U.S. VA SUPPORTS WORLD AIDS DAY

Photo:  U.S. Naval Hospital Ship Mercy.  Credit:  U.S. Navy

FROM: U.S. VETERANS ADMINISTRATION

December 1 is World AIDS Day
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recently released its recommendations that all Americans ages 15 to 65 should be tested for HIV at least once in their lifetime.

VA is ahead of the curve and has recommended routine HIV testing for all Veterans since 2009. VA policy is to test every Veteran at least once in their lifetime.

Currently, over 1.2 million Veterans, representing 20 percent of Veterans in care, have a documented HIV test in their electronic medical record. Routine HIV screening allows for care for HIV positive Veterans and reduces the potential for the virus to be transmitted to others.

VA’s Office of Public Health is encouraging VA staff to offer every Veteran an HIV test. Working together, we can create an AIDS-free generation!

To reinforce the importance of World AIDS Day, VA is issuing a unique and comprehensive HIV Prevention Manual, which is a compilation of VA policies and strategies to address primary and secondary HIV prevention.

Designed as a tool for front-line health care providers, it is an extremely valuable resource.

On World AIDS Day, VA joins the AIDS community in its "Facing AIDS" initiative, a campaign to help reduce stigma and promote HIV testing by putting a face to those with HIV and the people who support them.
"An estimated 1.2 million Americans are living with HIV, and yet one out of five doesn’t know it," according to Dr. Maggie Czarnogorski, Deputy Director of VA’s HIV, Hepatitis, and Public Health Pathogen Program. "World AIDS Day is an opportunity to take action. VA is the largest provider of care to those living with HIV/AIDS in the United States. By diagnosing HIV infection as soon as possible, Veterans can receive excellent care and remain healthy for many years to come."

Join VA in recognizing World AIDS Day. Say yes to the test!

 

VA ANNOUNCES ALMOST ALL AGENT ORANGE CLAIMS HAVE BEEN PROCESSED

Photo:  Huey-Helicopter Spraying Agent Orange in Vietnam.   Credit:  U.S. Department of Defense.

FROM:  U.S. VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
VA Nearly Done With Agent Orange Claims
June 19, 2012 by Alex Horton
About two years ago, Secretary Shinseki made the decision to award presumptions of service connection to certain diseases that may have been caused by exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. That decision added nearly a quarter of a million claims to an already stressed backlog, but it was a long overdue victory for Vietnam Vets and their families who waited too long for action.

Today, VA announced that nearly all of the 230,000 claims for Agent Orange presumption for diseases including ischemic heart disease, hairy cell and other chronic B-cell leukemias, and Parkinson’s disease have been processed, which has put $3.6 billion into the hands of Vietnam Vets and their survivors. The most experienced raters, about 36 percent of all employees who handle claims, were put on these claims to get the claims finished as soon as possible.

Now that nearly all Agent Orange presumption claims have been completed, the 1,200 claims workers diverted to this unprecedented action will return to normal duties. This will surely help tackle the backlog, which significantly grown as Veterans return from Iraq and Afghanistan and file more complex claims at a higher rate than ever before (45 percent of new Veterans submit claims after service). VA completed one million claims in each of the last two years, an unprecedented number, but the amount of claims submitted outpaced those numbers.

VA has put together a transformation plan that emphasizes technology and new processes to finish claims faster and more accurately. The Veterans Benefits Management System is on its way to 16 regional offices this year, and will be found at 56 regional offices by the end of next year.

Veterans who may qualify for Agent Orange presumption include those who were exposed based on duty or visitation in Vietnam or on its inland waterways between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975; exposed along the demilitarized zone in Korea between April 1, 1968, and August 31, 1971; or exposed due to herbicide tests and storage at military bases within and outside of the United States. Check out the Agent Orange Fast Track web site if you think you may be affected by the diseases listed above as a result of Agent Orange exposure.

LAST DAY IN THE MARINE CORP

FROM:  VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
“How am I Going to Top That?”April 30, 2012 by Bryan Escobedo
I remember the feeling of sadness as I drove out of the front gate of Camp Lejune on my last day in the Marine Corps. I thought to myself, “How am I going to top that?” I was a Sergeant, a squad leader, and I had a memory full of epic adventures.

Leading Marines and working together for the common good is what I would miss most, along with the unlimited access to explosives. Luckily, that inner fire found a new home in The Mission Continues. It gave me an opportunity to direct all my passion, military leadership, along with every residual ounce of ‘Oorah,’ and redirect it into a new mission: inspiring positive change in my community through service as a Mission Continues fellow.
My personal mission was to tackle unemployment in the Greater Houston Area among my fellow veterans, which I have been very successful with so far. Then I got a phone call. The staff asked me if I would like to be on the Colbert Report, to which I replied…”yyAAAiiyah..” along with other indistinguishable sounds of excitement.

Turns out, the Colbert Report was doing a piece on the focus of my fellowship: veteran unemployment. What ensued was an experience of a lifetime! I remember waking up to an anxiety attack from utter excitement! I felt like I won the lottery, and it was thanks to The Mission Continues.

My wife and I got to meet Stephen Colbert, all of his wonderful staff, and First Lady Michelle Obama! They flew us out to New York, put us up in a nice hotel in Time Square, and paid us for our time on the show. We were overwhelmed by bountiful generosity. My wife and I are both fans of the show, so it really was a dream come true.
Walking into the studio was surreal. It was decorated with all sorts of funky art and hilarious pictures. Everyone who worked there was jovial, amicable and genuinely enthusiastic. Stephen was the nicest guy on and off camera, and he really loves the troops. He even went to Iraq in 2009 to entertain the troops. He just oozed funny constantly. Stephen Colbert is a guy I’d have a beer with any time….or a glass of wine with Michelle Obama, who we also got to meet.

She had a presence of elegance and kindness, as well as a warm motherly hug. I was at a loss for words when I met the First Lady. I didn’t know whether or not to call her First, Firsty, Michelle, Mrs. Obama, or Mi’lady, so I just reverted back to my military training and just called her ma’am. Nevertheless, I thanked her wholeheartedly for her veteran hiring initiative. She makes my job of getting vets back to work easy.

All I planned on doing was working for my veteran community, but I have gotten much more out of my fellowship than that. The rewards of working with my community show in the number of veterans hired, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. Doing good for my fellow man, and my brothers and sisters in arms is the most potent sense of satisfaction I have ever felt. My fellowship with The Mission Continues has reawakened my passion for leadership through service, and a love for my community. I’ll never be the same, and I’m just getting started.

Bryan Escobedo served in the United States Marine Corps and is currently completing a Mission Continues Fellowship at Lonestar Veterans Association in Houston, Texas.