awarded) 10 == DoD Fraud, Waste, and Abuse ------- (Reported 01 thru 15 Sep 2015) 11 == DoD Lawsuit ------------- (Veterans Used In Secret Experiments Sue) 13 == Military Conduct - (GAO Releases Ethics & Professionalism Report) 13 == RP~China Dispute [13] ------------- (Carter’s Clear Line in The Sand) 14 == AAFES Mission Fulfillment -------------------------- (Status Sep 2015) 15 == GTMO Prison [01] -------- (Obama 2008 Campaign Closure Promise) 16 == POW/MIA [66] ---------------- (7 Oklahoma Crewmembers Identified) 16 == POW/MIA Recoveries ----------------- (Reported 150901 thru 150914) * VA * . 24 == VA Undersecretary for Benefits --------- (Resigns amid New Scandal) 25 == VA Bonuses [28] -------------- ($142M Paid in 2014 despite Scandals) 27 == Planning for Getting Older ------------------------- (It is Never to Early) 28 == Agent Orange Act Extension [01] ------------------ (Provision Expires) 30 == GI Bill [195] --------- VA Overpayments | 416M Uncollected in 2014) 32 == Gulf War Syndrome [35] ----------- (Mitochondria Cell Damage Link) 1 32 == VAMC Minneapolis [04] ------ (TBI Exam Doctors Names Withheld) 34 == VA Whistleblowers [36] ------ (Terminated Vet Employee Reinstated) 35 == VA Data Mismanagement ---------------------- (VA OIG Audit Report) 35 == Legionnaires Disease [10] --- (Quincy Vet Home Death Toll Now 10) 36 == VA Health Care Access [26] ---------- (Vietnam-Era Veterans Impact) 37 == VA Facility Maintenance [02] -------------- (Let VA Shed Real Estate) 38 == VA Choice Act [12] ------------ (GI Bill School Acceptance Provision) 39 == VA Vet Choice Program [24] ---------- (Program Is A Game Changer) 39 == VA Claims Backlog [150] - (VA Disputes 300K Died Awaiting Care) 41 == VA Suicide Prevention [27] --------------------------- (Research is Vital) 41 == Vets.gov -------------------------------------- (New Hub Coming in NOV) 42 == VA Construction Management Authority [01] -------- (Cost Overruns) 43 == SGLI/VGLI [14] ----------------------------------- (Beneficiary Updating) 44 == VA Medical Error Investigations -------- (Down 18% | Errors Up 14%) 45 == VA Whistleblowers [35] ----- (OIG Report on VHA HEC Allegations) 46 == VA Copay [13] ---------- (MN & WI Delayed Vet Copay Billing Issue) 47 == VA eBenefits Portal [03] ---------- (5 Million User Milestone Reached) 47 == VAMC Cincinnati [01] -- (New Technology | 5 State ICU Monitoring) 49 == VAMC Tomah [12] ----------------- (Director Mario DeSanctis Let Go) 49 == VA Fraud, Waste & Abuse ------------ (Reported 01 thru 14 Nov 2015) 50 == VA Managers ------- (AFGE Report | Disruptive and Ineffective Tales) . * VETS * . 51 == Vet Jobs [181] ---------- (Vet Unemployment Rate Drops to 7-yr Low) 52 == Vet Toxic Exposure~Lejeune [55] ---- (Presumptive-Disability Status) 53 == Don’t Ask, Don't Tell [13] - (Less than Honorable Discharge Appeals) 54 == China’s WWII Veterans ------------------- (Long-Delayed Recognition) 56 == Vet Cremains [31] -------- (6 Interred at Arlington National Cemetery) 57 == Vet Federal Employment [09] ------------------- (Vets Don't Stay Long) 59 == Burn Pit Lawsuit [02] ----- Taxpayer’s to Pay KBR’s Legal Expenses) 60 == IL Vet Homestead Exemption - (Expansion to 30% Disability Rating) 60 == Obit | Royle~Paul -------------------------------------------- (23 Aug 2015) 61 == Obit | Farmer~Edward, Jr ----------------------------------- (16 Aug 2015) 62 == Obit | Kuroki~Ben --------------------------------------------- (1 SEP 2015) 63 == Obit | Ingman~Einar H., Jr. ---------------------------------- (9 SEP 2015) 64 == Retiree Appreciation Days -------------------------- (As of 11 Nov 2015) 64 == Vet Hiring Fairs ------------------------------- (15 Nov thru 14 Dec 2015) 65 == WWII Vets 94 --------------------------------------------------- (Carroll~Al) 66 == Vet State Benefits & Discounts --------------------- (Pennsylvania 2015) * VET LEGISLATION * . 66 == Wounded Warrior Leave --------------------- (H.R.313 signed Into Law) 67 == NDAA for 2016 [16] ----------------- (Vetoed | House Passes Revision) 68 == VA Medical Marijuana [15] ---- (Veterans Equal Access Amendment) 69 == Vet Student Loan Exemption ------ (H.R.2874 | Taxable Income Issue) 69 == Cold War Medal [06] ----------------------- (Reintroduced as H.R.2067) 69 == Agent Orange Extension Act ------- (Time is Running Out | H.R.4323) 2 70 == Vet Bills Submitted to 114th Congress ---------- (150901 thru 150914) * MILITARY * . 74 == Military Separation Pay --------------------------- (Pay Back Provision) 76 == Military Compensation [05] ------------------------ (History Repeating) 76 == USMC Recruitment ----- (Arming Recruiters for Security Ruled Out) 77 == Gremlin Project -------------------------------- (DARPA | UAS Swarms) 78 == Women in Combat [01] ---------- (Most Combat Jobs Likely to Open) 79 == Women in Combat [02] ------------- (Time to Do Something about It) 81 == Space "A" Travel [19] -------- (Dependent CONUS Travel Approved) 81 == Navy Ship Designations ---------- (New E for Expeditionary Support) 82 == Remember the 80’s Navy --------------- (Things that No Longer Exist) 83 == RMS -------- (16 Years in Making | $706M Spent | Still doesn’t work) 84 == Military Enlistment Standards 2015 [06] ----------- (Military Couples) 85 == Medal of Honor Citations -------------------- (Guenette~Peter M. | VN) . * MILITARY HISTORY * . 86 == Aviation Art ----------------------------------------------- (Into the Storm) 87 == Military Trivia 114 -------------------------- (Civil War Silent Sentinels) 88 == WWII Japanese Surrender ------------------------ (Eyewitness Account) 90 == Nuclear Attack ---------------------------------- (What it Would be Like) 91 == Military History ------------------------------ (USS Kirk | Fall of Saigon) 93 == Military History Anniversaries ------------------------- (16 thru 30 Nov) 93 == WWII Ads ------------------------------------------------------- (Camels (1) 94 == D-Day ------------------------------------------ (Omaha Beach Casualties) 94 == WWII Prewar Events ----------------- (Hitler Letter from Gandhi 1939) 95 == WWII PostWar Events --------- (Dumping Japanese Ammo Sep 1945) 95 == Spanish American War Images 76 --- (Memo of Ratification Signing) 96 == WWI in Photos 133 ---------------------------- (Debut of Tank Warfare) 96 == Faces of WAR (WWII) ------- (Washington DC Parade (4) May 1942) 07 == Ghosts of Time ------------- (Then & Now’ Photos of WWII Sites (04) * HEALTH CARE * . 97 == Tricare Webiner -------- (National Guard/Reserve Benefits | 18 NOV) 98 == Medicare Premiums [01] | 2016 ----- (Official Part B Rates Released) 98 == Weight Control ---------------------- (Walking Most Effective Exercise) 99 == TMOP [19] ---------------------------- (Express Script’s Drug Shortage) 100 == Drug Cost Increases [01] ------------------------ (Soaring Costs | Why?) 101 == EarlySense Monitoring System - (Reduces Mortality/Adverse Events) 101 == Legionnaires' Disease ------------------- (Prevalence and Transmission) 103 == Hearing Loss ---------------------- (Pharmaceutical Hearing Protection) 104 == Agent Orange & Bone Marrow Cancer Link ------ (MGUS Precursor) 105 == Sleep [01] --------------------------------------- (Crucial for Good Health) 106 == Computer Eyes ------------------------ (How to Avoid Negative Effects) 107 == TRICARE Coverage [05] --- (Covered Services Fact Sheet JUL 2015) 107 == TRICARE Prime Networks [01] --- (Metropolitan Area Users Sought) 108 == TRICARE Young Adult Program [10] ------ (2016 Premium Increase) 3 109 == TRICARE Flu Shots [04] --------------------------------- (New Flu Year) 109 == TRICARE Help --------------------------------------------- (Q&A 151114) * FINANCES * . 113 == Vet State Income Tax -------- (State-by-State Exemption Assessment) 114 == Credit Score -------------------------------------------- (Impact on Billing) 115 == Cola 2016 [12] ----------------------------------------------------- (Zero %) 116 == Military Pension Loans [03] --------- (Pension Poaching | Assure Act) 116 == AARP ------------------------------------------------- (Is it worth the Cost) 118 == ITIN -------------------------------------------- (How to Obtain a Number) 119 == Saving Money ---------------------------------------------- (LED Lighting) 120 == TRICARE Secret Shopper Scam -------------------- (DHA-PI Warning) 120 == Money Flipping Scam ------------------------------------- (How it Works) 122 == Fake Job Offer Scam -------------------------------------- (How it Works) 123 == Tax Burden for Wyoming Retired Vets -------------- (As of Nov 2015) 124 == Tax Burden for Louisiana Residents ------------------ (As of Nov 2015) 125 == Thrift Savings Plan 2015 ------------------ (Returns as of 13 Nov 2015) . * GENERAL INTEREST * . 126 == Notes of Interest ------------------------------------- (1 thru 14 Nov 2015) 127 == World War I Memorial [06] ---------------------- (Central Site Lacking) 129 == Marine Corps War Memorial