VET2VET

Commonly known as the “Forever GI Bill,” the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017 picked up its nickname due to its main provision which eliminates the current 15-year use-it-or-lose-it constraint of the Post 9/11 GI Bill education benefit. This time limitation has been one of the sticking points of the Post 9/11 GI Bill with veterans and many veteran organizations since the implementation of the Post 9/11 GI Bill back in August 2009. While removing this “feature” is important, it’ just one benefit change of many contained within the unprecedented Forever GI Bill.

The Senate unanimously passed the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act. The bill intended to guarantee disability benefits to 90,000 veterans is now headed to the president's desk for a signature.

Blue Water Navy veterans receive their VA disability benefits for exposure to the cancer-causing toxin appeared to be finished. The Justice Department dropped its appeal of a federal court decision from earlier this year.

Procopio v. Wilkie reversed a 1997 VA decision to deny that so-called "Blue Water" veterans were exposed to Agent Orange while serving in the waters off Vietnam. The Procopio decision ruled that the VA should presume those sailors were exposed to the toxic chemical at some point during their service, and grant them the same benefits as other Vietnam veterans.

Months after the Federal Court of Appeals ruled in favor of thousands of Vietnam vets receiving healthcare coverage for illnesses related to Agent Orange, the secretary for the Department of Veteran Affairs issued a stay on pending claims for Blue Water Navy vets until January 2020.

After you have applied for VA service-connected disability compensation, you will eventually receive a phone call or a letter from the VA asking you to come to a Compensation and Pension exam (C&P exam). If you have several disabilities, you may be asked to report for several C&P exams. This is a routine request.

Commissary, Military Service Exchange, and MWR access extended to more Veterans.

New law provides eligible Veterans and Primary Family Caregivers with access to DoD and Coast Guard commissaries, exchanges, and morale, welfare, and recreation retail services.

Almost 1.4 million veterans live in households that participate in SNAP (formerly food stamps), CBPP analysis of data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey finds. In every state, thousands of low-income veterans use SNAP to help put food on the table. Florida has the largest number of veterans participating in SNAP (120,000), followed by California and Texas (97,000 apiece). In Oregon, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C., at least 10 percent of veterans live in households that received SNAP in the last year.

VA offers life insurance programs that provide financial security and peace of mind for service members, Veterans, and their families. These insurance programs have specific eligibility criteria, insurance terms, and application processes. But how do you know if you’re eligible, and how do you apply?

The United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims is a national court of record, established under Article I of the Constitution of the United States. The Court has exclusive jurisdiction to provide judicial review of final decisions by the Board of Veterans' Appeals, an entity within the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The CAVC has exclusive jurisdiction to review all decisions from the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA).  The US Court of Veterans Appeals views its jurisdiction very narrowly, at this time, and extends it only to "final BVA decisions".

Veterans and active duty military personnel suffering from trauma or mental health issues may be eligible for “military diversion” in lieu of jail time in California.

Military Diversion, established in January 2016, is a pretrial program for current or former members of any branch of the United States Military charged with misdemeanor crimes.  Regarding eligibility, the court must find that these defendants may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental illness as a result of their military service.  This is a collaborative program of the Probation Department, San Mateo County Superior Court, Private Defender Program, District Attorney's Office, Behavioral Health and Recovery Services, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.  Participants attend court review hearings and work towards successful completion of the program by completing counseling and/or treatment and full payment of victim restitution.  Upon successful completion, participants' charges are dismissed.  To date, there have been 15 individuals that graduated from the program.

This podcast will highlight  the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims struggle with when to reverse the [BVA]

We will argue that the CAVC should adopt this rule: Whenever a veteran highlights a reversible error in the BVA’s decision, the CAVC must reverse and order the benefits to be awarded, absent a showing by the Secretary that a remand is necessary. This rule follows the clear intent of Congress and properly applies the benefit of the doubt rule.

The Beneficiary Travel program provides eligible Veterans and other beneficiaries mileage reimbursement, common carrier (plane, train, bus, taxi, light rail etc.), or when medically indicated, "special mode" (ambulance, wheelchair van) transport for travel to and from VA health care, or VA authorized non-VA health care for which the Veteran is eligible.

Veterans may apply for travel reimbursement by completing VA Form 10-3542(Veteran/Beneficiary Claim for Reimbursement of Travel Expenses).