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IAVA Daily Brief 11.20.09
Posted by Michael Houston on November 19

 Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking?  Follow us on Twitter at @twitter.com/iavapressroom.

MUST READS

1) Gates orders full-spectrum Pentagon review of Fort Hood massacre 

On Thursday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said the Pentagon will conduct a department-wide review in the aftermath of the Fort Hood shooting, taking a broad look at the mental health of the force as well as at procedures for sharing intelligence and assessing personnel performance.  The process will begin with a 45-day review before launching a wider examination expected to be complete within four to six months. Included in the review will be the stress on caregivers, how to handle communications by servicemembers with suspected terrorist groups, on-base security and response procedures, pre- and post-deployment health assessments, periodic counseling sessions and how to handle "adverse servicemember information."

2) Senator Asks About Troops' Meds Use

In a podcast interview with Military.com, Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md), expressed concerns about the number of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan on antidepressants.   "The military appears to be using antidepressants at a very high rate," said Sen. Cardin during the interview.  Cardin also said people on such medications have to be supervised by medical personnel, but he is concerned that troops in combat, being on the move, may not be getting the proper attention.  Noting the rising suicide rate within the Army's Active Duty and reserve component, Cardin said, "The bottom line is we want to protect our troops. We want to protect our Soldiers and their families.

3) Troops' post-deployment questionnaires missing

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said Thursday that tens of thousands of questionnaires aimed at measuring the mental and physical health of returning combat troops can't be found.  As a result, the GAO said the military does not have reasonable assurances that the servicemembers got the opportunity to report their health problems on the forms, which give returning soldiers a chance to say if they'd like to see a counselor.  The military's policy is that military members must fill out the forms from three months to six months after they return home from war. The hope is after being home for a while, the member will recognize any problems and seek help.  President Obama recently signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that requires a face-to-face screening for every service member who returns from war - a top legislative priority for IAVA.

AFGHANISTAN

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said any new U.S. forces President Obama sends to Afghanistan could move into the country swiftly, despite logistical hassles that force almost all major deliveries of troops and supplies to go by air. After months of deliberations over U.S. forces in Afghanistan, a final decision is expected in the coming weeks. At a Pentagon news conference, Gates did not directly answer a question about whether the U.S. could hold out more troops as leverage toward reform of Afghanistan's government.

During the Wall Street Journal's CEO Council, Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, took questions Thursday on the need for a draft and what will need to happen for success in Afghanistan.  Click here to watch his interview.

A suicide bomber on a motorcycle detonated his explosives in a crowded area in southwest Afghanistan on Friday, killing 17 people, including a senior police official, a provincial governor said. A police chief said the target of the attack in the provincial capital Farah City was the police official, who was killed along with two of his bodyguards. A Taliban spokesman denied the group had carried out the attack.

IRAQ

Iraqi lawmakers will vote Saturday on how to break a deadlock over a key election law after Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi vetoed the legislation, causing a crisis that could delay a national vote scheduled for January.  Iraq's parliament is now looking at two options - sending the same law back to the three-member presidency council, where it is likely to be vetoed again - or amending the law to address the concerns of the vice president. Under the constitution, parliament can override a second veto with a three-fifths majority, thereby passing a law seen as vital to Iraq's ability to move toward full sovereignty and political stability after years of bloodshed.

On Friday, a top aide to Iraq's Shiite spiritual leader Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, urged the country's fractious political blocs to solve the crisis over the key election law.  He told worshippers during his regular Friday sermon that failure to break the deadlock could lead to a "constitutional vacuum" that would create "great dangers for Iraq."

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Robert Gates says warnings that this issue could push back Iraqi elections scheduled for January isn't affecting his plans for a troop withdrawal now.  On Thursday, Gates told a Pentagon news conference that plans are going ahead for a large U.S. pullout next spring.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

The military is using new pre-deployment studies to determine which troops may be more prone to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) than others. Select Marine and Army units are undergoing a battery of physical and mental tests before deployment including genetic testing, brain imaging and stress exams. They are followed in war zones and upon return.  A top military doctor said the purpose of studying PTSD triggers is not to bar someone from service. Rather, if it turns out that something can be done to prevent it, those vulnerable could get special training to reduce their risk, he said.

Soldiers who chose not to re-enlist or extend when their units are getting ready to deploy downrange will be getting out of the Army a little earlier than they planned, according to the Enlisted Involuntary Early Separation Program, released by the Army this week.  Soldiers who have fewer than 180 days left on their enlistment will be given a choice when their units deploy: They will be offered incentives to complete the deployment or be involuntarily separated up to 90 days prior to the end of their enlistment.  The program also confirms that the Army will end its stop-loss program to all active-duty units who are deploying downrange beginning January 1.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

The Veterans Caregiver and Omnibus Health Benefits Act of 2009 was unanimously passed by the Senate yesterday, legislation that had been held for weeks by Sen. Tom Coburn, in an effort to persuade senators to pay for the new spending by making cuts in other programs.  The new legislation would provide monthly stipends and medical benefits, among other benefits, to family members who stay home to care for severely injured veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

An amendment by Senator John Ensign was included in a VA appropriations bill that passed the Senate Wednesday, which will expand access for Gold Star parents to Veterans Affairs Nursing Homes.  The amendment will provide Gold Star parents with access to VA Nursing Homes, even if they have not lost all of their children in combat. Currently, Gold Star parents may receive care in a VA home only if they have lost all of their children in service to our country.

According to a report released Thursday by the Government Accountability Office, private companies fraudulently collected at least $100 million in federal contracts from a $4 billion government program designated for disabled military veterans who run small businesses. The Small Business Administration failed to check if companies were eligible for the no-bid contracts for veterans with service-related injuries, funneling millions of dollars in to companies ineligible for the funding from the program.

CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE

THE SENATE

The Senate will convene at 9:45 a.m.

SENATE FLOOR ACTIVITY of INTEREST

No issues today

COMMITTEE HEARINGS of INTEREST

No issues today

FUTURE COMMITTEE HEARINGS of INTEREST

None at this time

THE HOUSE of REPRESENTATIVES



The House is not in Session

HOUSE FLOOR ACTIVITY of INTEREST

No issues today

HOUSE COMMITTEE HEARINGS of INTEREST



No issues today

FUTURE HOUSE COMMITTEE HEARINGS of INTEREST



December 2, 2009 Veterans’ Affairs Committee Hearing: VA Health Care Funding: Appropriations to Programs 10:00 a.m.; 334 Cannon HOB

December 3, 2009 Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity Roundtable 1:00 p.m.; 334 Cannon HOB

A wide-range of views, positions, and publications are represented in these articles. These views, positions and publications are not endorsed by nor do they necessarily represent the views of IAVA.

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