Veterans Report - Week of January 09, 2012
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 1:04 pm
Veterans Report - Week of January 09, 2012
LIVE GI Bill Blog Event On Wednesday January 11, 2012, members of the House Veterans Affairs Committee staff will be available live online to answer your questions in a Q&A chat session on the (http://militaryadvantage.military.com/) Military Advantage blog. The live blog will take place at 5:00pm EST (4:00 Central, 3:00 Mtn, and 2:00 Pacific). The event is free and open to all.
Nutrients May Stop Brain Shrinkage A new study of elderly people finds that those whose diets were high in certain essential nutrients were less likely to have the brain shrinkage associated with () Alzheimer's disease and were more likely to score better on tests of mental performance. Funds from the US Department of Veteran Affairs, Portland VA Medical Center, and other agencies helped to pay for the research. An abstract of the study is available in the December 28, 2011 online edition of the journal (http://www.neurology.org/content/early/ ... 8.abstract) Neurology. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
More Time for Gulf War Veterans Veterans of the Persian Gulf War with undiagnosed illnesses have an additional five years to qualify for benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. For VA benefit purposes, Gulf War Veterans are defined as those who served on active duty in the Southwest Asia theater during Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn. At issue is the eligibility of veterans to claim VA disability compensation based upon those undiagnosed illnesses, and the ability of survivors to qualify for VA's Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. The new change means any undiagnosed illnesses used to establish eligibility for VA benefits must become apparent by Dec. 31, 2016. Veterans or survivors who believe they qualify for these benefits should contact VA at 1-800-827-1000. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Veterans Crisis Line The () Veterans Crisis Line connects veterans in crisis with VA responders 24 hours a day. 20,000 veterans and counting have been saved through the service. To learn more, visit the (http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/18/us/war-ve ... index.html) CNN website. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Must-see Military Spouse Event: Jan 21 SpouseBUZZ Live will be in Ft. Walton Beach on Jan 21st. Spouses from all over will be attending this free event to celebrate, share and learn from each other. There will be big give aways, discussion boards, exhibitors and the first 300 (pre-registered) attendees will receive a free tote bag stuffed with goodies. In addition, you will be entered into a drawing to win free electronics, appliances and jewelry. (http://spousebuzz.com/blog/2011/10/regi ... RC=mrvr.nl) Get more information and Register.
Home Loan Assistance for Illinois Heroes Gov. Pat Quinn launched the program, Welcome Home Heroes Illinois, on Dec. 14 to provide those Illinois men and women in the service with some help with the down payment, closing costs and up to $21,000 in a mortgage credit certificate. A mortgage credit certificate allows the buyer to use 20 percent of the their annual mortgage interest as a direct federal tax credit that results in a dollar-for-dollar reduction in their annual federal income tax liability. For more information, visit the (http://ihda.org/homeowner/heroes.htm) Illinois Housing Development Authority website. For more on home loan benefits for servicemembers and veterans, visit the (http://www.military.com/money/va-loans) Military.com VA Home Loan Center.
Patients Want More Open Records Two studies have found that a majority of patients would like to share information in their electronic records and see what their physicians are saying about them. The first study, " (http://annals.org/content/155/12/805.abstract) Patient Interest in Sharing Personal Health Record Information," found that 79 percent of the 18,000 users of My HealtheVet -- the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) electronic personal health record (PHR) system--would like to share the information in their personal health record with someone outside of the VA system. The second study is " (http://annals.org/content/155/12/811.abstract) Inviting Patients to Read their Doctors' Notes: Patients and Doctors Look Ahead." Abstracts of the two studies are available in the Dec. 20 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine at the links above. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Top Military Workouts for 2012 The Military.com Fitness Guide can get you into shape no matter what you're looking to do ? get in shape or take your fitness goals to the next level. (http://www.military.com/military-fitnes ... ess-guide/) Visit the 2012 Military Fitness Guide to get tips on running in the winter, the best equipment for you, how to make treadmill workouts interesting, supplements that work, intense home workouts, and more.
GI Bill 2.0 Offers Online Living Stipend Post-9/11 GI Bill eligible veterans are now able to get a monthly living stipend without having to take traditional classroom courses. The stipend for online students is different from the traditional classroom student version. Online students get half of the national average stipend (average Basic Allowance for Housing for an E-5 with Dependents). For example a full-time student who is taking 100 percent of his or her classes online will get $673.50 a month, while a full-time student taking at least one classroom course will get the full stipend rate based on the specific location of the school. (http://edu.military.com/gibill/?ESRC=mrvr.nl) Get more information on Military.com. Next Step: Compare online schools to find the one that best meets your needs. (http://www.military.com/education/conte ... -faqs.html) Request information from schools now. (http://edu.military.com/gibill/?ESRC=mrvr.nl)
Veterans Employment Website The U.S. Office of Personnel Management's Government-wide Veterans Employment Website at (http://www.fedshirevets.gov/ href=) www.fedshirevets.gov/ is a critical component of the Federal Government's strategy for the recruitment and employment of Veterans. In partnership with the Departments of Defense, Labor, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, and other Federal agencies, the Department of Veterans Affairs hopes that this website will be the preeminent source for Federal employment information for Veterans, transitioning servicemembers, their families, Federal HR professionals and hiring managers. For more information, visit the FedsHireVets.gov website at (http://www.fedshirevets.gov/ href=) www.fedshirevets.gov/. For job listings across the nation and civilian job guides and tips, visit the (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs) Military.com Veteran Jobs Center.
Diagnosing Depression You may be wondering if you have symptoms of depression. One way of determining that is to take a brief confidential and anonymous () screening at VA's (https://www.myhealth.va.gov/mhv-portal- ... ENING.HTML) My HealtheVet. Only you will see the results of the brief screening. None of the results are stored or sent anywhere. You can choose to print a copy of the results for your own records or to give to your VA physician or mental health professional. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
$100k of Protection for $6.80 a Month What if you could give your family peace of mind that comes knowing you're protected by life insurance without hidden clauses or fine print? Get 100k worth of coverage for only $6.80 a month. Keep your family protected. (http://www.military.com/nmaa/nmaaform?ESRC=vr.nl) Contact Navy Mutual Today.
Only 51 Percent of Vets Use VA Services A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study that will be published this month has found that since the Iraq and Afghanistan wars began only 51 percent of eligible veterans have sought care through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The study is available on the (http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2012/pdf/11_0132.pdf) CDC website. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
12 Most Underrated Jobs in America Even in a sluggish economy, there are jobs out there that fly under the radar yet give you good bang for the buck -- careers with a lower unemployment rate and decent salaries. Careercast.com recently came out with a list of "America's Most Underrated Jobs." (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/co ... erica.html) See the Top 12 Now. (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/co ... erica.html) (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs) Search Military Friendly Jobs on Military.com
Veterans Help Line Goes National A veteran-to-veteran hot line established six years ago in New Jersey to provide crisis counseling and prevent suicides among the state's military servicemembers has been expanded nationwide. Vets4Warriors is a 24-hour-a-day help line is staffed by nearly 40 specially trained veterans. It's administered by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey at the school's Piscataway campus. The toll-free hot line is 1-855-VET-TALK. More information about the program is available at the Vets4Warriors website at (http://www.vets4warriors.com/) www.vets4warriors.com. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Beware of Phishing Attack A recent aggressive phishing attack is making the rounds in an email which appears be from USAA, a financial services company that serves military members, their families, and veterans. The email subject begins with "Deposit Posted." Members are asked to open a Zeus-infected attached file. Once opened, it launches a malicious virus which could provide access to personal information and may require a complete reinstall of the computer operating system. Other attacks have been directed at U.S. Military installations and defense facilities. For more information and to protect yourself, visit the (http://www.antiphishing.org/consumer_recs.html) APWG Consumer Advice website, the (http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx) Internet Crime Complaint Center website, and the (http://wombatsecurity.com/antiphishingphil) Wombat Securities Technologies website. For more tips on avoiding financial and computer scams, visit the (http://www.military.com/money) Military.com Money Center.
LIVE GI Bill Blog Event On Wednesday January 11, 2012, members of the House Veterans Affairs Committee staff will be available live online to answer your questions in a Q&A chat session on the (http://militaryadvantage.military.com/) Military Advantage blog. The live blog will take place at 5:00pm EST (4:00 Central, 3:00 Mtn, and 2:00 Pacific). The event is free and open to all.
Nutrients May Stop Brain Shrinkage A new study of elderly people finds that those whose diets were high in certain essential nutrients were less likely to have the brain shrinkage associated with () Alzheimer's disease and were more likely to score better on tests of mental performance. Funds from the US Department of Veteran Affairs, Portland VA Medical Center, and other agencies helped to pay for the research. An abstract of the study is available in the December 28, 2011 online edition of the journal (http://www.neurology.org/content/early/ ... 8.abstract) Neurology. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
More Time for Gulf War Veterans Veterans of the Persian Gulf War with undiagnosed illnesses have an additional five years to qualify for benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. For VA benefit purposes, Gulf War Veterans are defined as those who served on active duty in the Southwest Asia theater during Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn. At issue is the eligibility of veterans to claim VA disability compensation based upon those undiagnosed illnesses, and the ability of survivors to qualify for VA's Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. The new change means any undiagnosed illnesses used to establish eligibility for VA benefits must become apparent by Dec. 31, 2016. Veterans or survivors who believe they qualify for these benefits should contact VA at 1-800-827-1000. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Veterans Crisis Line The () Veterans Crisis Line connects veterans in crisis with VA responders 24 hours a day. 20,000 veterans and counting have been saved through the service. To learn more, visit the (http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/18/us/war-ve ... index.html) CNN website. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Must-see Military Spouse Event: Jan 21 SpouseBUZZ Live will be in Ft. Walton Beach on Jan 21st. Spouses from all over will be attending this free event to celebrate, share and learn from each other. There will be big give aways, discussion boards, exhibitors and the first 300 (pre-registered) attendees will receive a free tote bag stuffed with goodies. In addition, you will be entered into a drawing to win free electronics, appliances and jewelry. (http://spousebuzz.com/blog/2011/10/regi ... RC=mrvr.nl) Get more information and Register.
Home Loan Assistance for Illinois Heroes Gov. Pat Quinn launched the program, Welcome Home Heroes Illinois, on Dec. 14 to provide those Illinois men and women in the service with some help with the down payment, closing costs and up to $21,000 in a mortgage credit certificate. A mortgage credit certificate allows the buyer to use 20 percent of the their annual mortgage interest as a direct federal tax credit that results in a dollar-for-dollar reduction in their annual federal income tax liability. For more information, visit the (http://ihda.org/homeowner/heroes.htm) Illinois Housing Development Authority website. For more on home loan benefits for servicemembers and veterans, visit the (http://www.military.com/money/va-loans) Military.com VA Home Loan Center.
Patients Want More Open Records Two studies have found that a majority of patients would like to share information in their electronic records and see what their physicians are saying about them. The first study, " (http://annals.org/content/155/12/805.abstract) Patient Interest in Sharing Personal Health Record Information," found that 79 percent of the 18,000 users of My HealtheVet -- the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) electronic personal health record (PHR) system--would like to share the information in their personal health record with someone outside of the VA system. The second study is " (http://annals.org/content/155/12/811.abstract) Inviting Patients to Read their Doctors' Notes: Patients and Doctors Look Ahead." Abstracts of the two studies are available in the Dec. 20 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine at the links above. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Top Military Workouts for 2012 The Military.com Fitness Guide can get you into shape no matter what you're looking to do ? get in shape or take your fitness goals to the next level. (http://www.military.com/military-fitnes ... ess-guide/) Visit the 2012 Military Fitness Guide to get tips on running in the winter, the best equipment for you, how to make treadmill workouts interesting, supplements that work, intense home workouts, and more.
GI Bill 2.0 Offers Online Living Stipend Post-9/11 GI Bill eligible veterans are now able to get a monthly living stipend without having to take traditional classroom courses. The stipend for online students is different from the traditional classroom student version. Online students get half of the national average stipend (average Basic Allowance for Housing for an E-5 with Dependents). For example a full-time student who is taking 100 percent of his or her classes online will get $673.50 a month, while a full-time student taking at least one classroom course will get the full stipend rate based on the specific location of the school. (http://edu.military.com/gibill/?ESRC=mrvr.nl) Get more information on Military.com. Next Step: Compare online schools to find the one that best meets your needs. (http://www.military.com/education/conte ... -faqs.html) Request information from schools now. (http://edu.military.com/gibill/?ESRC=mrvr.nl)
Veterans Employment Website The U.S. Office of Personnel Management's Government-wide Veterans Employment Website at (http://www.fedshirevets.gov/ href=) www.fedshirevets.gov/ is a critical component of the Federal Government's strategy for the recruitment and employment of Veterans. In partnership with the Departments of Defense, Labor, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, and other Federal agencies, the Department of Veterans Affairs hopes that this website will be the preeminent source for Federal employment information for Veterans, transitioning servicemembers, their families, Federal HR professionals and hiring managers. For more information, visit the FedsHireVets.gov website at (http://www.fedshirevets.gov/ href=) www.fedshirevets.gov/. For job listings across the nation and civilian job guides and tips, visit the (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs) Military.com Veteran Jobs Center.
Diagnosing Depression You may be wondering if you have symptoms of depression. One way of determining that is to take a brief confidential and anonymous () screening at VA's (https://www.myhealth.va.gov/mhv-portal- ... ENING.HTML) My HealtheVet. Only you will see the results of the brief screening. None of the results are stored or sent anywhere. You can choose to print a copy of the results for your own records or to give to your VA physician or mental health professional. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
$100k of Protection for $6.80 a Month What if you could give your family peace of mind that comes knowing you're protected by life insurance without hidden clauses or fine print? Get 100k worth of coverage for only $6.80 a month. Keep your family protected. (http://www.military.com/nmaa/nmaaform?ESRC=vr.nl) Contact Navy Mutual Today.
Only 51 Percent of Vets Use VA Services A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study that will be published this month has found that since the Iraq and Afghanistan wars began only 51 percent of eligible veterans have sought care through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The study is available on the (http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2012/pdf/11_0132.pdf) CDC website. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
12 Most Underrated Jobs in America Even in a sluggish economy, there are jobs out there that fly under the radar yet give you good bang for the buck -- careers with a lower unemployment rate and decent salaries. Careercast.com recently came out with a list of "America's Most Underrated Jobs." (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/co ... erica.html) See the Top 12 Now. (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/co ... erica.html) (http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs) Search Military Friendly Jobs on Military.com
Veterans Help Line Goes National A veteran-to-veteran hot line established six years ago in New Jersey to provide crisis counseling and prevent suicides among the state's military servicemembers has been expanded nationwide. Vets4Warriors is a 24-hour-a-day help line is staffed by nearly 40 specially trained veterans. It's administered by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey at the school's Piscataway campus. The toll-free hot line is 1-855-VET-TALK. More information about the program is available at the Vets4Warriors website at (http://www.vets4warriors.com/) www.vets4warriors.com. For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the (http://www.military.com/benefits/veteran-benefits) Military.com Benefits Center.
Beware of Phishing Attack A recent aggressive phishing attack is making the rounds in an email which appears be from USAA, a financial services company that serves military members, their families, and veterans. The email subject begins with "Deposit Posted." Members are asked to open a Zeus-infected attached file. Once opened, it launches a malicious virus which could provide access to personal information and may require a complete reinstall of the computer operating system. Other attacks have been directed at U.S. Military installations and defense facilities. For more information and to protect yourself, visit the (http://www.antiphishing.org/consumer_recs.html) APWG Consumer Advice website, the (http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx) Internet Crime Complaint Center website, and the (http://wombatsecurity.com/antiphishingphil) Wombat Securities Technologies website. For more tips on avoiding financial and computer scams, visit the (http://www.military.com/money) Military.com Money Center.