RAO BULLETIN 1 March 2019 PDF Edition THIS RETIREE ACTIVITIES OFFICE BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES Pg Article Subject . * DOD * . 04 == National Military Strategy ---- (New Edition Completed | Unclear if the Public Will Ever See it) 06 == Okinawa U.S. Military Bases [01] ---- (Residents Deliver A Resounding “No” Vote) 07 == Border Wall [09] ---- (DHS Asked to Identify Construction Location Priorities by DoD) 08 == Border Wall [10] ---- (Looking at Months to the Point of Initial Construction) 09 == Pentagon Debt Collection ---- (GAO Says Procedures Need Overhaul to Protect Troops) 09 == USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62) [20] ---- (CNO Defends Hiding Report on Collision from Public) 11 == U.S. Space Force [11] ---- (Space Policy Directive 4 Signed by Trump) 12 == DoD/VA EHR [03] ---- (Still Working Out How to Create Single HER) 13 == Exchange/DeCA Merger [03] ---- (Task Force Backs A Merger of the Military's Stores) 15 == DoD Medication Safety Role ---- (Concerns) 15 == POW/MIA Recoveries & Burials ---- (Reported 15 thru 28 FEB 2019 | Twelve) . * VA * . 17 == Fisher House Expansion [20] ---- (Ann Arbor, MI; Aurora, CO; and Omaha, NE) 18 == VA Privatization [16 ] ---- (We Are Not Privatizing Says VHA’s Executive In Charge) 19 == VA Disability Claims [02] ---- (Priority Processing for Purple Heart Awardees) 20 == VA Veteran Recreation Therapy ---- (Virtual Reality Rehabilitation Program) 1 21== VA Veteran Community Care Program ---- (Proposed Rules Published) 22 == VA Employment [06] ---- (Blasted Over Unfilled Health Care Positions | 49K Empty Posts) 23 == VA Nursing Home Care [03] ---- (Cost Could Top $10 billion in 5 Years) 24 == VA Budget FY 2020 [01] ---- (Private Care | Vet Groups Propose Doubling 2019’s) 25 == VA Prosthetics [19] ---- (Eligibility to Receive) 25 == VA.gov New Format ---- (Check It Out | Big Improvement) 27 == VA RAMP [03] ---- (Program to End Ahead of Implementation of New Veteran Appeals Law) 28 == VA Home Loan [66] ---- (New Rule on Cash-Out Refinance Loans) 28 == VA Appeals [35] ---- (Appeals Modernization Act | Biggest Change in Decades) . * VETS * . 30 == UCMJ [05] ---- (Applicability to Retirees Upheld by Supreme Court) 31 == Bladensburg WWI Vet Memorial [07] ---- (High Court to Decide Fate 27 FEB) 32 == Desert Storm Memorial [10] ---- (Marks an ‘Atonement’ for Vietnam War Mistakes) 34 == Vet Presidents ---- (Who They Were | Majority Were Veterans) 36 == GI Bill [279] ---- (New High-Tech Program Coming Soon | VET TEC) 37 == GI Bill [280] ---- (Reducing/Eliminating Student Loan Debt) 38 == GI Bill [281] ---- (Vet Groups Ask VA to Keep Benefits Away From Deceptive Colleges) 39 == Vet Fraud & Abuse ---- (Reported 15 thru 28 Feb 2019) 41 == Obit: George Mendonsa ---- (17 FEB 2019 | The Kiss Sailor) 42 == Vet Hiring Fairs ---- (Scheduled As of 1 MAR 2019) 42 == Military Retirees & Veterans Events Schedule ---- (As of 1 MAR 2019) 42 == Veteran State Benefits ---- (Indiana 2019) . * VET LEGISLATION * . 43 == VA Medical Marijuana [59] ---- (H.R.1151/S.445 | Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act) 43 == SDVOSB Program [01] ---- (S.492 | DRIVE Act) 44 == VA Benefits Denials [02] ---- (S.___ | Legion Act) 45 == Vet Education [02] ---- (H.R.425/S.153 | Supporting Veterans in STEM Careers Act) 45 == VA Disability Rates 2019-2020 ---- (H.R.1200 | Cost of Living Adjustment [COLA] Act) 46 == 116th Congress ---- (By The Numbers) . * MILITARY* . 46 == U.S. Coast Guard Funding [01] ---- (Challenges for Personnel and Their Families) 49 == Navy Carrier Fleet ---- (USS Truman to Be Retired Early) 51 == Military Spouses ---- (Survey Shows More Problems, Less Support during Deployments) 51 == Military Spouse Employment [05] ---- (Professional Relicensing Fees Reimbursement) 52 == WWII Airmen Honored ---- (Ten Who Died Saving UK Children) 54 == Selective Service System [29] ---- (Ruling | Men-Only Draft Is Unconstitutional) 55 == Union Jack ---- (Navy Will Return to Flying The “Union Jack” on 4 JUN) 56 == Navy Fleet Size [15] ---- (Inactive Ships Will Not be Activated to Meet Goal) 56 == Navy Fleet Size [16] ---- (Navy Wants Faster Ship Repairs; 70% of Destroyer Fleet Late) 58 == USAF Deploy-Or-Out Policy [01] ---- (Officially Enacted on 19 FEB 2019) 59 == USCG Icebreakers [09] ---- (Trump Signs Bill for 1st in 40 Years) 60 == Iron Dome ---- (Air Defense System | Army Intends to Purchase Some from Israel) 61== Base Housing [02] ---- (Privatized Units | Withhold Rent Proposal until Problems Fixed) 63 == Base Housing [03] ---- (Privatized Units | Occupant Complaint Reprisals) 2 64 == Base Housing [04] ---- (Army Secretary Vows to Correct 'Unconscionable' Health Hazards) 66 == PFAS Toxic Exposure ---- (Formal Investigation Launched on Base Contaminations) 66 == Military Earplug Lawsuit [01] ---- (100 Filed So Far Just Tip of the Iceberg) 67 == Navy Terminology, Jargon & Slang --- (Big Chicken Dinner thru Birds Tight) 69 == Warships That Will Change the Future ---- (HMCS Chicoutimi (SSK-879) . * MILITARY HISTORY * . 70 == Battle For The 1864 Presidency ---- (How Lincoln Was Able to Keep the War Going) 70 == WWI U.S. Battle With Russia ---- (USA Invaded Russia and Fought the Red Army) 72 == Chosin Reservoir [01] ---- (How Tootsie Rolls Accidentally Saved Marines during War) 73 == War Memorials ---- (World War II Memorial Indianapolis Indiana) 74 == Post WWII Photos ---- (Hiroshima Survivor) 74 == Every Picture Tells A Story ---- (Luftwaffe Bomber Formation) 75 == Military History Anniversaries ---- (01 thru 15 MAR) 75 == WWII Bomber Nose Art [25] ---- (Full Boost) 75 == Medal of Honor Citations ---- (William George Harrell | WWII) . * HEALTH CARE * . 77 == Medicare Enrollment [03] ---- (Legislation Introduced to Allow Buy In at Age 50) 78 == Organ Donors ---- (Walter Reed National Medical Center Needs 380 Kidneys 79 == MHS Nurse Advice Line ---- (Available 24/7) 79 == TRICARE Marriage QLE ---- (Know Your Health Care Options) 80 == Alzheimer's [18] ---- (Chronic Lack of Sleep May Worsen the Disease and Memory Loss) 81 == Detox Juices ---- (Are They worth It?)Scam 82 == Health Care Reform [04] ---- (What Striking Down Obamacare Could Mean For Medicare) 83 == Vertigo ---- (Why it Happens, Diagnosis and Treatment) 84 == Stress ---- (Coping Techniques to Help You Relax) 85 == Medicare Fraud [137] ---- (Disclosures 15-28 FEB 2019) 88 == Earwax [01] ---- Excess Symptoms and Recommended Removal Procedure 89 == TRICARE Podcast 489 ---- (TRICARE Health Matters Newsletter - Heart Health Month) 90 == TRICARE Podcast 490 ---- (Explanation of Benefits - TRICARE Fraud – Marriage) . * FINANCES * . 91 == Identity Theft [16] ---- (Warning Signs of Being Victimized) 92 == Traffic Tickets [01 ---- (How Much They Will Hike Your Car Insurance Rates) 92 == IRS Tax Deductions [02] ---- (7 That Are Eliminated on Your 2018 Filing) 93 == Home Inventory [01] ---- (Needed to Document Your Losses After a Catastrophe) 94 == Widow(er)’s SSA Benefits [04] ---- (TSCL Proposal to Increase) 94 == Social Security Taxation [12] ---- (Deficit Reduction Option | Increase It) 95 == Dynamic Pricing ---- (GOTCHA! Have You Been Duped With This) 96 == 419 (Advance Fee) Scams ---- (What They Are) 97 == Money For Nothing Scam ---- (Health Insurance Fake Account Tax Impact) 98 == Amazon Refund Scam ---- (How It Works) 99 == Tax Burden for Mississippi Retired Vets ---- (As of FEB 2019) . * GENERAL INTEREST * . 3 101 == Notes of Interest ---- (15 thru 28 FEB 2019) 102 == High-Speed Rail Project ---- (Failed | Trump Wants CA Pay Back of Federal Money Spent to Date) 103 == National Security [01] ---- (Contaminated Medicine | U.S. Dependence on China’s Medicine) 105 == Iran Embassy Hostages ---- *Being Held Hostage Again by the USVSST) 107 == Iran Military [01] ---- (First Indigenously Developed Sub Commissioned) 108 == Russian Drones ---- (ARF Working to Create Arctic Zone Use UAVs) 109 == NASA [02] ---- (Mars Rover ‘Opportunity’ Bites the Dust) 110 == SSA Trust Fund [02] ---- (Can We Depend On It) 111 == Quotable Quotes 02 ---- (Things to Think About) 112 == Interesting Ideas ---- (Need More light) 112 == One Word Essays ---- (Adventure) 112 == Have You Heard? ---- (Toilet Paper | Catholic Parents | Rocking Chair Thoughts) 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 – (. 3. Recipients of the Bulletin are authorized and encouraged to forward the Bulletin to other vets or veteran organizations. * ATTACHMENTS * . Attachment – Indiana Vet State Benefits Attachment – Military History Anniversaries 01 thru 15 MAR (Updated) Attachment – Battle for The 1864 Presidency * DoD * National Military Strategy ► New Edition Completed | Unclear if the Public Will Ever See it Gen. Joe Dunford, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has finished his new edition of the National Military strategy (NMS) — but currently has no plans to roll out a public version of the traditionally unclassified document. “The 2018 National Military Strategy was approved by Gen. Dunford in December and submitted to the secretary of defense and Congress in accordance with statutory requirements,” said Col. Patrick Ryder, Dunford’s spokesman, in response to a question from Defense News. “The strategy is classified to enable the chairman to fully assess the joint force operating environment and provide unfettered military advice in support of the 2018 National Defense Strategy,” Ryder continued.