RAO BULLETIN 1 January 2019

[boardman]

RAO
BULLETIN
1 January 2019

THIS RETIREE ACTIVITIES OFFICE BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES


Pg Article Subject
. * DOD * .

04 == U.S. Space Force [08] ---- (Trump Draft Plan | Independent Military Branch)
06 == Transgender Troops [20] ---- (Trump Asks Court to Allow Temporary Ban Enforcement)
06 == Missile Defense [01] ---- (Missile in Space Shoot Down Test Successful)
07 == U.S.-Russia INF Treaty ---- (U.S. Gives 60-Day Notice of Suspension)
09 == US-Russia INF Treaty [01] ---- (Putin Response to Suspension Notice)
10 == DoD Transgender Lawsuits [11] ---- (Doe v. Trump DEC 10 Hearing)
10 == Navy Ship Workloads ---- (7th Fleet 100-Hour Workweeks Impact on Readiness)
12 == Camp Lejeune ---- (Hurricane Florence Damage | $3.6 billion +)
13 == DoD Fraud, Waste, & Abuse ---- (Reported 01 thru 15 DEC 2018)
14 == POW/MIA Recoveries & Burials ---- (Reported 16 thru 30 NOV 2018 | Twenty-One)

. * VA * .

17 == VA Virtual Care ---- (Remote Care Offerings to Dramatically Expand)
18 == VA Hospital Quality of Care [06] ---- (Often Better Than Near-by Alternatives)
19 == VA Blue Water Claims [57] ---- (DIW |Senate Fails to Take Action)
20 == VA Blue Water Claims [58] ---- (VFW Call to Action)
20 == VA Benefits Denials [01] ---- (Supreme Court to Hear Deference Case)
20 == VASRD [01] ---- (Hematologic & Lymphatic Systems Revision)
21 == VA Secretary Q & A [01] ---- (Community Town Hall Event | SEP 2018)
23 == VA Caregiver Program [51] ---- (VA Seeks Input on Caregiver Benefits)
24 == VA Vocational Rehabilitation [06] ---- (Tele-Counseling Now Available)
24 == VA Nursing Homes [12] ---- (Stratton VAMC Home Robotic Cat Use)
25 == GI Bill [270] ---- (VA’s Long, Slow Housing Stipend Fix)
26 == GI Bill [271] ---- (ECA School Closures Impact 15k+ Vets)
27 == GI Bill [272] ---- (Housing Stipend Non-Payment | Credit Bureau Repercussions)
28 == VA Fraud, Waste & Abuse ---- (Reported 01 thru 15 DEC 2018)
30 == VA HCS Bay Pines FL [02] ---- (Mold Outbreak)
30 == VA HCS Central AR [01] ---- (Robotic Surgical System Now Available)

. * VETS * .

31 == Vet Fraud & Abuse ---- (Reported 01 thru 15 DEC 2018)
32 == Rolling Thunder [01] ---- (Memorial Day 2019 to be Final Washington Event)
32 == Cohen Veterans Network [01] ---- (Tampa Clinic to Open MAR 2019)
34 == Vet Employment [09] ---- (Jobless Rate 3.1% for NOV 2018)
34 == Vet Weight ---- (Study Shows Only One in Seven are Not Overweight or Obese)
35 == Vet Eating Habits ---- (Study Shows Vets Not Eating Veggies)
35 == Iran Victims Lawsuit ---- ($10B | Accountability for Attacks against US Troops in Iraq)
38 == Iran Victims Lawsuit [01] ---- (Trial Day One)
41 == Iran Victims Lawsuit [02] ---- (Trial Completed)
42 == Stolen Valor [113] ---- (Fake News | Facebook Trolls Targeting Vets)
43 == Toxic Exposure | Pease AFB NH ---- (Vet Forum Meets Calling for Action)
44 == WWII Vets [179] ---- (Joe Vass | 91 Year Old USN/USMC Vet)
45 == Obit: George H. Bush ---- (30 NOV 2018 | WWII Aviator)
46 == Obit: Albert Madden ---- (26 NOV 2018 | Oldest Army Bugler)
47 == Vet Hiring Fairs ---- (Scheduled As of 15 DEC 2018)
47 == Military Retirees & Veterans Events Schedule ---- (As of 15 DEC 2018)
48 == State Veteran's Benefits ---- (Georgia 2018)

. * VET LEGISLATION * .

48 == VA Blue Water Claims [56] ---- (H.R.299 | CBO Revised Report on Costs)
49 == Burn Pit Toxic Exposure [59] ---- (H.R.5671 | Burn Pits Accountability Act)

. * MILITARY* .

50 == USMAP ---- (Army Journeyman Apprenticeship Credentialing Program Moves Forward)
51 == BAH [05] ---- (2019 Rates Released)
51 == Guantanamo Bay Navy Base [03] ---- (5 Things to Know on its 115th Birthday)
53 == Military Justice ---- (USN’s Bread & Water Punishment Gone)
54 == Peresvet Laser System ---- (New Russian Weapon Designed to Instantly Obliterate Targets)
55 == Military Retirement System [31] ---- (Time to Decide on New system)
57 == Sgt Ikaika Kang Sentencing ---- (25 Years for ISIS Support)
58 == Navy Amphibs [01] ---- (Enhanced Defense Option w/USMC)
58 == U.S. Naval Academy [04] ---- (Rising Sea Level Plans | None to Move)
59 == Aircraft Carriers [01] ---- (Could Go the Way of the Dinosaur)
61 == Military Immigrant Enlistment [05] ---- (Pentagon to Comply with Court Order)
62 == Sapper Steel Battalion ---- (Ceremonially Unit Flag Burning)
63 == Iranian Navy [03] ---- (Most Advanced Homemade Destroyer, Sahand, Joins Fleet)
64 == Navy Terminology, Jargon & Slang ---- (Alert Five thru A-Gear)
65 == Warships That Will Change the Future ---- (CNS Kunming DDG-72)

. * MILITARY HISTORY * .

65 == Pearl Harbor DEC 7, 1941 ---- (Photos of the Attack)
66 == USS San Diego (ACR-6) [02] ---- (Investigation Concludes Sunk by Mine)
67 == Operation Bodenplatte ---- (WWII | Luftwaffe’s Last Hope)
68 == WWII Axis Powers ---- (Worst Decisions after War Declared)
70 == Fort Donaldson ---- (Civil War Battlefield Chronicles | Union Attack)
72 == First Battle of Iron Bottom Bay ---- (Guadalcanal November 9 thru 13, 1942)
72 == Every Picture Tells A Story ---- (Trainees)
73 == Post WWII Photos ---- (Hermann Goering Mugshot)
73 == WWII Bomber Nose Art [20] ---- (The Hag of Harderwyk)
74 == Military History Anniversaries ---- (16 thru 31 DEC)
74 == Medal of Honor Citations ---- (Owen F. Hammerberg | WWII)

. * HEALTH CARE * .

75 == Alcohol Use Update [01] ---- (VA Study Findings on Health Impact)
76 == Nursing Homes [15] ---- (Florida’s AHCA Inaction on Patient’s Neglect)
77 == FEDVIP [02] ---- (Military Community Given An Extra 3-Months to Enroll)
78 == Holiday Stress ---- (Managing It)
80 == Holiday Stress [01] ---- (Coping With PTSD)
81 == Tricare Ambulance Services [02] ---- (2019 Expansion)
82 == Heartburn & GERD ---- (Frequent Heartburn Considered GERD)
82 == TRICARE Health Matters ---- (Items of Interest)
86 == Medicare Fraud [132] ---- ($500M Opioid Scheme)
88 == Medicare Fraud [133] ---- (Rich and On the Run)
90 == TRICARE West Region e-Updates ---- (DEC 2018)
91 == Physical Activity Guidelines ---- (2018 Edition Released)
92 == Head Lice ---- (Itchy But Not Harmful)
94 == Prescription Drug Costs [17] ---- (GOP Balks at Trump Drug Pricing Plan)
95 == Prescription Drug Costs [18] ---- (Monopoly Drug Pricing)
96 == TRICARE Podcast 478 ---- (Cost Resources - Updating DEERS - TRICARE Retiree Dental)
97 == TRICARE Podcast 479 ---- (TRI/Fed Benefits Open Season | Enrollment Options | Later Options)

. * FINANCES * .

99 == Freebies [01] ---- (28 Things You Can Get for Free)
101 == Social Security ---- (Bits and Pieces 02)
103 == Vet State Income Tax [02] ---- (North Dakota Tax Exemption Proposed)
104== Alternative Minimum Tax ---- (Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Impact on AMT)
105 == Vet Student Loans [06] ---- (42,000 Vets Eligible for Tax Free Forgiveness)
106 == Malware [02 ---- (Iranian SamSam Alert)
106 == Debt Collection [13] ---- (Can Debt Collectors Take Your Disability Income?
108 == Tax Deductions [03] ---- (Eliminations for 2018 thru 2025 Tax Years)
109 == Social Security Q & A ---- (181201 thru 181215)
109 == Online Shopper Scam [02] ---- (Con Artists Use Phony Tracking Numbers)
110 == Two-Factor Authentication Scam ---- (Thieves Use Con to Hack Your Account)
111 == L.O.L Surprise Toy Scam ---- (Cheating Parents out of Money)
112 == Tax Burden for Maryland Retired Vets ---- (Corrected As of NOV 2018)

. * GENERAL INTEREST * .

114 == Notes of Interest ---- (01 thru 15 DEC 2018)
116 == Climate Collusion ---- (Global Cooling, oops Warming, oops Changing)
117 == Naval Hospital Jacksonville ---- (Malpractice Lawsuit | Needle Left in Spine)
118 == China’s Territorial Claims [06] ---- (Beijing South China Sea Conference)
119 == ISIS [03] ---- (Defeat in Iraq)
120 == ISIS [04] ---- (Iraq Army U.S. Artillery Support on Hajin, Syria)
121 == Armaments Production ---- (US Firms at the Top of the Global Arms Trade)
122 == International Space Station [01] ---- (New Crewmember to Board)
122 == Islamic Drone Use ---- (Nigeria)
123 == PVA Airline Safety Lawsuit ---- (Restroom Accessibility for Disabled Vets)
123 == Interesting Ideas ---- (Candle Lighter | Tape Tip | Nail Holder)
124 == One Word Essays ---- (Contemplation)
124 == Have You Heard? ---- (Pilots | When Your 78 | Last Nickel)

NOTE
1. The page number on which an article can be found is provided to the left of each article’s title
2. Numbers contained within brackets [ ] indicate the number of articles written on the subject. To obtain previous articles send a request to raoemo@sbcglobal.net.
3. Recipients of the Bulletin are authorized and encouraged to forward the Bulletin to other vets or veteran organizations.

. * ATTACHMENTS * .

Attachment – Georgia Vet State Benefits
Attachment – Military History Anniversaries 16 thru 31 DEC
Attachment – First Battle of Iron Bottom Bay
Attachment – Pearl Harbor DEC 7, 1941 Photos

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RAO Bulletin Editor/Publisher:
Lt. James (EMO) Tichacek, USN (Ret) Tel: (858) 842-1111 Email: raoemo@sbcglobal.net
Bulletin Web Access: http://www.nhc-ul.org/rao.html, http://www.veteransresources.org, http://frabr245.org, and http://veteraninformationlinksasa.com/emos-rao.html [PDF & HTML Editions w/ATTACHMENTS]

RAO Baguio Director:
SSgt Terrance (Terry) Parker, USAF (Ret), PSC 517 Box 4107, FPO AP 96517-1000, Tel: Smart 0921824728 or Globe 09454073380, Email: rao.dir.baguio@gmail.com

RAO Baguio Office: Mountain Lodge, 27 Leonard Wood Road, Baguio City, 2600 Philippines
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