RAO BULLETIN 15 December 2016 PDF Edition THIS BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES Pg Article Subject . * DOD * . 04 == Selective Service System [22] -- (Plan Dropped to Register Women) 05 == Selective Service System [23] ----- (Obama on Female Registration) 06 == Military Awards Review [03] ------------------------ (Navy Upgrades) 07 == NDAA 2017 [22] -------------- (Draft Compromise Reached | $619B) 08 == NDAA 2017 [23] ------------- (Senate Sends $618.7B Bill to Obama) 09 == Commissary Reform ------- (DECA's Ability to Reform Questioned) 10 == Commissary Private Label Products --------- (Coming in May 2017) 10 == DoD Fraud, Waste & Abuse ------- (Reported 01 thru 15 DEC 2016) 13 == POW/MIA Recoveries ------------ (Reported 1 thru 15 DEC 2016 | Five) . * VA * . 15 == VA Emergency Care [10] -------------- (Vets Being Stiffed on ER Bills) 1 15 == VA Nursing [06] ---- (Full Practice Authority Regulation Amended) 16 == VA Secretary [50] ---------------- (Trump Urged to Keep McDonald) 17 == VA OPC Medicine -------------------------- (New Copay Tier System) 18 == VA Hepatitis C Care [16] -------- (High Cure Rates with New Drugs) 19 == VA Medical Center Rating System ---------- (Heretofore Not Public) 21 == VA Cemeteries [15] -- (PreNeed Eligibility Determination Program) 22 == VA Privatization [08] -- (Make Everyone Pay for Health Insurance) 22 == VA Project Funding ----------- (Money Needed for 24 Stalled Ones) 23 == VA Prostate Cancer Program [13] ----------------- (PCF Partnership) 24 == VA Home Loan [44] --------- (Usage Tripled After Mortgage Crisis) 24 == VA Blood Pressure Study ----- (ACC/Nam Vet Hypertension Links) 25 == VACAA Constitutionality --------- (U.S. Court of Appeals Hearing) 26 == Seasonal Affective Disorder [01] --------- (Winter Blues Treatment) 26 == VA Digital Health Platform ---------- (Program Detailed Overview) 27 == VA Burial Payment ---------------- (DVA Maryland Delays | $2.7M) 28 == Vets.gov [03] ------------------ (Use to Manage Health Care & Benefits) 29 == VA Fraud, Waste & Abuse ------------- (Reported 1 thru 15 DEC 2016) 31 == Fisher House Expansion [16] --------------- (14 New Sites Proposed) 32 == VAMC Tomah WI [17] ------------------------ (Dental Patient Recall) 32 == VAMC New Orleans LA ---------- (New Facility Open for Business) 33 == VAMC Phoenix AZ - (Whistleblowers Credited With Saving Lives) 34 == VAMC McGuire VA [01] --------------------- (Pharmacy Violations) 35 == VA HCS Bay Pines FL --------------- (Body Left 9 Hours in Shower) . * Vets * . 36 == Enlistment Bonus Payback [06] ---- (NDAA Compromise Provision) 36 == Wisconsin Veterans Homes [05] ----- (Immediate Jeopardy Citation) 37 == GI Bill [215] ---------------------------- (Overseas College Utilization) 38 == WWII Vets 123 ------------------------- (Ralph L. Rossman | Infantryman) 39 == WWII Vets 124 ----------------- (Lauren Bruner | USS Arizona Survivor) 41 == Famous Vets ---------------------- (Martha Raye | Honorary USA/USMC) 42 == Vet Pain --------------- (More Prevalent and Severe than in Nonveterans) 43 == Vet Jobs [203] ---------------------------------- (Virginia MMAC Program) 44 == Vet Jobs [204] -------------------- (Health Care Employment on the Rise) 45 == Vet Jobs [205] ---------------- (Post-9/11 vet Unemployment Rate Rises) 46 == Vet Jobs [206] --------------------- (Lowe's Big on Vet with Service Dog) 47 == Retiree Appreciation Days -------------------------- (As of DEC 14, 2016) 48 == Vet Hiring Fairs ------------------------------- (16 DEC thru 15 JAN 2016) 48 == Vet State Benefits & Discounts ---------------------- (South Dakota 2016) * Vet Legislation * . 49 == Military Food Stamps [02] -------- (Military Hunger Prevention Act) 50 == PTSD Punitive Discharges [05] --------------- (Fairness for Vets Act) 51 == GI Bill [216] ----------------------- (S.1938/HR2360 Signed Into Law) 2 51 == Congressional Gold Medal [07] ----------------- (Filipino WWII Vets) 51 == OSS Congressional Gold Medal Act [01] - (House Approves S.2234) 53 == VA Health Care Access [46] ------------------- (H.R.6407 Introduced) 53 == VA Claims Processing [17] ---- (H.R.5166 | Streamlining Resistance) 54 == Vet Health Care [03] ----------- (H.R.6416 | Omnibus Improvements) 55 == Vet Legislative Issues 2016 [02] -- (Omnibus Reform Bill H.R.6416) 56 == VA Employee Accountability [03] --- (Fire if Felony Convicted Bill) 56 == House Vet Bill Progress --------------------------- (5 thru 9 DEC 2016) . * MILITARY * . 57 == Civilian Run Military Importance ---------------- (SECDEF Nominee) 58 == Discharge Review Boards [01] ---- (PTSD Must Now be Considered) 58 == PowerWalk -------------------- (Army Strap On Battery Pack Charger) 59 == DoD 2018 Budget ------- (Navy Says 'NO' to Shipbuilding $17B Cut) 61 == Commissary Medical Clinics -------- (Navy Pilot Program in Florida) 62 == Enlistment Bonus [07] --- (Public Faith Hurt by Recoupment Effort) 62 == Ammunition ------------- (USA & USMC Rifle Ammo Requirements) 63 == USCG Enlisted Rating Titles ---------------------- (Phase Out Not Likely) 63 == Other than Honorable Discharge [06] --- (Wounded Soldiers Treatment) 65 == USS Colorado (SSN-778) ------------------------------- (Christened 3 Dec) 67 == U.S. Philippine Bases [13] -------------- (Freedom-of-Navigation Patrols) 67 == U.S. Philippine Bases [14] ---------- (PHIBLEX and CARAT Cancelled) 68 == Submarine Aircraft Carriers ----------------------- (The Ultimate Weapon) . * MILITARY HISTORY * . 71 == WWII Speculation ---------------------- (What If No Pearl Harbor Attack) 73 == Pearl Harbor Day ---------- (2016 | Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, HI) 75 == Battle of Verdun Facts ------------ (10 Facts About Longest WWI Battle) 75 == Military History Anniversaries --------------------------- (16 thru 31 DEC) 75 == Medal of Honor Citations -------------------- (Elrod, Henry T | WWII) . * HEALTH CARE * . 77 == NDAA 2017 [24] ---------------------- (Approved TRICARE Changes) 78 == Navy Medicine ----------------------- (Surgeon General Reform Aims) 80 == TRICARE Coverage [06] --------------------- (AOI & Urinary System) 80 == Cancer Moonshot Initiative ----------------------- (VA's Involvement) 81 == Dental Cost --------------------------------- (Avoid Crazy Dental Fees) 83 == Dental Cost [01] ---------------------------------------- ( Delaying Care) 84 == PTSD [224] -------------------------- (SGB Study Participants Needed) 85 == PTSD [225] --------------------------------------- (Holiday Season Tips) 86 == FLU Prevention [06] ------------------- (Staying Healthy This Season) 87 == Traumatic Brain Injury [58] ------------ (DVBIC TBI Family Podcast) 88 == Smoking [03] --------------------------------- (No Safe Level of Usage) 88 == TRICARE Podcast 376 -- (Nurse Advice Line | ACA | Avoiding Fraud) 90 == TRICARE Podcast 377 ------ (Traveling | Tax Webinar | Handwashing) 3 . * FINANCES * . 91 == Selfie Sextortion Scam --------------------------------- (How it Works) 92 == Saving Money ----------------------------------- (Stocking Up Limitations) 93 == Tax Burden for Mississippi Retired Vets ------------- (As of DEC 2016) . * GENERAL INTEREST * . 94 == Notes of Interest ------------------------------------- (1 thru 15 DEC 2016) 96 == 114th Congress [05] ------------------------------ (What it Accomplished) 98 == WWII Merchant Marines ---- (Congressional Gold Medal Legislation) 98 == Air Force One ------------------------ (Replacement Cost Out of Control) 100 == Have You Heard? ------------ (How to live like you're in the U.S. Navy) 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 - South Dakota Vet State Benefits & Discounts DEC 2016 Attachment - Military History Anniversaries 16 thru 31 DEC Attachment - WWI Battle of Verdun Facts * DoD * Selective Service System Update 22 ► Plan Dropped to Register Women Lawmakers have officially dropped plans to make women register for the draft, instead opting for a review of the ongoing need for the Selective Service System. The controversial provision had been part of early drafts of the annual defense authorization bill, and narrowly passed a House Armed Services Committee vote last spring. A Senate panel followed suit a few months later. But conservatives in both chambers objected to the provision and 4 stripped it out of the final legislative draft unveiled 29 NOV. Under current law, men ages 18 to 26 are required to register for possible involuntary military service with the Selective Service System. Women have been exempt, and past legal challenges have pointed to combat restrictions placed on their military service as a reason for their exclusion. Early this year, Defense Secretary Ash Carter removed those restrictions, opening combat posts to women for the first time. In response, a collection of military leaders and women’s rights advocates said they would support requiring women to now register for the draft. Instead, the final authorization bill draft calls for a review of the entire Selective Service System, to see if the idea of a military draft is still realistic and cost-effective. The system has an annual budget of about $23 million, but watchdog groups have questioned whether the system could assemble a list of draftees if a national emergency were to arise. And military leaders have repeatedly insisted they have no desire to return to the draft