Policy Vets

Chris Madaio and Will Hubbard join Secretary Shulkin and Lou to discuss the successes of the GI bill. They also discuss those educational institutions, who for profit motive, have acted as predators towards service members and veterans.  Chris and Will both hold Vice President positions at Veterans Education Success (https://vetsedsuccess.org), a non-profit of bipartisan policy experts, academic researchers, lawyers and advocates dedicated to bridging the military-civilian divide to ensure career and education success for military families.

Dr. Phillip Roe, the former Chairman of the House Veteran Affairs Committee, speaks with Secretary Shulkin and Lou about what he's doing now, what should be a priority for congress with regards to veterans, and what he wishes he could have done while in office.

Brian Jenkins, Executive Director of the Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP), discusses how the arts and comedy makes the lives of veterans (and audiences) better.  You'll also get a chance to hear two great comedians, Clyde Thompson and Adam Keys, two veterans who will bust your gut.

Today, Randy Reeves, the former Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs for the VA, and the former Executive Director for Mississippi's Veteran Affairs Board, shares his understanding and experience being responsible for a State Veteran Home network. He explains the problems that occurred with the Holyoke Soldiers' Home in Massachusetts, and still proclaims that he would prefer living in a Veteran home over a privatized home.

Dr. Ben Suitt joins Secretary Shulkin and Lou to talk about his recent study regarding the shockingly high numbers of veteran suicides. He explains that the recent drop in suicides reported by the VA, might just be a numbers game that doesn't reflect reality.

Today, Cherissa Jackson, Chief Medical Executive at AMVETS (American Veterans), a registered nurse, a veteran and PTSD survivor, discusses her perspective on Cannabis and the impact it is having on the veteran community.  Also, Lou puts the Secretary on the spot regarding his policies while he was VA Secretary.

Today, Secretary Shulkin and Lou speak with AnnMarie Halterman, who is the Executive Director of Uniting Us (https://unitingus.org/), which uses art therapy to support the veteran community as they deal with trauma, physical disability, or life in general. 

In today's special episode, Secretary Shulkin and Lou are joined by General David Petraeus. General Petraeus served Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and before retiring from a 37 year Army career, served as the Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Commander, U.S. Forces – Afghanistan. He speaks to the tragedy that is occurring in Afghanistan, and provides words of encouragement to veterans who are struggling with the U.S. Withdrawal.

Lou Celli and guest host Charlie Malone, stepping in for Secretary Shulkin this week, are joined by Dr. Linda J. Bilmes, Harvard Kennedy School Professor and the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Senior Lecturer in Public Policy and Public Finance.  This week they talk about the true financial costs of war, which according to her research are woefully understated, and neglect to account for taking care of veterans future needs.

Dr. David Shulkin and Executive Director Lou Celli sit down with Cerner Senior Vice President & General Manager Brian Sandager to talk about the electronic health record modernization project.  What's going well, what didn't go well, and how they plan to fix it going forward.