IAVA | March 3, 2021
IAVA Weekly SITREP
As the leading voice for the post-9/11 community, IAVA continues to create awareness on issues and topics impacting our community. Below are articles and news sources from the past week:
Thursday, March 4
VETERAN NEWS COVERAGE
Stars and Stripes: Group of House lawmakers fights for greater access to service dogs for veterans with PTSD
By Sarah Cammarata
A group of House lawmakers are reigniting calls to expand access to service dogs for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder amid a growing number of studies that show the treatment works. Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., on Wednesday reintroduced the Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers Act that would create a $10 million grant program led by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The bill proposes qualified nonprofit organizations receive a stipend worth $25,000 per veteran to pair that person with a service dog.
By Halley Bondy
After her 8-year tour in the Navy ended in 2002, U.S. Navy Corpsman Stephanie Gattas founded the Pink Berets in 2015 in her home state, Texas. The nonprofit offers therapeutic services and support to women vets across the country who suffer from PTSD, military sexual trauma, combat trauma stress and more. The Pink Berets offers immersive therapy programs including professional equine therapy, culinary art therapy, yoga and outdoor excursions in Texas. All services are free of charge and tailored to the individual.
CNN: The veterans who need Congress to act in 2021
By Stephen F. Lynch, Mark Green, Richard Blumenthal and Tammy Baldwin
As members of Congress, we all share a deep respect for our men and women in uniform, as well as a collective responsibility to ensure that our veterans are appropriately cared for upon their return home. But, from Agent Orange in Vietnam to burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan, generations of American soldiers have returned home from the battlefield, only to discover that they were exposed to dangerous and toxic hazards overseas.
Military Times: VA’s next medical challenge: catching up on millions of missed veterans’ appointments
By Leo Shane III
Veterans Affairs officials still have millions of coronavirus vaccines to distribute in coming months, but they are already warily eyeing the next massive medical challenge to follow: making up millions of medical appointments for veterans who have put off routine and specialty care because of virus concerns.
Daily Beast: Deported Veterans to Biden: Bring us Home!
By Jennifer Martinez-Medina
Veterans without U.S. citizenship are therefore acutely susceptible to deportation. The American Civil Liberties Union suggests that many veterans are deported as a result of criminal convictions that stem from PTSD symptoms. Intimate-partner violence and drug convictions are common crimes.
ABC 12: Shiawassee County veterans affairs workers help 5,000 with life’s needs
By Mark Bullion
Shiawassee County is home to approximately 5,000 U.S. veterans from all branches of the military. That means the county helps a lot of people who have fought for our freedom with a lot of needs. The director of the Shiawassee County Veterans Affairs Department said his staff play a vital role in the community. The Shiawassee County Department of Veterans Affairs and Services is a small office tasked with big needs from thousands of veterans across the county.
Wednesday, March 3
VETERAN NEWS COVERAGE
Military.com: Lies They Tell Transitioning Veterans: Helping Fellow Veterans
By Peter A. Gudmundsson
A difficult aspect of the transition to civilian life is the feeling of being alone. Military life is many things both good and bad but little of merit is accomplished without the collective effort of teams of all sizes. The job search process, however, is profoundly lonely. Candidly, success or failure in the job search is indeed primarily the result of individual focus, effort, and luck. But the veteran job seeker is not alone and the many citizens who seek opportunities to assist are proof of this support and sea of goodwill. Good intentions are not enough, though, and some well-intentioned support efforts can actually be counterproductive.
The Guardian: US militia group draws members from military and police, website leak shows
By Jason Wilson
A Guardian investigation of a website leak from the American Patriots Three Percent shows the anti-government militia group have recruited a network across the United States that includes current and former military members, police and border patrol agents.
Connecting Vets: Senators urge VA to take ‘decisive action’ for 160,000 veterans with Agent Orange-linked hypertension
By Abbie Bennett
Senators are once again urging Department of Veterans Affairs leaders to expand care and benefits to thousands more veterans ill from Agent Orange exposure. This time, for veterans with high blood pressure linked to the toxic herbicide.
Connecting Vets: Major report with ‘urgent’ data on veteran homelessness missing, lawmakers say
By Abbie Bennett
A key annual report on veteran homelessness was never released last year, and now lawmakers want to know why the “urgent” data when it may be more important than ever before.
Military.com: Pentagon Eyes Plan to Intensify Social Media Screening in Military Background Investigations
By Stephen Losey
The Pentagon is looking for a new way to screen social media as part of its background check process, in an effort to prevent extremist behavior in the ranks.
The Wall Street Journal: Security, Defense Officials to Face More Questioning on Capitol Riot Failures
By Rachael Levy
Security and defense officials will testify Wednesday before two Senate committees about their preparedness for the Jan. 6 mob attack on Capitol Hill. The hearing takes place amid heightened security due to concerns that extremists could gather on Thursday. Top officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security’s intelligence branch, the Defense Department and Washington’s National Guard all are scheduled to speak before bipartisan Senate committees probing security failures before and during the Capitol riot.
Tuesday, March 2
IAVA NEWS COVERAGE
Washington Examiner: Veterans groups hope Beau Biden’s death will lead president to help ailing post-9/11 veterans
By Abraham Mahshie
In his first 10 days as president, Joe Biden visited wounded service members at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The visit was more than a somber return to the place where his son, Beau, died from a rare brain cancer in 2015. It was a sign to ailing veterans and advocacy groups that the president might deliver the care post-9/11 veterans have struggled for decades to get. Tom Porter of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America believes Biden is on board and that the burden of proof will finally be lifted for post-9/11 veterans.
VETERAN NEWS COVERAGE
PBS: 4 veterans issues House leaders want to tackle in the new Congress
By Ali Rogen
Chairman Mark Takano, D-Calif., and ranking member Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., said they were looking forward to working with newly confirmed VA Secretary Denis McDonough on issues including the treatment of women veterans, the vulnerability of veterans in cyberspace, and the way VA health facilities, especially state veterans’ homes, have handled COVID-19.
News Medical Life Sciences: Traumatic childhood and combat experiences associated with veterans’ suicidal thoughts
The rate of suicide among post-9/11 military veterans has been rising for nearly a decade. While there are a number of factors associated with suicide, veterans have unique experiences that may contribute to them thinking about killing themselves. A recent study of nearly 10,000 post-9/11 veterans sought to determine if traumatic childhood and combat experiences were associated with suicidal thinking.
Stars and Stripes: VA seeing no difference in coronavirus vaccine reluctance based on race
By Nikki Wentling
Black veterans who are eligible for coronavirus vaccines are accepting them at rates similar to veterans of other races, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. The department is working to track vaccine hesitancy as it works to vaccinate millions of veterans across the country. The data doesn’t show more reluctance for the vaccine among Black veterans — unlike the overall Black population in America.
The Chicago Tribune: After COVID-19 killed 36 at LaSalle VA home, GOP lawmaker wants state health officials to jump more quickly on outbreaks
By Dan Petrella
Illinois public health officials would be required to visit state-run veterans homes almost immediately upon learning of an infectious disease outbreak under legislation introduced by a Republican state senator whose district includes the home where 36 veterans died in a coronavirus outbreak. Republicans have repeatedly criticized Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s health department for taking more than 10 days to visit the LaSalle Veterans Home after the deadly COVID-19 outbreak began in early November.
ABC News: US announces $125 million defense aid package for Ukraine
The Pentagon on Monday announced a $125 million military aid package for Ukraine, including two armed patrol boats to help the country defend its territorial waters. The remaining $150 million in military aid approved by Congress for the 2021 budget year will not be provided until the departments of State and Defense are in position to certify to Congress that Ukraine has made “sufficient progress on key defense reforms this year,” the Pentagon said.
McClatchy DC Bureau: Supreme Court hints it may take case of state employees fired for military deployment
By Tara Copp
The U.S. Supreme Court has asked the U.S. solicitor general to weigh in on the case of a Texas state trooper who was fired from his job after he came home from a military deployment in Iraq too ill to patrol, in a lawsuit that could determine whether federal protections for service members apply to state employees. He was among more than 200,000 other service members who served near burn pits during war operations in the Middle East and have reported respiratory illnesses, cancers and other chronic illnesses.
WRBL: Veterans urge South Carolina lawmakers to pass medical marijuana bill
By Elisia Alonso
State and local groups supporting the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act say medical marijuana can save veteran lives. Right now the bill is in the hands of the state and some veterans are urging lawmakers to pass it. “The beauty of cannabis is that it’s rapid on-set and it’s rapid alleviation of how survivors of PTSD call pain. That pain is all encompassing,” said Don Howell, U.S. Navy veteran and registered nurse.
Monday, March 1
VETERAN NEWS COVERAGE
The Street: Now There’s Free Help for Military and Veteran Caregivers
By Jeanette Pavini
For anyone that oversees the care of a family member, they know all too well the daily challenges one can face. In an effort to help veterans and military family caregivers, AARP and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation (EDF) announced the new Respite Relief Program for Military and Veteran Caregivers will be going nationwide this year. This no-cost program offers family caregivers access to short-term, free assistance to help with the care of wounded, ill or injured veterans or service members at home.
Benzinga: Veterans Alternative Receives Grant Award from Disabled Veterans National Foundation
Veterans Alternative is honored to announce it has received a grant from the Disabled Veterans National Foundation (DVNF) for $14,000 which will provide funding for additional Warriors to receive sessions of Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). ART is an evidence-based therapy shown to achieve benefits more rapidly than traditional therapies, with positive results seen in 1-5 sessions. The therapy works directly to reprogram the way distressing memories and images are stored in the brain, so they no longer trigger strong physical and emotional reactions.
AP: US Army crowdsources ideas to combat sexual assault crisis
By Sarah Blake Morgan
Sgt. Taylor Knueven always knew sexual assault and harassment plagued the U.S. Army. But the combat medic’s own assault early last year opened her eyes to the broken system surrounding one of the military’s most infamous problems.
Earlier this week, Knueven and six other soldiers went before a panel in the 18th Airborne Corps headquarters at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to present ideas on how the Army can revamp the way it deals with sexual assault and harassment.
*Also published in The Washington Post, Yahoo, Fox News
Newsweek: Sexual Assault in the Military is Unacceptable. Here’s How to Fix it [Opinion]
By Matthew Chinman AND Joie Acosta
Despite some steps taken by the Department of Defense (DoD), sexual assault and harassment prevention within the services and at individual installations could be substantially improved. The services could address the problem more systematically and comprehensively than responding to the latest high profile case like Fort Hood, in which multiple leaders were relieved of duty after private first class Vanessa Guillen was sexually harassed and later murdered. While the steps taken at Fort Hood were important efforts in a particularly difficult environment, they alone are not sufficient to address the overall problem.
By Jim Sciutto and Zachary Cohen
A review of US Capitol security in the wake of the January 6 insurrection is set to recommend a series of sweeping changes next week intended to better protect lawmakers while they are in Washington, DC, and at home, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the findings.
Military.com: Marines, Infantry Most Highly Represented Among Veterans Arrested After Capitol Riot
By Gina Harkins and Hope Hodge Seck
Like Webster, many veterans accused of participating in the mob — which has led to federal charges against more than 250 people, congressional hearings, and the second impeachment trial of President Donald Trump — have ties to the Marine Corps. That’s despite the service being the Defense Department’s smallest branch, with the exception of the Space Force, which was created in 2019. More than 40% of the 32 veterans arrested after the Capitol riot are affiliated with the Marines. Thirteen of them served in the Marine Corps, according to service records, and one shipped off to boot camp but was separated mid-training.
Military.com: Former VA Nurse Gets 40 Months in Prison for Stealing Morphine from Dying Veterans
By Hope Hodge Seck
A former nurse at a Massachusetts Department of Veterans Affairs hospital was sentenced to nearly three-and-a-half years in prison for swiping doses of morphine intended for veterans in hospice care and using them on herself.
The Washington Post: How mental health is colliding with COVID-19 for veterans
By Marina Affo
For nearly a year, most of Delaware has been living in a state of isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic – but veterans already knew that plight all too well.
Friday, February 26
IAVA NEWS COVERAGE
Connecting Vets: ‘Cases are dramatically dropping:’ Veterans groups work to distribute coronavirus vaccines
By Julia LeDoux
The recently formed Veterans Coalition on Vaccination took to Facebook Live on Wednesday to discuss COVID-19 vaccines and how they are working to get the shots in the arms of as many Americans as possible. Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America hosted the event with Team Rubicon and Dr. Kavita Patel.
*Also published in MSN
VETERAN NEWS COVERAGE
Military.com: See Iraq Veteran Drama ‘Cherry’ for Free, Then Watch a Panel Discussion About PTSD
By James Barber
Team Red, White and Blue, an organization that aims to help veterans make the transition to civilian life, has joined with Apple TV+ to give you a chance to see the new movie “Cherry” for free and then watch a panel discussion where experts and veterans discuss the issues raised in the film.
Yahoo: Supreme Court weighs if federal job protections for military apply to states
By Tara Copp
The case of LeRoy Torres v. The Texas Department of Public Safety involves a 14-year Texas state trooper who deployed to Balad, Iraq, in 2007 with the Army National Guard. Torres says he spent a year there inhaling toxic air from the base’s massive open-air trash burning pits. He was among more than 200,000 other service members who served near burn pits during war operations in the Middle East and have reported respiratory illnesses, cancers and other chronic illnesses.
*Also published in Military.com
Military.com: Why So Many Veterans Find the Path to Extremism [Opinion]
A substantial number of former military members were involved in the Jan. 6 capitol riots and subsequently charged with related crimes; nearly 1 in 5 defendants served in the military, according to an early NPR tally. And Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt was killed by law enforcement after breaking through a barricade.
Cohen Veterans Network (CVN), a not-for-profit philanthropic organization that serves post-9/11 veterans and military families through a nationwide system of mental health clinics, has received a $260,000 grant from USAA to develop a diversity training program for clinicians in order to enhance care and improve mental health outcomes of diverse military populations.
*Also published in Benzinga
Military.com: Fort Bliss Commander Wants Leaders in Barracks More Often to Stop Sexual Harassment, Assault
By Matthew Cox
The commander of Fort Bliss, Texas, has launched a new effort to eliminate “corrosive” behaviors such as sexual assault and harassment, including a policy that requires unit leaders to have an increased presence in soldier barracks.
Yahoo: Wounded Warrior Project Applauds Reintroduction of Major Richard Star Act to Senate, House
The Major Richard Star Act of 2021, S. 334 / H.R.1282, is a major legislative priority for Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP), which supports its reintroduction in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. The act was formerly introduced during the 116th Congress as S. 3393 and H.R. 5995. Under current law, when service members retire from the military, they are entitled to retired pay from the Department of Defense (DoD) and disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) if they were injured during service. However, only military retirees with at least 20 years of service and a disability rating of at least 50% can collect both benefits simultaneously. The Major Richard Star Act would reform this policy to ensure 42,000 retirees whose military careers were cut short due to combat-related injuries can collect hundreds of dollars per month that they have been denied up until now.
VAntage Point: Secretary orders review of VA’s transgender policies
By Kayla Williams
Earlier this week, Secretary Denis McDonough ordered a review of VA policies to ensure that transgender Veterans and employees do not face discrimination on the basis of their gender identity and expression. Once completed, this review would put VA policies in line with Department of Defense policies and President Biden’s executive order ensuring that transgender Americans are treated with dignity and respect, and are able to live their lives free from worry that they could be discriminated against because of who they are.
The Marijuana Times: Veteran-led Cannabis Brand Raises Awareness for Research
By Bryan Buckley
Hemland Valley Growers Company (HVGC) is a San Diego-based cannabis brand committed to combatting the opioid and suicide epidemics among our nation’s veterans through the benefits of medical cannabis. Created by three Marine Raiders who served numerous combat tours, HVGC has first-hand awareness of the daily challenges that fellow veterans face as a result of their time spent fighting for our country. One hundred percent of the brand’s profits go towards funding research on the medical use of cannabis for veterans through their non-profit arm, Battle Brothers Foundation.
IAVA is the voice for the post-9/11 veteran generation. With over 400,000 veterans and allies nationwide, IAVA is the leader in non-partisan veteran advocacy and public awareness. We drive historic impacts for veterans and IAVA’s programs are second to none. Any veteran or family member in need can reach out to IAVA’s Quick Reaction Force at quickreactionforce.org or 855-91RAPID (855-917-2743) to be connected promptly with a veteran care manager who will assist. IAVA’s The Vote Hub is a free tool to register to vote and find polling information. IAVA’s membership is always growing. Join the movement at iava.org/membership.
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