RAO BULLETIN 1 October 2019 PDF Edition THIS RETIREE ACTIVITIES OFFICE BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES Pg Article Subject . * DOD * . 04 == NDAA 2020 [21] ---- (OCT 1 Timeline Not Likely) 05 == NDAA 2020 [22] ---- (Military Coalition Letter to Congress) 06== Air Force Standing ---- (Eroding Air Superiority Advantage) 06 == Trump Border Wall [02] ---- (Pentagon | $2.5B in Contracts Finalized) 07 == Afghan War ---- (How Americans Are Split Over Whether It Was a Mistake) 08 == Arlington National Cemetery [82] ---- (New Burial Eligibility Criteria Proposed) 09 == DOD Pain Rating [02] ---- (New Scale for Assessing Patients' Misery) 10 == POW/MIA Recoveries & Burials ---- (Reported 16 thru 30 SEP 2019 | Fourteen) . * VA * . 12 == VA National Suicide Prevention Report ---- (2019 Report Released) 13 == VA Flu Shots [06] ---- (Two Options to Get Your Shot) 14 == VA Debt [07] ---- (Collection Systems Leave Vets Confused, Frustrated) 15 == VA Rating Decisions ---- (Initial, Deferred, & Confirmed and Continued) 16 == VA Disability Ratings [04] --- (Protected) 16 == VA Hospital Harassments/Assaults ---- (Troubling Series Occurring at VA Facilities) 18 == VA Reexamination Notice ---- (How the VA Can Reduce Disability Benefits) 19 == VA Caregiver Program [58] ---- (Support Services Offered to Caregivers) 1 | P a g e 20 == VA Caregiver Program [59] ---- (Bogged Down by Bad Data, IT Issues, GAO Finds) 21 == VA Caregiver Program [60] ---- (Expanded to All vice Just Post 911 Vets) 22 == Emergency Medical Bill Claims [06] ---- (How Will VA Comply w/Court Decision) 23 == VA Telehealth Program [01] ---- (Delivering Benefits to Veterans w/Tablet Devices) 24 == VA Transparency [02] ---- (Wilkie Accuses Lawmaker of Misleading Public over Office Eviction) 25 == VA Nursing Homes [16] ---- (Nationwide Ratings System Review Pending) 26 == VA Blue Water Claims [75] ---- (Advocates Demand White House Speed up Timeline) 27== VA Agent Orange Claims [10] ---- (Orange Letter Writing Campaign) 27 == POW/MIA Displays [05] ---- (VAMC Manchester POW Bible Display Lawsuit) 29 == VA Manila OPC ---- (Policy Changes) 30 == VAMC Columbia SC [02] ---- (Eric Walker Medical Malpractice Lawsuit) 31 == VAMC Salisbury [03] ---- (Wide-Awake Hand Surgery) 32 == VA Fraud, Waste, & Abuse ---- (Reported 16 thru 30 SEP 2019) . * VETS * . 33 == GA Vet Home [04] Eagle's Nest Community Living Center Ant Infestation 34 == Vet Suicide [38] ---- (VA Stats of 20 a Day Clarified) 35 == Vet Jobs [252] ---- (Veterans Curation Program Now Hiring) 36 == Vet Online Troll Alert ---- (Targeting the Military and Veterans Community) 37 == Vet Fraud & Abuse ---- (Reported 16 thru 30 SEP 2019) 38 == Vets For Trump ---- (Facebook Page Hijacked by Macedonians) 42 == Veterans FAQs ---- (Can I File a VA Claim for my Adult Children?) 43 == Veterans FAQs ---- (Do I still receive a VA ID card when I turn 66?) 44 == Veterans FAQs ---- (Can I qualify for Kidney Disease Due to AO-Related Diabetes?) 44 == WWI Vets 07 ---- (Theodore Roosevelt | Oldest Man at D-Day) 45 == WWII Vets 205 ---- (Melva Dolan Simon | 102 Year Old WAVE) 47 == Korean War Vets ---- (Regina Schiffman) 48 == Opioid Addiction [07] ---- (Study | Afghan/Iraq Post 911 Vet Epidemic) 49 == Vet Hiring Fairs ---- (Scheduled As of 01 OCT 2019) 49 == Military Retirees & Veterans Events Schedule ---- (As of 01 OCT 2019) 50 == State Veteran's Benefits---- (Ohio 2019) . * VET LEGISLATION * . 50 == Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy ---- (H.R.4370/S.2504 | TBI and PTSD Treatment Act) 51 == WWII Merchant Marines [01] ---- HR.550/S.133 | Merchant Mariners of WWII Congressional Gold Medal Act . * MILITARY* . 52 == B-21 Stealth Bombers [02] ---- (Air Force is Committed to Boasting 386 Squadrons) 53 == Navy Fleet Readiness [01] ---- (Taking Steps to Complete Planned Repairs on Time) 54 == Credit Monitoring [03] ---- (Services Expanded to All Active Duty Troops) 55 == HIV Discharge Lawsuit ---- (Irrational and Outdated Policies Alleged) 56 == Army Readiness [01] ---- (Transition Team Report) 57 == Army Reserve Enlistment [01] ---- (Leaked Document Revelation) 58 == KC-46 Pegasus Tankers [01] ---- (Cascade of Problems Delaying Delivery) 59 == Navy Aerial Refueling DroneMQ-25 Stingray 1st Test Flight 60 == E-cigarettes [02] ---- (Most Exchanges to Remove by 1 OCT) 61== Navy Terminology, Jargon & Slang ---- (‘Crush Depth’ thru ‘Deadlight’) 2 | P a g e . * MILITARY HISTORY * . 62 == Battleship Roma Sinking ---- (Dawn of the Age of Precision Guided Munitions) 64 == Military History Anniversaries ---- (01 thru 15 OCT) 65 == Every Picture Tells A Story ---- (Camo Cameo) 65 == WWII Memories ---- (Women War Workers) 66 == Sinking of Junyo Maru ---- (4,320 Men Lost When Torpedoed by British Submarine) 66 == Post WWII Photos ---- (Chinese Communist Eighth Route Army Soldiers) 67 == Missouri National Veterans Memorial ---- (Washington’s DC Sister Memoria) 68 == WWII Bomber Nose Art [39] ---- (Fuddy Duddy) 68 == Medal of Honor Citations ---- (William Henry | Civil War) . * HEALTH CARE * . 70 == E-cigarettes [01] ---- (Teen Use has Doubled Since 2017) 70 == Vaccines [01] ---- (CDC Says You Need these 4 if You are Age 50+) 71 == Schizophrenia ---- (A Chronic and Severe Mental Disorder) 73 == Heart & Circulation ---- (Conditions That Impact Negatively on Each) 74 == Medicare Fraud [139] ---- (Disclosures 16-30 SEP 2019) 75 == Pain 03 ---- (Non-Opioid Relief Approaches) 78 == Blood Clots ---- (What They Are and What Causes Them) 79 == Acupuncture [01] ---- (Alternative Medicine for Pain Treatment) 80 == TRICARE Vision Benefits [04] ---- (Make Vision Coverage Choices to Fit Your Needs) 81 == TRICARE Open Season ---- (Begins 11 NOV | Time to Make Changes to Coverage) 82 == Posture ---- (Lifestyle Tweaks to Implement with Age) 84 == Cholesterol [05] ---- (Clearing the Confusion) 84 == Cancer Q&A ---- (190916 thru 190930) 85 == TRICARE Podcast 519 ---- (TRICARE Young Adult - Reporting Fraud - Coverage After Divorce) 87== TRICARE Podcast 520 ---- (Ask Tricare Webinar - TRICARE Prime - TRICARE Dental/Medical Enrollment . * FINANCES * . 88 == Pricing Tricks ---- (7 That Make You Overspend) 89 == GI Bill [295] ---- (Montgomery Bill FY 2020 Increases) 90 == Unemployment Benefits ---- (Comparison of Weekly Amount and Duration by State) 90 == Safe Deposit Boxes ---- (Banks Have No Responsibility for Contents) 91 == Social Security Taxation [13] ---- (Ways to Avoid Taxes on Social Security Income) 92 == Seniors Tuition Free College ---- (That Offer It) 94 == Braces ---- (A Few Ways to Take a Bite Out of the Orthodontist's Bill) 95 == Free Trial Offer Scam 2 ---- (Scammers Clone Major News Sites to Mislead Buyers) 96== Social Media Ad Scam [05] ---- (Proceeds to Charity Claim) 97 == Student Job Con Scam [01] ---- (Email Impersonating Professors or University Departments) 98 == Home Buying [02] ---- (Myths | 8 Common and Costly Ones) 99 == Money Advise ---- (Six Tidbits That Could Make You Poorer) 100 == Tax Burden for Rhode Island Retired Vets ---- (As of SEP 2019) . * GENERAL INTEREST * . 102 == Notes of Interest ---- (16 thru 30 September 2019) 3 | P a g e 103 == Iran Tensions [07] ---- (Attack on Saudi Arabia Oil Refinery) 104 == Iran Tensions [08] ---- (Attack on Saudi Oil Site an Iranian ‘Act of War’) 106 == GTMO Prison [14] ---- (Cost of Running It is $13 Million per Prisoner) 109 == Afghan War [01] ---- (Nearly Nine in 10 Afghans Are Suffering) 110 == Scam Thwarting [01] ---- (Do’s & Don’ts of Responding to Solicitations) 112 == Rape ---- (First Sexual Experience of 3.3M American Women) 113 == Khrushchev UN Shoe Incident ---- (No, He Never Banged His Shoe -- Only His Watch) 114 == Terrorist's Treatment [01] ---- (Robert Hester | Kansas City Transportation Services) 116 == Memories ---- (Drive In Movies) 116 == Have You Heard? ---- (Military Humor 5 | Getting Older Insights | Work vs. Golf) 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]. 3. Recipients of the Bulletin are authorized and encouraged to forward the Bulletin to other vets or veteran organizations. * ATTACHMENTS * . Attachment – Ohio Vet State Benefits Attachment – Military History Anniversaries 01 thru 15 OCT (Updated) Attachment – Sinking of Junyo Maru * DoD * NDAA 2020 st Update 21: OCT 1 Timeline Not Likely Congress has begun releasing the names of Democrats and Republicans who will meet in the coming days to finalize the fiscal 2020 defense authorization bill. These "conferees" – selected lawmakers from each chamber tasked with ironing out the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill – will resolve a number of issues critical to MOAA members, including: Preventing the elimination of up to 18,000 medical billets Ending the widows tax Fixing unsafe military housing conditions Improving early guard and reserve retirement Lawmakers initially set an ambitious timeline for completing the defense bill before 1 OCT, the start of the new fiscal year. However, disagreements between the House and Senate now mean the bill won’t receive a final vote until mid-October. The news means DoD will have to begin the new fiscal year under a stopgap spending measure known as a continuing resolution. With time running out, this may be your last chance to help influence what makes it into the bill. Act now. Dial 866-272-6622 to use MOAA’s toll-free Capitol Hill Switchboard to connect with