Congressman Geoff Davis : Serving Kentucky's Fourth District

Veterans

If you are a veteran and need assistance dealing with the Veterans’ Administration or the Department of Defense, please call my office at (859) 426-0080. My staff and I are here to serve you.

We have a responsibility to uphold our commitment to the veterans who have sacrificed to preserve our freedom. As a former enlisted soldier and officer in the Army, I understand how important it is that we continue to provide quality medical care and other benefits to all veterans; both to those who served their country a generation ago and to those just returning from fighting in the war against radical Islam.

Congress Modernizes the GI Bill

In the summer of 2008, Congress passed an emergency supplemental funding bill for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to ensuring that American men and women serving our nation abroad have the equipment they need to safely succeed in their mission, the bill also modernized an antiquated GI bill to ensure our veterans have access to quality education. Whereas previous law granted veterans the opportunity to receive up to $1,100 a month in tuition benefits, the new law will pay tuition equal to in-State fees charged at the most expensive public institution in the State where the veteran is enrolled. It will also provide monthly stipends to cover living expenses. This new bill also allows service members who complete several reenlistments to transfer these benefits to spouses and children. I was proud to vote for these additional benefits for our nation’s heroes. You can learn more about the updated GI bill HERE.

National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)

As you may know, our nation’s national defense policy is outlined in yearly legislation known as the National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA. Among other provisions, this legislation outlines the priorities for defense policy and military personnel. I was pleased to vote for the NDAA for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 (H.R. 5658), which passed the House of Representatives on May 22, 2008, by a vote of 384-23 (Roll no. 365). The legislation passed in the Senate on September 27, 2008. This legislation includes many provisions that enhance the welfare of our service members, military retirees and other veterans.

The NDAA for FY2009 contains the following important provisions:

A one year extension of the prohibitions on increases to TRICARE enrollment fees, deductibles, co-payments and retail pharmacy cost shares.
A basic pay raise of 3.9 %, which is a full 0.5% above the President’s request and continues efforts to reduce the military-civilian pay gap that now stands at 3.4%.
Increases the size of the Army by 7,000 to an authorized end strength of 532,400 and the Marine Corps by 5,000 to an authorized end strength of 194,000. I have long contended that the inadequate size of our armed forces contributes to unnecessarily long and frequent deployments, which places increased and unnecessary stress on our service members and their families.
Tuition assistance and training opportunities to support spouses seeking degrees and careers in high-need fields such as mental health providers. Military spouses often do not have the opportunities to develop a career as they move from one military base to another. This assistance will help spouses develop skills for careers that are portable, ameliorating the stress of relocation.
A pilot program to allow a service member to be released from active duty for up to three years to focus on professional goals.
A permanent prohibition on service members being charged for meals at military treatment facilities while undergoing medical recuperation or therapy.

Disability Retirement Pay

The House-passed NDAA for FY 2009 included an important provision that I offered. This provision would have increased disability retirement pay for reservists/veterans who are severely and permanently disabled from being wounded in action.

Under current law, a reservist only gets credit for the time he actually spends in uniform. For instance, a soldier who has spent thirteen years in the Kentucky Army National Guard may have only four years of service when his duty days are calculated. As a result, the reservist/veteran may receive less disability retirement pay than his active counterpart. Even if two personnel receive identical wounds from the same firefight in Iraq or Afghanistan, the reservist may still receive less disability retirement pay.

My provision would have eliminated this inequity between active and reserve personnel. Any reservist/veteran who earned the Purple Heart for wounds incurred in battle and was medically retired as a result of that action would have had his or her disability pay calculated based on the total number of years served in the reserves or National Guard. Unfortunately, this provision was not included in the final version of the NDAA because of opposition by the Department of Defense and lack of support in the Senate. However, I will continue to fight for the inclusion of this provision in future versions of the National Defense Authorization Act.

As referenced above, almost all defense policy is set through a single annual law known as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). While most of our effort is focused on successfully including this provision in the NDAA, it has also been introduced as stand-alone legislation, H.R. 1994.

Hardship Duty Pay

As a result of an amendment I offered for the NDAA of Fiscal Year 2008, Hardship Duty Pay (HDP) for our service men and women was increased to a maximum of $1500 per month, doubling the previous maximum of $750 per month. The new maximum will enable the Army to implement its “Warrior Pay” concept in FY2009, which would allow soldiers, for the first time, to receive HDP for cumulative time spent in combat zones as the result of multiple deployments. It is high time that we provide additional compensation to the increasing number of our troops who are being required to make multiple combat deployments to Iraq or Afghanistan. The Army is working with senior defense officials to implement Warrior Pay in Fiscal Year 2009.

Wounded Warrior Legislation

Last year’s NDAA included “Wounded Warrior” assistance legislation to address specific challenges faced by our recovering service members, veterans and their families. As you may know, the Wounded Warrior legislation resulted from the discovery of grossly inadequate care for recovering service members at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. While disciplinary action was taken against the command at Walter Reed, this legislation was primarily designed to prevent situations like this from arising in the future. The law mandated a telephone hotline that service members and their families can use to report deficiencies in medical care.

The Army’s Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline can be accessed at (800) 984-8523. The number for the Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Call Center is (877) 487-6299. The number for the Navy’s Safe Harbor Hotline is (877) 746-8563. The number to call for Air Force wounded warrior issues is (800) 581-9437. Anyone can call (800) 488-8244 to report suspected waste, fraud, abuse or mismanagement at VA facilities. Additionally, separating members will now receive a written plan to ensure a smoother transition to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs from the Department of Defense. These and other provisions of last year’s defense authorization act have led to recognizable improvements in veterans’ care. Nonetheless, this is still a fairly new program that will require close scrutiny.

I will continue to monitor the implementation of the “Wounded Warrior” provisions included in the NDAA and the efforts to provide the best possible care for our wounded heroes.

Recent Legislation

A number of other bills have recently passed the House of Representatives that may be of interest to you.

H.R. 1377 allows reimbursements to veterans who receive emergency treatment at a facility outside of the VA at any time before the date of enactment. The bill also requires the VA to pay for a non-service-connected condition if a third-party insurer does not cover the full cost. The bill passed the House of Representatives on March 30, 2009. H.R. 1377 awaits action by the Senate.

H.R. 1513, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Act of 2009, provides a cost-of-living increase in disability compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities. The bill also increases the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of veterans with certain service-connected disabilities. This bill passed the House of Representatives on March 30, 2009 and now awaits action by the Senate.

H.R. 1171, the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 authorizes $300 million over five years for the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program. The bill also establishes a grant program for homeless women veterans and homeless veterans with children that would fund programs providing job training, counseling, placement services and child care services. This bill passed the House of Representatives on March 30, 2009, and it awaits action by the Senate.

Just before Memorial Day, 2009, the House passed H.R. 2352, the Job Creation through Entrepreneurship Act. The bill would authorize ten million dollars in fiscal year 2011 and twelve million dollars in fiscal year 2012 for the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish The Veterans Business Centers Program, a new small business assistance program for veterans. The centers would provide veterans and their surviving spouses with entrepreneurial training and counseling. Additionally, the bill authorizes funding that the SBA can provide to centers for securing capital, procurement assessment grants, and grants tailored to service-disabled veterans. H.R. 2353 passed the House of Representatives on May 21, 2009 (Roll no. 281), and it awaits action by the Senate.

Co-sponsorship of Legislation Supporting Our Troops and Veterans

I am a proud co-sponsor of four bills that support the welfare of our troops and veterans:

H.R.704, the Supply Our Soldier Act of 2009, directs the Secretary of Defense to provide a program under which postal benefits (in the form of vouchers) are provided to members of the armed forces who are serving in Iraq or Afghanistan or hospitalized in a military medical facility as a result of such service.

H.R. 816, the Military Retirees Health Care Protection Act, prohibits an increase in a premium, deductible, co-payment, or other charges for medical and dental health care coverage for military personnel.

H.R. 1203, the Federal and Military Retiree Health Care Equity Act, amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow Federal civilian and military retirees to pay health insurance premiums on a pretax basis and to allow a deduction for TRICARE supplemental premiums.

H.R. 1864 would provide a pay increase of 3.4 percent for members of the uniformed services for fiscal year 2010.

Veterans Programs in Kentucky

Locally, several advantageous programs have been developed for veterans. In March 2008, the Veterans Health Administration announced the opening of a new Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Carrollton. These outpatient clinics work with the VA Medical Centers to provide primary health care and specialized services closer to the homes of veterans. It makes preventative care easier for patients, improves access to care, stimulates doctor-patient relationships and permits easier follow-ups for people with chronic problems. This facility will be serving patients in a rural area that is medically underserved and has a primary care health professional shortage. The VA estimates that within the first year of operation the Carrollton CBOC will treat over 2,000 existing patients and 250 new patients.

Last summer, the Fourth District of Kentucky was honored to open its first Veterans Cemetery, the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery North just south of Williamstown. The Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs (KDVA) opened the cemetery for veterans and their spouses on August 22, 2008. Construction of the ninety-nine acre cemetery began in March, 2007. For more information about the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery North, please click here.

KDVA is also working on opening a new seventy-eight acre Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Northeast in Greenup County. The KDVA recently acquired land near I-64 and is looking to complete the project within the next few years. These cemeteries are funded through a combination of State and federal funds and are designed to provide dignified interment for veterans as a tribute to their service to the Commonwealth and the nation.

Additionally, the Kentucky Small Business Development Center (KSBDC) has recently launched a new website for veterans interested in starting a small business. This service provides planning, consulting, and training for veterans and access is available before, during, and after deployment. For more information, please visit the KSBDC website or call (270) 763-6961.

As a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), veterans may receive a one-time payment of $250. These payments are expected to begin in June 2009. To be eligible for the $250 payment, VA beneficiaries must have received compensation, pension, dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC), or spina bifida benefits at any time between November 2008 and January 2009. No application is necessary. VA will use its existing payment records to determine eligibility for the $250 payment and beneficiaries will receive their payments the same way they receive their monthly VA benefits. VA beneficiaries who also receive benefits from the Social Security Administration or Railroad Retirement Board will be paid through those agencies, and will therefore not receive the payment from VA. For more information, please click here.

How Can We Help You?

My offices are available to help you with any problems you may encounter with the federal government. Our constituent liaisons are trained to assist residents of Kentucky’s Fourth District who need help resolving issues with a variety of organizations, including the Internal Revenue Service, Medicare and Social Security, among others. We also have extensive resources for servicemembers and veterans. To learn more about our constituent liaison services, click HERE or contact my Fort Mitchell office at (859) 426-0080.