Category Archives: National Legislative Updates

Legislative Update 29 January 2016: Military Family Benefits Changing

We have 1 Action Item at Issue 2 today.

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see MILITARY FAMILY BENEFITS CHANGING. DoD makes big announcement. Maternity leave and childcare changes coming. (See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 2. we see MAIL YOUR LETTERS. MOAA makes it easy for you to contact Congress. See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see COMMISSION URGES TOTAL FORCE APPROACH FOR FUTURE ARMY. Blue ribbon panel aims to balance needs of active, reserve components. The National Commission on the Future of the Army offers solutions for contentious issues like budget, equipment, and mission disagreements – and offers a grim warning on potential cuts to troop levels. (See Issue 3 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 4. we see VETERANS TO SAVE MONEY ON VA PRESCRIPTIONS. Tiered Rx system – sound familiar?. VA proposes a new tiered drug copay system to put money back in veterans’ pockets. (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 5. we see MOAA ADVISORY COUNCIL VISITS CAPITOL HILL. Staffers meet with military spouses. (See Issue 5 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

ISSUES

Issue 1. MILITARY FAMILY BENEFITS CHANGING

January 29, 2016

Two months after his first wave of changes, Defense Secretary Ash Carter’s Force of the Future Initiative aims to make military service more family friendly.

Maternity and paternity leave, childcare services, and reproductive medical services are among changing benefits.

Active duty female members of all services will now have 12 weeks of paid maternity leave. Last year, the Navy began authorizing 18 weeks of paid maternity leave, while the Army and Air Force offered only 6 weeks.

Carter’s new policy, aimed at providing consistency among the services, will split the difference – increasing 6 weeks for the Air Force and Army, while cutting 6 weeks from the Navy and Marine Corps programs. Carter also increased paternity leave to 14 days of non-continuous leave from the previous 10.

Currently, three weeks of adoptive leave is granted to one parent of a dual military couple. DoD is seeking congressional approval to provide two weeks of leave for the other parent.

Childcare Development Center (CDC) operation hours will be extended to overlap typical work shifts and accommodate military work schedules. CDCs will be required to provide a minimum of 14 hours of continuous coverage.

DoD will also expand reproductive services to active duty servicemembers. Egg and sperm cryopreservation will be available through a pilot program within TRICARE. These are important steps for many wounded warriors, male and female.

The stress of military service on families is cited as one of the biggest reasons servicemembers leave the military. Secretary Carter’s latest announcement aims to help retain the best and the brightest by instituting uniform, family-friendly policies.

Issue 2. MAIL YOUR LETTERS

MOAA makes it easy for you to contact Congress

The February Military Officer Magazine includes tear-out letters pre-addressed to leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.

The letters urge these leaders to preserve what works about military health care and focus on fixing what’s not working. They also include several important principles that should be followed in any military health care reform effort.
.Please take time to sign, stamp, and mail these letters as soon as you can.

(For non-MOAA members, you can click on MAIL YOUR LETTERS here or above to display (edit if desired), print, sign, and mail the 4 letters. GF)

Issue 3. COMMISSION URGES TOTAL FORCE APPROACH FOR FUTURE ARMY

January 29, 2016

The National Commission on the Future of the Army (NCFA) announced recommendations this week that would balance missions and resources between the Army’s Regular and Reserve components.

The recommendations offer a compromise that could ease past budget, equipment, and mission disagreements between the Army components.

But for its recommendations to succeed, Commissioners said the Defense Department and the services must receive relief from the sequestration law that was the source of most of the budget differences of the past.

Those tensions led Congress to create the 9-person commission, chaired by General Carter F. Ham, USA (Ret). Its charge was to conduct a comprehensive study of the roles, structure, and size of the Army to:

-Assess the size and force mixture of the active component of the Army and the reserve components of the Army.

-Recommend any changes to the structure and missions of the Army in light of anticipated mission requirements and future resources.

-Assess an Army proposal to transfer AH-64 Apache helicopters from Army National Guard to the Regular Army.

The Commission report offers 63 specific recommendations for action, including:

-An Army of 980,000 is the minimally sufficient force to meet current and anticipated missions at an acceptable level of national risk.

-A Regular Army of 450,000, an Army National Guard of 335,000 and an Army Reserve of 195,000 represent the right mix of forces and the absolute minimum personnel levels to meet America’s national security objectives

-.A compromise that would maintain 24 manned Apache helicopter battalions-20 in the Regular army and four in the Army National Guard – rejecting the original Army proposal to take all of the AH-64 Apaches away from the Guard. The Commission goal is to achieve one Army that works and trains together in peacetime and fights together in war.

-The All-Volunteer Force is a national treasure that must be sustained vs. going to a conscription model.

-Development of a true “one Army” Total Army culture is essential.

-Funding at the president’s FY16 level provides the minimum resources necessary to meet mission requirements at acceptable risk.

–Army education infrastructure and its recruiting and marketing must be streamlined and consolidated.

So far, the Commission recommendations have been well received by both the Active component and the Army Guard. It remains to be determined whether all the recommendations will be adopted by the Army. But MOAA is pleased at the Commission’s sincere efforts to understand and accommodate the mission and budget needs of the Total Army.

Issue 4. VETERANS TO SAVE MONEY ON VA PRESCRIPTIONS

. January 29, 2016

Under new rules proposed earlier this month by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), most veterans can expect to see $1 – $4 in savings per prescription for outpatient medications, starting next year.

The new regulations will change the VA’s drug payment schedule for veterans with non-service connected conditions in priority groups 2 through 8, to a three-tiered system, similar to the TRICARE pharmacy program.

Under the current system, these veterans pay a flat fee of $8 – $9 per medication for a 30-day supply, with copayments capped at $960 per year.

Starting in 2017, the VA will implement a three-tier copayment system, capping the annual maximum for copayments at $700:

Tier Prescription Drug Type Copay (30 Day Supply)

1 Preferred Generic Drugs $5

2 Non-Preferred Generics And Over-The-Counter $8

3 Brand Name $11

Because many medications are generics, most veterans should see the new system reduce their out-of-pocket costs.

Those with service-connected conditions in priority group one – veterans with disability ratings of 50 percent or more or unemployable – will still be exempt from paying copays under the new rule.VA wants to encourage veterans to use one pharmacy instead of shopping around at multiple pharmacies to fill medications. By using one pharmacy at lower drug costs, VA anticipates veterans will be more likely to take the medications they’re prescribed. VA, in turn, will be able to collect better patient data and better manage patient health –

Issue 5. MOAA ADVISORY COUNCIL VISITS CAPITOL HILL.

Staffers meet with military spouses

The House Armed Services staff gives the MOAA Spouse Council a unique peak into the legislative process

(Click on MOAA ADVISORY COUNCIL VISITS CAPITOL HILL. here or above for the details. GF)

That’s it for today- Thanks for your help!

February 2016 newsletter posted

Check out our “Newsletter” tab at the top. You can find our current and past issues there. February 2016 is now posted.

Legislative Update 22 January 2016: COLA Dips As Energy Prices Dive

We have no Action Items today.

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see COLA DIPS AS ENERGY PRICES DIVE. Consumer Price Index continues to fall amid energy crash, Relief at the gas pump means the Consumer Price Index fell sharply again in December. (See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 2. we see WHAT’S IN STORE FOR 2016? The clock starts now, With two weeks to go until the president releases his proposed budget, MOAA looks ahead to when key events will occur. (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see STOLEN VALOR MAKES HEADLINES AGAIN. Overturned conviction rankles veterans, Freedom of speech protects liars too, unfortunately.. (See Issue 3 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

ISSUES

Issue 1. COLA DIPS AS ENERGY PRICES DIVE

A deeper dive into red.

Unfortunately, it looks like the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is following the trend of the past few years by dropping significantly at the beginning of the fiscal year. In order for a positive gain next year, COLA has to make pretty significant gains.

The December CPI is 230.791, declining to 1.5 percent below the FY 2014 COLA baseline. Because there was not a positive COLA in FY 2015, the FY 2014 baseline is used.

The CPI for January 2016 is scheduled to be released on February 19, 2016.

Note: Military retiree COLA is calculated based on the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), not the overall CPI. Monthly changes in the index may differ from national figures reported elsewhere.

(Click on Retired Pay vs Active Duty Pay Adjustments here or above for the details. GF)

Issue 2. WHAT’S IN STORE FOR 2016? Defense Bill Budget Timeline

January 22, 2016

The White House announced that the president’s budget request will be delivered to Congress on Feb 9. Once the budget request is received, the ball gets rolling on the defense bill.

Below is MOAA’s estimated timeline of the FY 2017 defense bill process:

Feb 9: The president submits his annual budget proposal to Congress. MOAA expects to see another military pay raise cap, more Basic Housing Allowance cuts, and proposals to significantly overhaul military health care.

MOAA will begin analyzing the impact of the proposals on currently serving and retired members and families and begin preparing fact sheets and brochures to articulate MOAA’s positions to Congress and the public.

Late March: Six weeks after the president delivers his budget to Congress, congressional committees are required to submit their “views and estimates” of spending and revenues within their respective jurisdictions to the House and Senate Budget Committees. In essence, these represent requests for the budget levels needed to provide for the nation’s defense.

April 11-13: In the middle of the defense bill process, MOAA will invite Chapter and Council leaders from across the country to Storm the Hill to meet with their elected officials on military personnel and benefits issues.

April – May: The House and Senate Armed Services Committees are expected to begin work drafting their respective versions of the FY 2017 defense bill.

May – June: Full House and Senate pass their respective versions of the defense bill.

July – October: House and Senate negotiators work to resolve differences between their respective versions.

July-August: MOAA provides its members detailed information to use when visiting their elected officials as they return home to do district work during the August recess.

October-December: Final defense bill passed by House and Senate and becomes law.

MOAA will periodically send you action alerts urging you to send your elected officials MOAA-suggested messages. We will need your help contacting Congress and urging them to do the right thing by servicemembers and their families.

Specifically, the February issue of Military Officer Magazine, which you’ll receive soon, contains tear-out letters we hope you’ll sign, stamp and mail to elected officials.

Issue 3. STOLEN VALOR MAKES HEADLINES AGAIN

January 22, 2016

Earlier this month a federal appeals court overturned the 2007 conviction of a veteran found guilty of violating the Stolen Valor Act for wearing several unearned military medals.

Many MOAA members have asked where we stand on the issue.

MOAA worked with Congress in 2006 to pass the original Stolen Valor Act. The legislation made it a federal misdemeanor to lie about receiving military awards and decorations.

In 2012, the Supreme Court heard a case to determine whether the law violated the First Amendment. MOAA, along with over 20 other military and veterans service organizations, filed a petition with the court on the constitutionality of the law. MOAA believed this was “a case about theft, not freedom of expression.”

Despite MOAA’s and others’ efforts, the Supreme Court struck down the law as unconstitutional in a 6-3 decision. While such lies are reprehensible, the court ruled, they are protected speech under the Constitution.

In response to the decision, MOAA worked with Rep. Joe Heck (R-Nev.), now chair of the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee, to sponsor an updated version of the Stolen Valor Act. Senators Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) led the effort in the Senate.

The revised and more narrowly constructed legislation made it a crime to gain money, property, or other tangible benefits by fraudulently claiming to have received military awards or decorations.

MOAA felt the updated legislative language struck the proper balance between preventing unscrupulous gain from false statements while protecting the individual freedoms that generations of uniformed servicemembers have fought to preserve.

“By barring any profit from such misrepresentation, rather than criminalizing the false statement itself, the new legislation avoided the First Amendment problems cited in the Supreme Court’s decision,” said MOAA’s Director of Government Relations, Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret).

Congress quickly passed the legislation, and President Obama signed it into law in 2013. This version of the Stolen Valor Act is still valid.

In the recent court case, the individual’s original conviction was based on the 2006 law that has since been repealed and modified, so the federal court had no choice but to overturn the conviction.

That’s it for today- Thanks for your help!

Legislative Update 15 January 2016: Are the Commissaries Safe?

We have no Action Items today.

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see MOAA DEFENDS COMMISSARIES. Congress eyes commissary reform. (See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 2. we see ARE THE COMMISSARIES SAFE? Potential threats seem constant. MOAA’s Director of Government Relations, Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret), examines the viability of the commissary system in his January As I See It column. (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see HELP VA MEET THE NEEDS OF FEMALE VETERANS Your input matters. We’re raising the awareness for a new survey from VFW and would appreciate your participation. (If you are a female veteran, click on HELP VA MEET THE NEEDS OF FEMALE VETERANS here or above to complete the survey. If that doesn’t work, try clicking on HELP VA MEET THE NEEDS OF FEMALE VETERANS below. GF)

HELP VA MEET THE NEEDS OF FEMALE VETERANS

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

ISSUES

Issue 1. MOAA DEFENDS COMMISSARIES

January 15, 2016

On Wednesday, MOAA Deputy Director of Government Relations Brooke Goldberg testified before the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee regarding commissary reform.

The FY16 Defense Authorization Act specified any changes to the commissary system must maintain current levels of patron savings and satisfaction. Goldberg thanked subcommittee members for establishing these standards. She emphasized the commissary benefit is in the savings, and these are the right metrics to use in assessing any program changes.

Highlighting the compensation and retention value of the commissary, Goldberg told the subcommittee, “For an E-5 with 8 years of service and a family of four, grocery savings at the commissary are equivalent to a 9 percent pay raise.”

She went on to express concern about possible changes in the way savings are measured, noting that maintaining the same market basket measure is crucial to preserving the same savings patrons rely on.

Most of the legislators at the hearing appeared to agree with the witnesses. The value of the commissary benefit far outweighs the “hundredths of one percent of the military budget we can save [by cutting it],” said Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-N.J.).

While the necessity of commissaries overseas is not hard to see, last year the subsidy that helps pay the cost of transporting fresh produce to stores in Asia and the Pacific was cut. This resulted in a cost increase to patrons, so the price of a bag of romaine lettuce skyrocketed to more than $10 at the commissary in Guam. Goldberg said, “Those sent overseas at the pleasure of their government should not be stuck with the bill for shipping resources to their location.”

Multiple studies confirm the commissary is one of the military community’s most-valued benefits. It is a significant compensation, morale, and community factor for servicemembers and their families, enhancing military readiness no matter where they are asked to go.

Subcommittee leaders clearly agreed.

Chairman Joe Heck (R-Nev.) expressed his commitment to sustaining this important benefit. “If there’s not enough savings, people are going to walk,” he said.

Issue 2. ARE THE COMMISSARIES SAFE?

By: Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret)Director, Government RelationsAbout the Author

Strobridge, a native of Vermont, is a 1969 ROTC graduate from Syracuse University in Syracuse, N.Y. He was called to active duty in October 1969 and began his career as a Basic Military School training officer and commander and as a military personnel officer. He subsequently served as a compensation and legislation analyst at HQ U.S. Air Force and in the Office of the Secretary of Defense as director, Officer and Enlisted Personnel Management, with intervening assignments in Thailand and Germany.

His final assignment was as chief of the Entitlements Division at HQ U.S. Air Force, with policy responsibility for military compensation, retirement and survivor benefits, and all legislative matters affecting the military community. He is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College and National War College.

Strobridge retired from the Air Force in January 1994 to become MOAA’s deputy director for Government Relations. In 2001, he was appointed as director of Government Relations and elected as cochair of The Military Coalition.

He retired from MOAA in April 2013 but was recalled as Government Relations director in September 2015.

The FY 2016 Defense Budget proposed privatizing the military commissary system over several years. The Pentagon’s main goal was to eliminate the $1.3 billion annual DoD subsidy for the commissary system.

The House version of the FY 2016 Defense Authorization Bill didn’t include the proposed budget cut or the privatization concept.

But the Senate version did — cutting the FY 2016 commissary budget by $322 million and requiring DoD to submit two reports to Congress. The first, due by Feb. 1, was to be on the viability of privatizing the system. If viable, and validated by the Government Accountability Office, a second report was to provide a plan to do so.

The threat to this high-value benefit caused understandable uproar among military beneficiaries.

Multiple studies have concluded privatization inevitably would lead to significantly higher prices; lower patronage not only at commissaries but also at exchanges and other base facilities that benefit from commissary traffic; eventual closure of the commissaries; and seriously adverse effects on exchange revenues, which are needed to fund base gyms, libraries, and other morale, welfare, and recreation activities.

MOAA, The Military Coalition, and others worked hard to articulate these concerns to House and Senate leaders and generate grassroots input from commissary patrons.

In the end, the House and Senate compromised, and the final FY 2016 Defense Authorization Act:

reduced the FY 2016 commissary budget cut from $322 million to a far more manageable $30 million;
instead of a plan to privatize the system, required a DoD plan to make delivery of commissary and exchange benefits “budget neutral” (i.e., no cost to DoD) by the end of FY 2018, also to be validated by the GAO;
authorized DoD to conduct pilot programs to evaluate ways to achieve commissary/exchange budget neutrality; and
most important, specified that such initiatives must (a) maintain high levels of customer satisfaction, (b) provide high-quality products, and (c) sustain the current level of savings for customers.

MOAA and The Military Coalition supported these provisions, in full knowledge that making the program budget-neutral while still achieving the same levels of patron savings and satisfaction and product quality is functionally impossible.

Subsequently, the new deputy chief management officer for DoD acknowledged this reality. He also acknowledged previous DoD proposals were aimed at simply cutting the budget, regardless of the risk to the commissary program.

Further, he pledged that the department now has accepted the first priority must be maintaining the current level of benefit.

Rather than seeking any specific savings target, he said future initiatives would be aimed at seeking possible business-practice efficiencies that still would sustain the same benefit level, and DoD would accept whatever level of budget savings might be realized within that mandate.

Refreshing words, to be sure. But it’s not as if we’ve never heard them before.

During the George W. Bush administration, there were multiple Pentagon proposals to cut commissary funding in various ways. After being rebuffed multiple times, those officials also pledged not to do so again.

The reality is there have been dozens of proposals to curtail, privatize, or eliminate the commissary benefit going back more than 40 years.

Are commissaries finally safe?

Yes — but only until the next administration’s political appointees tasked to cut the defense budget start asking, as have so many of their predecessors, why the Pentagon is in the grocery business.

The answer they’ll get, as all of their predecessors ultimately were forced to acknowledge, is the commissary provides a crucial non-pay benefit whose cumulative compensation and retention value is greater than its cost to DoD.

As Brooke Goldberg, a MOAA deputy director of Government Relations, testified at a Jan. 13 House Armed Services Committee hearing, grocery savings at the commissary provide the equivalent of a 9-percent pay raise for an E-5 family of four with eight years of service. That’s a pretty big benefit bang for your commissary buck.

The commissary benefit, aside from some selected closures and changes in hours, is pretty much the same as it was 40 years ago, despite dozens of interim attacks.

It’s certain more attacks will come in the future.

But the odds are the compelling arguments in favor of the commissary benefit will continue to prevail over the arguments against it — as long as we stay vigilant and vocal.

That’s it for today- Thanks for your help!

Legislative Update 8 January 2016: New Year, New TRICARE Fees

We have no Action Items today.

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see TOP 10 IN 2016. Health care tops the list, Check out MOAA’s top legislative priorities for the year. (See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 2. we see NEW YEAR, NEW TRICARE FEES. Get ready for premium and prescription copay increases. (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see NEW MOAA PRESIDENT. MOAA gains new leader. Lt. Gen. Dana Atkins, USAF (Ret.), takes the reins as MOAA President. (Click on NEW MOAA PRESIDENThere or above for the details. GF)

At Issue 4. we see SPECIAL NEEDS TRUST UPDATE. Long-awaited details released, A Special Needs Trust option is now available for permanently disabled children receiving SBP (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

ISSUES

Issue 1. MOAA’s TOP 10 LEGISLATIVE GOALS FOR 2016

1. Ensure any TRICARE reform sustains top-quality care

Military health care recommendations from the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission have the potential to stimulate major changes to military health care programs. MOAA will strive to ensure the problems with TRICARE are addressed in a systemic manner, programs that are working well are sustained, and problem areas are addressed to improve care, coverage, and readiness.

2. Prevent disproportional TRICARE fee increases

A unique military health care plan is an essential offset to the arduous conditions in a military career. Any fee-adjustment formula must recognize that military beneficiaries prepay very large premiums for their lifetime coverage through decades of service and sacrifice, and the country must have a higher obligation to them than what corporate employers demonstrate for their employees. To that end, a percentage increase in military beneficiaries’ health care fees in any year should not exceed the percentage increase in their military compensation.

MOAA adamantly will resist proposals to make military health care programs more like those offered by civilian employers and that add thousands of dollars a year to military beneficiaries’ costs.

3. Sustain military pay comparability with the private sector

Congress worked to improve military pay after previous pay-raise caps caused retention problems. For 2016, the military pay raise was capped at 1.3 percent, 1 percentage point below the 2.3-percent private-sector pay growth, as measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index (ECI). This is the third consecutive year of capping military raises below the statutory ECI standard, and the president’s budget envisioned additional caps for six consecutive years. Past history with military pay-raise caps shows they continue until they hurt retention and readiness. MOAA strongly objects to further planned pay caps. This unwise process generated retention crises in the 1970s and ’90s. Sustaining pay comparability is essential to long-term retention and readiness.

4. Block erosion of compensation and commissary benefits

Protect against privatization, consolidation, reduction in services, or elimination efforts in commissary and exchange programs. Sustain funding support, and guard against diminution of this substantial benefit for active duty, reserve, and retired servicemembers and their families and survivors.

5. Protect military retirement/COLAs

Proposals to cap annual COLAs below inflation or to redefine and depress the Consumer Price Index for the purpose of geometrically depressing successive annual adjustments would break long-standing statutory commitments to them.

Accordingly, MOAA is gratified the FY 2016 NDAA repealed the final section of a COLA-reducing law that was enacted two years ago for future military retirees. Under the repealed law, future military retirees would have had their annual COLAs capped 1 percentage point below inflation until age 62.

MOAA was instrumental in repealing the COLA cap, with members sending more than 300,000 messages to Capitol Hill in just a few months.

MOAA will continue to exert every effort to preserve the congressional intent, as expressed in the House Armed Services Committee Print of Title 37, U.S. Code, “to provide every military retired member the same purchasing power of the retired pay to which he was entitled at the time of retirement [and ensure it is] not, at any time in the future … eroded by subsequent increases in consumer prices.”

6. Sustain wounded-warrior programs and expand caregiver support

A recent RAND Corp. study of caregivers found more than 1 out of 6 of our nation’s 5.5 million caregivers are caring for post-9/11 veterans. Nearly 40 percent of these caregivers are under the age of 30 and will remain in the role of caregiver for decades to come. We must do more to support these caregivers who are providing an estimated $3 billion a year in services to our wounded, ill, and injured servicemembers and veterans. Improvements to respite care, employment accommodations, and health care are a priority. Full-time caregivers of severely disabled veterans from conflicts prior to Sept. 11, 2001, must be included in Caregiver Act services, support, and respite care.

More must be done to ensure medical and benefit systems are providing continuity of care and coverage for wounded warriors of all services and components, including reasonable assistance, training, mental health and family-marital counseling, and compensation for their dependent and nondependent caregivers.

DoD and the VA have made progress toward increasing the number of behavioral health care providers, but timely access to qualified, appropriate mental health intervention and treatment remains difficult in many DoD and VA health care facilities. The shortage of mental health care providers results in increased referrals to civilian providers, many of whom have little knowledge or understanding of military culture and the unique needs of military families. Specialized training and military cultural-awareness programs should be expanded for community providers to improve efficiency when working with servicemembers and veterans and their families.

The health and well-being of the all-volunteer force has never been more critical. DoD and the VA must have viable and effective systems of care and support that address all warrior physical, mental, and emotional issues, including managing pain, substance use, and complex trauma conditions. Senior commanders must continue to strengthen efforts to establish a command climate that eliminates stigma associated with seeking mental health care. Establishing a culture that encourages individuals to seek help as an act of strength rather than as a sign of weakness is central to transforming the willingness of servicemembers to seek treatment.

7. End disabled/survivor financial penalties

MOAA supports a plan to phase out the disability offset to retired pay for all disabled retired servicemembers, with initial priority for those who were prevented from serving 20 years solely because they became severely disabled in service. MOAA will work with Congress, DoD, and the administration to advance this proposal as a further important step toward ending the offset for all disabled retirees.

In addition, MOAA will continue to fight for full repeal of the deduction of VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for survivors of servicemembers who died of service-connected causes.

MOAA strongly believes when military service causes a servicemember’s death, DIC should be paid in addition to SBP rather than being subtracted from it. To the extent funding cannot be obtained for immediate, full repeal, MOAA will seek interim steps to extend and substantially upgrade compensation for these most deserving survivors by supporting legislation to extend the Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) beyond the current statutory expiration date of Oct. 1, 2017. Congress enacted SSIA as an interim means of easing financial penalties for survivors affected by the deduction of DIC from SBP. Since October 2008, qualifying surviving spouses have received gradually increasing monthly payments. The FY 2017 monthly allowance will be $310. It will be essential to include an extension provision in the FY 2017 defense bill to keep these survivors from experiencing a significant income loss.

8. Fix Guard/Reserve retirement

Guard and Reserve families cannot be indefinitely burdened with irreconcilable tradeoffs between civilian employment, personal retirement planning, and family obligations. Operational Reserve policy requires reservists to serve one of every five years on active duty, though many already have served multiple combat tours equal to active force deployment cycles. Regardless of reemployment protections, periodic long-term absences from the civilian workplace can only limit these servicemembers’ upward mobility and employability, as well as personal financial security. The new hybrid retirement plan (for service entrants on or after Jan. 1, 2018), composed of reduced retired pay and a matched 401(k)-style system, will require robust financial education of all servicemembers, including guardmembers and reservists, to protect their retirement interests.

9. Improve spouse and family support

Preserve funding for family support; morale, welfare and recreation; exchange; commissary; and other critical support services and quality-of-life programs. Improve and enhance access to affordable, quality child care. MOAA recognizes the significance of continued crucial support of military family members bearing the brunt on the home front of over a decade at war. MOAA will work with Congress, DoD, and others in ensuring necessary family support and quality-of-life services across all components, installations, and communities. Military families with a special-needs member face additional stressors. More must be done to enhance support services and health care for these families.

10. Assure timely access to the VA, and eliminate the VA claims backlog

The VA must aggressively implement reforms to assure timely access to the quality care most enrolled veterans experience. Changes in leadership in some facilities, recruitment of separating DoD medical professionals, upgrades of clinical space, and an overhaul of the out-of-date scheduling system are needed. MOAA supports a comprehensive, strategic plan for VA health care delivery in the 21st century.

The VA must double down on efforts to improve mental health care delivery and address the number of veteran suicides. The VA and DoD need to strengthen their collaboration in delivering long-term medical and benefits counseling and caregiver support for catastrophically disabled veterans.

To sustain VA services to the nation’s veterans, two-year funding across all VA accounts must be enacted. MOAA will continue to be watchful against any initiative that would force dual-eligible beneficiaries, solely as a cost-savings measure, to choose between the DoD and VA health systems.

If you have questions or concerns about MOAA’s legislative goals please call the Member Service Center at 1-800-234-6622 or email [email protected].

Issue 2. NEW YEAR, NEW TRICARE FEES

Get ready for premium and prescription copay increases.

Ring in the New Year with new TRICARE Fees

(Click on NEW YEAR, NEW TRICARE FEES here or above to see the details. GF)

Issue 3. NEW MOAA PRESIDENT

MOAA gains new leader.

Lt. Gen. Dana Atkins, USAF (Ret.), takes the reins as MOAA President.

(Click on NEW MOAA PRESIDENT here or above to see the details if you didn’t do so at Issue 3 in the summary above. GF)

Issue 4. SPECIAL NEEDS TRUST UPDATE

January 8, 2016

Last year’s defense bill gave military members and retirees the option to direct Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) payments to a Special Needs Trust (SNT) for permanently disabled children. A SNT is a legal instrument designed to manage money that was set aside for assisting a disabled person, and is governed by State and Federal law. Once created, a SNT is irrevocable.

.On December 31, 2015 DoD finally issued guidance to the Services and DFAS on how to implement the authority to make SBP payments to a legally established SNT. Affected military members and retirees will need a practicing attorney to establish a SNT and to certify that the SNT is in compliance.

Prior to this change, DFAS required payments go to a natural person. Without the ability to use a SNT, DFAS used a “Representative Payee” to accept payments on behalf of the adult child.

Allowing SBP to be deposited in a SNT allows permanently disabled military children to avoid having SBP counted against means-testing requirements for certain state and federal assistance programs. Before enactment of the recent law, military children suffered financial penalties not imposed on other similarly disabled non-military children who could have assets placed in a trust for them.

MOAA worked with Congress to include this much-needed provision in last year’s defense bill and is thankful that this option is now available to families.

“The ability to use a SNT for a disabled child provides important protection for the child after the servicemember parent has passed away,” said MOAA deputy director of Government Relations, Col. Phil Odom, USAF (Ret.).To see a copy of the directive memorandum and the specific guidance it provides click here.

That’s it for today- Thanks for your help!

Legislative Update 18 December 2015: Falling into the COLA Hole

We have No Action Items today.

Summary of Issues

At Issue 1. we see FALLING INTO THE COLA HOLE. Inflation trend is depressing. When you look at the chart, it’s not pretty.(See Issue 1 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 2. we see YOUR PERSONAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT. How is the Pentagon counting your cost?. MOAA’s Director of Government Relations, Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret), adds up your cost to the government vs. the government’s cost to you in his December As I See It column. (See Issue 2 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 3. we see CONGRESS KEEPS THE LIGHTS ON. Budget deal reached. Bill provides government funding through next September. (See Issue 3 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 4. we see NEW VA RULING COVERS CAMP LEJEUNE CASES. Eight diseases linked to contaminated drinking water. Ruling will be applied to VA claims soon. (See Issue 4 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 5. we see MOAA VETS HELP HEALTH COMMISSION. Commission on Care works to improve veteran health care. Find out how you can provide feedback. (See Issue 5 below for the details. GF)

At Issue 6. we see WHAT’S AHEAD FOR 2016? What’s next after Congress tackled retirement reform in 2015?

Here’s MOAA’s take on challenges coming next year. (See Issue 6 below for the details. GF)

Collectively We Can and Are Making a Difference

FOR ALL, Please feel free to pass these Weekly Legislative Updates on to your group of Veteran Friends –

don’t be concerned with possible duplications – if your friends are as concerned as we are with Veteran issues, they probably won’t mind getting this from two or more friendly sources

ISSUES

Issue 1. FALLING INTO THE COLA HOLE

A deeper dive into red.

Unfortunately, it looks like the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is following the trend of the past few years by dropping significantly at the beginning of the fiscal year.

Last year’s October-to-January drop was particularly steep, and the slide is disturbingly similar for FY2016 so far.

The November CPI is 231.721, declining to 1.1 percent below the FY 2014 COLA baseline. Because there was not a positive COLA in FY 2015, the FY 2014 baseline is used.

The CPI for December 2015 is scheduled to be released on January 20, 2015.

Issue 2. YOUR PERSONAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT

By: Col. Steve Strobridge, USAF (Ret) Director, Government Relations

He retired from MOAA in April 2013 but was recalled as Government Relations director in September 2015.

One way or another, it always ends up being about the money.

For years, Pentagon leaders have complained about personnel costs “spiraling out of control.”

MOAA’s rebuttal showed personnel and health care costs have been stable at a relatively constant 30 to 32 percent of the budget for the past 30 years.

Now the comeback from Capitol Hill is, “OK, it’s true the percentage of the budget has been constant, but the cost per person is well beyond where it used to be. What’s your answer to that?”

Yes, the cost per person has risen. But so has the cost of doing everything else. In particular, the cost per ship, cost per bomber, cost per personnel carrier … and cost per whatever unit of nut, bolt, service, and equipment … is what truly has skyrocketed.

For example, an aircraft carrier cost $6 billion in 2009, but the cost has now shot past $13 billion — a 117-percent increase in six years.

The big problems with the defense budget are contract inflation, gross oversight failures, and stunning accounting lapses on the part of those charged with managing defense programs of all kinds.

For decades, dozens of Government Accountability Office, Inspector General, and other reports have documented that DoD cost accounting systems are so flawed, they’re unauditable, with billions having gone unaccounted for. Massive cost overruns have been the rule rather than the exception. But the system goes unfixed.

So the bang for the procurement buck gets smaller quickly. But because the defense industry has built-in lobbyists with deep pockets, and because legislators with plants and jobs in their districts have vested interests in keeping even wasteful contracts alive, the target gets shifted to people programs.

There aren’t any big campaign contributions supporting people programs, so they’re easy to attack. And DoD leaders have shown little hesitation in using numbers selectively to make it look like people are the problem.

One popular way has been to use the year 2000 as a starting point to measure cost growth — conveniently forgetting that was a retention low point brought on by more than a decade of pay, health care, retirement, and other cutbacks. The funding increases in subsequent years were needed to restore career retention incentives and improve readiness and quality of life.

Another favorite stratagem has been to pile every possible nickel into the calculation of “cost per troop” to drive that figure as high as possible.

For example, many such calculations include a present value for all future expected VA disability and health care costs for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans — as if the troops were at fault for exposing themselves to combat.

They almost universally include a figure for PCS costs — as if there’s a benefit value in being required to move across the country periodically and be reimbursed less than it costs you and your family (without even counting issues like lost spousal income) to make the move.

The bottom line here is that many of the figures attributed as personnel benefit costs have nothing to do with compensation value for military people. An amputee would rather have his or her leg back than a monthly check from the VA. Military families would be far better off financially if the government never required them to move.

Military people understand the facts of life inherent in a military career. But they don’t expect to be handed a bill for their sacrifices.

There’s a massive difference between benefit value to the troops and the government’s inherent cost of doing military business.

Economists and budgeteers want to count every penny of what they see as your cost to the government.

What those exercises consistently fail to do is split out the government’s cost of readiness or acknowledge the flip side of the issue — the costs your service imposed on you and your family.

Issue 3. CONGRESS KEEPS THE LIGHTS ON.

. December 18, 2015

Today, Congress was able to reach an agreement on a budget deal to keep the government funded for the next ten months.

The pending Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 includes funding for the following provisions, among others:

an active duty pay raise of 1.3%;
$32 billion for the Defense Health Program;
housing allowances for active personnel reflecting the 1% increase in out of pocket expense;
$86 billion for veteran benefits;
advance funding for all VA programs, and
permanent health care coverage for 9/11 first-responders.

MOAA is especially appreciative it provides advance appropriations for veterans benefit programs. That means, beginning in FY 2016, veterans and their families won’t see any break in their health care, disability compensation, survivor benefits, or GI Bill payments, even if congressional gridlock causes a federal shutdown.

Congress also passed a $622 billion package of business and individual tax provisions. The tax extender package includes extension of the expanded earned income tax credit, additional child credit and the American Opportunity tax credit for education expenses.

The President has expressed support for both bills, and it should be signed into law shortly.

Issue 4. NEW VA RULING COVERS CAMP LEJEUNE CASES

December 18, 2015

After years of controversy and review, the Veterans Administration (VA) has finally issued a ruling that certain diseases incurred by people with past service at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, will be presumed to be service-caused.

VA investigators recently finished a study of medical conditions that could have been related to drinking water at Lejeune. They concluded contaminated drinking water at the base directly affected health conditions of roughly a million people – servicemembers, family members, and civilians stationed there during specific dates from the 1950s to the ’80s.

Specifically, they found eight different diseases are linked to contaminated drinking water at Lejeune: kidney cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, leukemia, multiple myeloma, scleroderma, Parkinson’s disease, and aplastic anemia.

As a result, the VA will now presume that any of those conditions experienced by people who served there were caused by that service.

The ruling applies to servicemembers, family members, and civilians with one of these conditions and who served at Camp Lejeune between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987. It also includes Reserve and National Guard members.

The new announcement doesn’t mean all claims for the affected diseases will be approved immediately or that there will be any retroactive approvals. The VA first has to issue an updated regulation, and the new rule will be applied to new disability claims.

The VA will put any pending Lejeune-related claims on hold until the new regulation is issued.

People who have submitted potentially eligible claims that were denied previously can resubmit claims for consideration under the new rules.

This is good and important news for many, many MOAA members and others. If you know of others who are potentially affected, please forward this information to them.

We’ll keep you posted when the VA publishes the updated regulations.

Issue 5. MOAA VETS HELP HEALTH COMMISSION

. December 18, 2015

This week, MOAA’s Deputy Director of Government Relations, CDR. René Campos, USN (Ret.), met with the Commission on Care to share the views and experiences of MOAA members using the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facilities in their communities.

In May of 2014, reports of waiting list manipulation at VA facilities led MOAA to urge the President and Congress to establish a high-level commission to examine VA health care delivery issues for the 21st century. This suggestion led to the passage of the Veterans’ Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (Choice Act) and the establishment of the Commission on Care.

The Commission is charged with providing recommendations to Congress on how best to organize the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), locate health care resources, and deliver care to veterans over the next 20 years.

Last month, MOAA President Vice Adm. Norb Ryan, USN (Ret.), sent a letter urging the Commission to hear from veterans and their families about their needs and concerns, and the Commission has done just that.

On Monday, Campos provided commissioners recent testimonials of MOAA members using the VA health system. Most veterans are very satisfied with the quality of health care they receive, once they’re able to access the system.

A wounded Iraq and Afghanistan veteran told MOAA how helpful his VA medical center was in getting disability benefits and the health care he needed to ease his family’s transition out of the military.

But member inputs also highlight the confusing and inconsistent policies, procedures, and bureaucratic barriers they face in trying to access that care.

“The vets on the bottom of this avalanche of bureaucratic insanity are worse off than ever in their access to timely health care,” wrote an 80 year old female Vietnam veteran describing her frustration with the Choice Program.

Any reform of VHA must ultimately improve access and provide high quality and comprehensive care.

“The system must be designed to support and engage not only the veteran, but also their caregivers and family members. And it must be simple and easy to navigate,” said Campos.

The Commission wants to hear about your personal experiences and thoughts about VA health care. To share your views, click on the Veterans’ Voices tab on the Commission on Care website.

Issue 6. WHAT’S AHEAD FOR 2016?

December 18, 2015

2015 saw the biggest changes to the military retirement system in a generation. While the changes largely will affect only new recruits in 2018 and later years, Congress approved a major overhaul to military retirement in this year’s defense bill, cutting their future retired pay by 20 percent and asking them to help fund their own retirement via Thrift Savings Plan accounts.

2016 is already shaping up to be the year where every military beneficiary – past, present, and future – could see dramatic changes to their health care benefits.

Armed Services Committee leaders already tipped their hand in this year’s Defense Authorization Act.

NDAA report

As the report language indicates, nothing about the current system will be sacrosanct when lawmakers examine TRICARE – and neither will your wallet.

Proposals earlier this year recommended scrapping TRICARE altogether, forcing beneficiaries into plans similar to those of federal civilians, imposing significantly higher fees, and means-testing TRICARE and TRICARE For Life (TFL) benefits so beneficiaries with higher incomes would pay even more. All of those and others could be on the table again in 2016.

The question is: Are you prepared to protect your and your families’ interests?

MOAA members sent 420,000 emails to their elected officials in 2015. Your hard work helped avert even bigger military retirement cutbacks for future troops.

But now it’s about you and yours.

Proponents of big TRICARE/TFL fee hikes are hoping you’ll get tired of writing your elected officials and just accept the changes proposed by the Pentagon.

But if the answers you gave during MOAA’s recent survey are correct, your priority is on fixing the access and other problems many are having with TRICARE, and defeating proposals for disproportional fee hikes.

If that’s how you feel, we’ll need you to be more active than ever on these issues in 2016.

Some who have an interest in deterring your messages to Congress will try to discourage you by saying your MOAA-recommended tear-out letters, postcards, and emails don’t count much in legislators’ minds.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

We’ve seen from years of experience – and direct feedback from legislators and their staffs – that volume of correspondence counts. When legislators get tons of mail on a topic, the vast majority aren’t going to ignore their constituents.

This isn’t just a “defending our rice bowl” issue. Sustaining a top-tier health care benefit for career servicemembers and their families is essential to long-term retention and readiness.

We’re going to be asking for a lot of activity from you in the months ahead. We hope you’ll stand with us as we continue to stand for you – and that you’ll ask your friends and relatives to get active, too.

National and state MOAA leaders will be Storming the Hill on health care and other issues in early April. Their office visits with legislators will be much more effective if legislators have received a barrage of constituent input.

Because of the coming holidays, this will be the final Legislative Update for 2015.

We wish you a happy – and safe and healthy – holiday season.

We’ll need all hands back and energized to take on the big health care challenges coming in the new year.