Unifromed Services Journal March April 2012

NationalAssociationforUniformedServices®

5535HempsteadWaySpringfield,VA22151-4094CHANGESERVICEREQUESTED

Uniformed ServicesJ o u r n a lMarch/April 2012 Vol. 36 No. 2

e Servicemember’s Voice in Government

Purpose of the Association: To protect and enhance the earnedbeneIts of uniformed servicemembers, retirees, veterans, andtheir families and survivors, while maintaining a strong national defense, andto foster esprit de corps among uniformed services personnel and veterans of theUnited States, through nonpartisan advocacy on Capitol Hill and with othergovernment officials.

USJUniformed Services Journal is published bimonthly by the NationalAssociation for Uniformed Services®, 5535 Hempstead Way,

Spring\eld, VA 22151-4094; Tel. (703)750-1342, 1(800)842-3451; Fax(703)354-4380; email: [email protected]; website: www.NAUS.org. Postmaster:send address changes to Uniformed Services Journal • 5535 Hempstead Way •Spring\eld, VA 22151-4094.

Subscription rates: Membership in NAUS includes a subscription to the USJ.For persons and organizations not eligible for membership: $15 per year inUSA and its possessions; $30 per year to a foreign address. Single copy is $2.50.

President’s Message:

Proposed NAUS Bylaw Changes

NAUS Mailbox

Key Bills in Congress

NAUS PAC

NAUS Member’s Letter to Congress

Legislative Update

NAUS Briefs: TRICARE News

Military Health System Conference

NAUS Briefs: Veterans News

Military Spouse Career Job Fair

VA Career Expo

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NAUS Briefs: NAUS News

NAUS Retirement System Survey

Health Today Q & A

Active Duty Download

Chapter News

SMW News

Seniors’ Corner

Merchant Marine

Taps

Contributors

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On the cover: NAUS Legislative team on the Hill at the Cannon Officebuilding bringing the NAUS message to members of Congress. (from l to r)Legislative Director Rick Jones, Legislative Assistant Tony Kennedy, NAUSPresident LtGen Jack Klimp and Deputy Legislative Director Mike Plumer.

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B O A R D O F D I R E C T O R SE X E C U T I V E C O M M I T T E E

MSgt Robert Larson, USAF (Ret), Co-ChairmanRADM Donald P. Loren, USN (Ret), Co-ChairmanMajGenWilliam Bowden, USAF (Ret), 1stVice ChairmanLTG Carmen Cavezza, USA (Ret), 2ndVice ChairmanCOL Janet Fraser Hale, USAR (Ret), 3rdVice ChairmanMajGen James Livingston, USMC (Ret), MemberMCPO Dave Rudd, USN (Ret), Member

D I R E C T O R SMrs. Jessie Brundige, SMWCol James Diehl, USAF (Ret)COL Dan Dennison, USA (Ret)CAPTThomas Doss, USPHSCol Dave Ellis, USAF (Ret)Sgt Brian Griffin, USAF (Vet)Col Jenny Holbert, USMC (Ret)MCPO Gaylord Humphries, USNSgt Karl P. Karl, USMC (Vet)BG George Landis, USA (Ret)LCDR Nicole Manning, NOAARADM Bob Merrilees, USCGR (Ret)Col ThomasW. Parker, USMC (Ret)Sgt Andy Plonski, USMC (Vet)CSM Brett Rankert, USA (Ret)LTC Joe Sheehan, USA (Ret)SMA JackTilley, USA (Ret)

B O A R D A D V I S O R SCSM Donald Devaney, USA (Ret)MCPO Paul Dillon, USN (Ret)COL Otto Grummt, USA (Ret)Col Michael Harris, USAF (Ret)Morris Harvey, USNG (Vet)SgtMajMarCor Alford L. McMichael, USMC (Ret)COL Charles Partridge, USA (Ret)

R E G I O N A L V I C E P R E S I D E N T S1 CSM Ron Buatte, USA (Ret)2 Col Albert Stewart, USAF (Ret)3 MSgt Thomas Paolillo, USAF (Ret)4 SMSgt Charles “Chuck” Murphy, USAF (Ret)5 LtCol Dick Brubaker, USAF (Ret)6 LTC Dennis O. Freytes, USA (Ret)7 MCPO Paul Dillon, USN (Ret)8 MSgtWayne M. Gatewood, Jr., USMC (Ret)

N A U S S T A F FPresident and CEO – LtGen Jack Klimp, USMC (Ret)Director of Administration – Mrs.Vicki C. SumnerCFO/Director of Membership Services –

Ms.Windora Bradburn, CPALegislative Director/PAC – Rick Jones �Deputy Legislative Director/Veterans Affairs –

CTI1 Mike Plumer, USN (Ret) �Legislative Assistant –Tony KennedyMarketing Director – LCDR Steve Hein, USCG (Ret)Managing Editor, USJ –Tommy CampbellDirector of Mail Operations – Mrs. NadineVranizanJunior Accountant – Mrs. Charito AmpoyoDatabase Manager – Mrs.Toni Cimini

� Registered Federal Lobbyists

NatioNal associatioN for UNiformed services®

Things Heat Up on the Hill

Exercise

2 Uniformed Services JournalMarch/April 2012

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Winter may just be ending, but things havebeen hot these past two months on CapitolHill. Right aer the holidays, the President

and Secretary of Defense released a new strategicguidance document outlining the nation’s defensepriorities. A couple weeks later, the Secretarypreviewed the 2013 Defense budget along withsome of the major impacts. And as I write thismessage, the President’s 2013 budget request hasjust been released. I remain gravely concernedabout our nation’s defense, and the bene\ts ourservicemembers, veterans and retirees, have earned.Many of these bene\ts are or will be on the choppingblock with the huge defense budget cuts ($600billion) over the next ten years required by BudgetControl Act (the automatic cuts or “sequestration”following last year’s failure to develop a compre-hensive de\cit reduction plan) – on top of thealready-planned $450 billion cuts in defensespending. e 2013 budget is just the beginning.

We know there’s going to be a hard look at themilitary retirement system, with an eye toward“reducing its costs” – which means reducing itsvalue. Even the “good guys” are talking about theneed to “reform” and “restructure” the retirementsystem. Higher TRICARE bene\ciary costs,including a new enrollment fee for TRICARE ForLife, are on the horizon. Military pay raises arepromised to “keep pace” with private sector wageincreases, but only until 2015, aer which they will

be lower. Signi\canttroop reductions havebeen announced for theArmy and MarineCorps, and anotherround of base closuresmay be started.

Your LegislativeDirector Rick Jones andhis team have taken anin-depth \rst look at the2013 budget and writtenabout some of these andother important issues inthe Legislative Update sec-tion of your Journal. Be sure you check that out,and let your elected representatives know how youfeel and where you stand. It’s going to be a busyyear as we take on these issues. We need a coor-dinated, cohesive effort on the part of the NAUSheadquarters team, our Board of Directors, ourRegional Vice Presidents, NAUS Chapters, andall of our members – including you. Together wecan and will continue the NAUS mission of pro-moting a strong national defense and protectingthe beneQts earned through uniformed service.

Things Heat Up on the Hill

I remain gravelyconcerned aboutour nation’s defense,and the benefits ourservicemembers,veterans and retirees,have earned.

President’s MessageLtGen Jack Klimp, USMC (Ret)

As your President, I also need to address an Association governance issue with you. As described in the last Journal,the Association’s Board Governance and Bylaws Committee recommended some changes to the NAUS Bylaws. esechanges are intended to update our organizational structure and bring it in line with current nonproIt “best practices.”e Board has called a Special Meeting of the Association to be held on 18 April 2012, at NAUS Headquarters inSpringNeld, VA, for the purpose of voting on the proposed amendments to the bylaws. We know only a few memberscan attend such a meeting, and have printed the proposed amendments in this edition of the Journal for your review,along with a proxy form for you to use to record your vote and assign your proxy to one of three NAUS Members whowill be in attendance at this meeting. Please complete and return the proxy form (envelope) insert in this Journal toNAUS by April 2nd so your vote can be counted. If you wish to attend the meeting, please contact Ms. Vicki Sumnerat 1-800-842-3451, x1003 for details. ank you so much for your membership and support of the Association.

® At the November 4, 2011 meeting of the NAUS Board of Directors, theBylaws and Governance Committee of the Board recommended a numberof changes to the Association’s Bylaws. These changes are intended toup-date our organizational structure, bring it in line with current non-profit“best practices,” and better position the Association for compliance withemerging Sarbanes-Oxley Act financial management requirements.

The first of the major changes recommended designation of theAssociation’sTreasurer and Secretary as elected Directors rather than professional staffemployees hired by and responsible to the President. This change will allow for proper oversight of NAUS operations by the Board.

The second major change is a redefinition of the Executive Committee’s (EXCOM) membership. The current Bylaws prescribe EXCOMmembership as2 – Co-Chairmen;3 –Vice Chairmen and two other board members. Over the years,NAUS has created a number of standing committees that supervisethe full range of NAUS operations. The proposed change designates twoVice Chairmen as Secretary andTreasurer and the third as Chair of the Bylawsand Governance Committee. It adds to the EXCOM the Chairs of the LegislativeAffairs and Membership Committees. These changes establish anEXCOM that consists of the actual leaders of theAssociation.

Finally, the current bylaws provide for presentation and approval of the annual budget in March of the fiscal year,one quarter into the year. It is a responsi-bility of the President to present a budget before the fiscal year begins and obtain Board approval. The Board should then hold the President accountablefor its execution. The third change implements this process.

Several sections of the NAUS Bylaws require amendment in order to make these changes recommended by the Bylaws and Governance Committee.Here are theproposed new bylaws sections,with changes printed in red and underlined, recommended for adoption by the NAUS Board of Directors. Please review the recommendedchanges, and complete and return the proxy form (envelope) inserted in this edition of the Journal so your vote For or Against the proposed changes may be recorded ata Special Meeting of the Association to consider these changes.

ArticleV.Sec 2. Reflects the new proposed structure of the EXCOM. - Sec. 2. There shall be an Executive Committee (EXCOM) which shall acton behalf of the Board between Board meetings, except that the Executive Committee shall not have the authority to hire, discharge or fix the compensation ofAssociation officers or to undertake any other action assigned to the Board pursuant to these Bylaws.The Committee shall be composed of seven (7) members,including the Co-Chairmen and the threeVice Chairmen. Two of theVice Chairmen will be designated as theAssociation’s Secretary andTreasurer. Thethird will be designated the Chair of the Bylaws and Governance Committee. Two additional members of the EXCOM will be the Chairs of the LegislativeAffairs and Membership and Development Committees, to provide a total of seven (7).The Executive Committee shall act on behalf of, and be responsible tothe Board and shall keep regular minutes of all its meetings, such minutes to be submitted promptly to all members of the Board.Reasonable notice regardingthe dates of Committee meetings shall be given to all Committee members and the Committee may act only if a quorum is present, such quorum to consist offour (4) members of the Committee.

ArticleV.Sec 5. Provides for submission and approval of the next year’s budget in the fourth quarter of the preceding year. - Sec. 5.TheBoard shall conduct an annual meeting during the fourth quarter of the calendar year in conjunction with the annual membership meeting during which theannual budget will be presented and approved. The additional (second) meeting, generally consisting of only the Board Executive Committee and FinanceCommittee,will be held during the second quarter of the calendar year to address any other matters that may come before it. ArticleV, Section 2 of the Bylawsempowers the Executive Committee to act on behalf of the Board. Additional meetings shall be held at the call of the Co-Chairmen or upon request to theCo-Chairmen by either the President, the Executive Committee or by seven (7) members of the Board. The Secretary shall notify the directors at least thirty(30) days before the Board meetings.

ArticleVI.Sec 4. Redefines the roles of theVice Chairmen. - Sec. 4.The Co-Chairmen are the head of the association.The senior Co-Chairmanpresides at Board of Directors meetings.The Co-Chairmen perform such other duties as are specified by the Board.TheVice Chairmen act in the absence ofthe Co-Chairmen in the order of their seniority asVice Chairmen. Two will be designated Secretary andTreasurer. The third will chair the Bylaws andGovernance Committee.

ArticleVI.Sec 6. Confirms the Board’s role in supervising theAssociation’s Secretary. - Sec. 6.The Secretary keeps the association’s minutes,serves as recorder at members’ and Board of Directors’ meetings,processes the association’s correspondence, and performs such other tasks as are appropriateto the office or as the Board of Directors direct.

ArticleVI.Sec 7. Confirms the role of theTreasurer and the Board’s role in supervising that position.Sec. 7.TheTreasurer, assisted by the Chief Financial Officer, assists in the preparation of the budget,monitors the budget, ensures the Board's financial

policies are being followed, reports to the Board of Directors and general membership on finances.ArticleVI.Sec 8. Defines the role of the Chief Financial Officer. - Sec.8. Under the supervision of the President, the Chief Financial Officer has

custody of the monies and securities, keeps the financial records, handles receipts and disbursements of funds, has the association’s accounts audited annually bya Certified PublicAccountant, presents a financial statement to the membership at each annual meeting,maintains theAssociation’s membership records, andperforms such other tasks as the President directs. The Chief Financial Officer is the custodian of the association’s corporate seal for use as required in thetransaction of its functions as a non-profit corporation.

ArticleVI.Sec 9. - Renumbered.ArticleVII.Sec 1. - Renumbered.ArticleVII.Sec 2. Identifies the standing committees of the Board of Directors. - Sec.2. The Standing Committees are the Executive Committee,

Finance Committee, the LegislativeAffairs Committee, the Membership & Development Committee, and the Bylaws and Governance Committee.

Again,please complete the proxy voting form enclosed in this Journal and return it to NAUS byApril 2nd,2012. If you have any questions,contact the NAUS Director ofAdministration,Ms.Vicki Sumner.

Uniformed Services JournalMarch/April 2012 5

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PROPOSED BYLAWS CHANGES


MAILBOXMAILBOX

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR UNIFORMED SERVICES

NAUS - Working on Behalf of Our Members

I watched with interest a broadcast about DoD raising healthcare costs, and am again reminded of the valuable servicethat NAUS provides us retirees - not only with lobbyingefforts, but sometimes interpreting proposed legislation forthose of us who might not be "in the know."

M. GilbertMSG, USA (Ret)

Phoenix, OR

Your support is most appreciated! Please, please keep up thegood work!

Anonymous commentNAUS Retirement System Survey

Thank you for the very fine and strong letter you wrote to theSecretary of Defense on our behalf.

K. StargardtLtCol, USAF (Ret)

Richmond, VA

I am pleased to know that our retired military leadership [NAUS]still has the guts to speak forcibly and intelligently in defense ofour military.

A. TraficanteLTC, USA (Ret)Murrysville, PA

I am not in agreement with your letter to Secretary of DefensePanetta. You are too kind with your words to him. I know that weare supposed to be, "nice" when we write our elected leaders orothers inWashington. When have they been "nice" to us retirees?

C. ZamoranoTSgt, USAF (Ret)

Whittier, CA

Nothing like this was sent by [another military association]I belong to…already sent my personal letter to Panetta.

M. SmithCAPT, USN (Ret)

Dunkirk, MD

Thank you General Klimp for the letter to Mr. Panetta. I willcertainly circulate this NAUS letter regarding militaryspending. his words.

R. UrieCMSgt, USAF (Ret)

Lexington, KY

I sincerely appreciate the NAUS mailing address labels. I write alot of letters and use my NAUS labels on every thing I mail, evenpackages. I receive a lot of labels from other organizations Isupport but do not use them because they are not as patriotic.

R. WillardCMSgt, USAF (Ret)

Boerne, TX

When I became a NAUS member there was a convenient link inthe e-mails from NAUS that allowed members to click and sendmessages to their Representative, Senators and the President.

J. SmithLtCol, USAF (Ret)Williamsburg, KY

NAUS Note: We do still include links like this in the NAUSWeekly Update, and members can also use the convenientNAUS CapWiz feature online (easy to find on the NAUS homepage and the menu bar on all the NAUS website pages) tosend messages to their elected officials.

As we start to see the firstsigns of Spring and hopefully

winter is starting to move out, we bring you yourMarch/AprilUniformed Services Journal.As you have already read in the President’s Message things are

starting to heat up in Congress, as the 2013 Budget is released. InLtGen Klimp’s message, as well as in the Legislative Update in theupcoming pages, we review the budget and how it affects you. Now,as always, we need your help in carrying out the NAUSmission.Please contact your representatives and let them know how you feel.There aremany ways you can get involved with your associaton tohelp NAUS promote a strong national defense and protect thebenefits you have earned!Also, in this issue we present proposed NAUS Bylaw changes

that we ask you to review and send back the inserted envelope withyour For or Against vote as well as your selection of a proxy. This isvery important in order to keep NAUS a strong and thriving organi-zation. Please participate as it is your duty as a NAUSMember andthank you in advance.We love to hear your feedback and opinions, so please keep your

letters and emails coming to:NAUSMailbox, 5535HempsteadWay,Springfield, VA 22151 or to [email protected]. ( Include yourhometown and daytime telephone number. Due to space restrictions, notevery entry can be published and those that are may be edited to fit.)

Please enjoy this issue of yourMarch/April UniformedServices Journal!

– Tommy Campbell, Managing Editor, USJ

Editor’s Note:


roughout the 112th Congress, NAUS will identify and track certain bills that address issues important to our members.Over time the list will expand to include newly introduced bills replacing older or less comprehensive bills. We do this because ofspace limitations. While we support any and all bills that lead towards the achievement of our legislative goals, we place the mostemphasis on the more comprehensive bills. Also appearing will be some bills for information purposes to readers interested inthe issue so that they can make their position known to their congressional delegations.

e Library of Congress provides online information concerning Congress and the legislative process through a websitenamed THOMAS, located at thomas.loc.gov. is is an easy to use tool to help you track bills in which you are interested but wedo not list due to space limitations. THOMAS also provides access to other congressional committees for you to do independentresearch. e dates in each summary generally denote when the bill was introduced.

defenseH.r. 24 – (215 Cosponsors), Rep. Walter B. Jones (R-NC),

01/05/11 – Referred to House Committee on Armed Services.Redesignate the Department of the Navy as the Department ofthe Navy and Marine Corps.

H.r.493 – (5 Cosponsors), Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC),01/26/11 – Referred to House Armed Services Committee.To provide for forgiveness of certain overpayments of retiredpay paid to deceased retired members of the Armed Forcesfollowing their death.

H.r. 1003 – (1 Cosponsor), Rep. Don Young (R-AK),03/10/2011 – Referred to House Armed Services Military Per-sonnel Subcommittee. e Gray Area Retiree, and SurvivingSpouses Space-available Travel Equity Act would authorizespace-available travel on military aircra for reserve members,former members of a reserve component, and unremarriedsurviving spouses and dependents of such members and for-mer members. companion Bill: s. 542 – (9 Cosponsors), Sen.Mark Begich (D-AK), 03/10/2011. Referred to Senate ArmedServices Committee.

H.r. 1092 – (24 Cosponsors), Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC),03/15/2011 – Referred to House Committee on Armed Services.e Military Retirees Health Care Protection Act would prohibitincreases in TRICARE fees and copays for military health care.

H.r. 1285 – (5 Cosponsors), Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN),03/31/11 – Referred to House Committee on Armed Services. eMilitary Health Care Affordability Act would prohibit increasesin fees for military health care (TRICARE) before \scal year 2014.

H.r. 1263 – (No Cosponsors), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA),03/30/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.Amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to provide surviv-ing spouses with certain protections relating to mortgages andmortgage foreclosures. 10/13/11 passed by House and sent toSenate for further consideration.

H.r. 1540 - (1 Cosponsor), Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA),4/14/11 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012.Passed by House on 5/26/11 and sent to Senate. companion Bill:s.1867 – Passed by Congress on 12/15/11 and signed by thePresident on 12/31/11. Now Public law 112-81.

H. r. 1935 – (7 Cosponsors), Rep. Peter King (R-NY), 05/23/11 –Referred to House Armed Services Committee. e Supply OurSoldiers Act of 2011 would provide for free mailing privileges forpersonal correspondence and parcels sent to members of theArmed Forces serving on active duty in Iraq or Afghanistan.

H.r. 1968 –(15 Cosponsors), Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY), 05/24/11 –

Referred to House Armed Services Committee. Provide for theaward of a military service medal to members of the Armed Forceswho served honorably during the Cold War. companion Bill: s.402 – (4 Cosponsors), Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), 02/17/11 –Referred to Senate Committee on Armed Services.

s. 67 - (No Cosponsors), Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), 01/25/11 –Referred to Senate Committee on Armed Services. Permit formermembers of the armed forces who have a service-connecteddisability rated as total to travel on military aircra in the samemanner and to the same extent, as retired members of thearmed forces are entitled to travel on such aircra.

s. 68 – (No Cosponsors), Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI),01/25/11 – Referred to Senate Committee on Armed Services.Authorize certain disabled former prisoners of war to useDepartment of Defense commissary and exchange stores.

s. 472 – (3 Cosponsors), Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK),03/03/2011 - Referred to Senate Committee on Armed Serv-ices. e Service Members Permanent Change of Station ReliefAct would increase the mileage reimbursement rate for mem-bers of the armed services during permanent change of stationand to authorize the transportation of additional motor vehi-cles of members on change of permanent station to or fromnon-foreign areas outside the continental United States.

s.490 – (3 Cosponsors), Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI),03.03/2011 – Referred to Senate Committee on Veterans’Affairs. Increase the maximum age for children eligible formedical care under the CHAMPVA program.

flag amendmentH.J. res.13 – (66 Cosponsors), Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO),

01/07/11 – Referred to House Subcommittee on the Constitution.A proposal to amend the Constitution of the United States to giveCongress the power to prohibit the physical desecration of the]ag of the United States. companion Bill: s.J. res. 19 –(30 Cosponsors), Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) – Referred to SenateCommittee on the Judiciary. A proposal to amend the Consti-tution of the United States to give Congress the power toprohibit the physical desecration of the ]ag of the United States.

Guard & reserveH.r.152 – (28 Cosponsors), Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), 01/05/11

– Referred to House Armed Services Committee. e NationalGuard Border Enforcement Act would utilize the National Guardto provide support for the border control activities of the UnitedStates Customs and Border Protection of the Department ofHomeland Security

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Key Bills in CongressBills in the 112th Congress


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H.r.179 - (3 Cosponsors), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC),01/05/11 – Referred to House Armed Services Committee.Eliminate the requirement that certain former members ofthe reserve components of the Armed Forces be at least60 years of age in order to be eligible to receive healthcare bene\ts.

H.r. 181 – (72 Cosponsors), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), 01/05/11– Referred to House Armed Services Committee. e NationalGuardsmen and Reservists Parity for Patriots Act wouldensure that members of the reserve components of the ArmedForces who have served on active duty or performed activeservice since September 11, 2001, in support of a contingencyoperation or in other emergency situations receive credit forsuch service in determining eligibility for early receipt ofnon-regular service retired pay.

H.r. 1283 - (36 Cosponsors), Rep. Tom Latham (R-IA),03/31/2011 – Referred to House Armed Services Committee.e Reserve Retirement Deployment Credit CorrectionAct would eliminate the per-\scal year calculation of daysof certain active duty or active service used to reducethe minimum age at which a member of a reserve componentof the uniformed services may retire for non-regular service.

mGiB & educational BeneKtsH.r.472 – (2 Cosponsors), Rep. Dan Boren (D-OK), 01/26/11 –

Referred to House Committee on Education and the Workforce. eImpact Aid Fairness and EquityActwouldreauthorize theImpactAidProgram under the ElementaryandSecondaryEducationActof1965.

H.r.1383 – (11 Cosponsors), Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL), 04/06/11Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. e RestoringGI Bill Fairness Act would temporarily preserve higher rates fortuition and fees for programs of education at non-public institutionsof higher learning pursued by individuals enrolled in the Post-9/11Educational Assistance Program of the Department of VeteransAffairs before the enactment of the Post-9/11 Veterans EducationalAssistance Improvements Act of 2010. Signed into law asPl-112-26 by the President on 08/31/2011.

coast Guards. 1665 – (2 Cosponsors), Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK), 10/6/11 –

Referred to Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, andTransportation. Authorize appropriations for the CoastGuard for \scal years 2012 and 2013.–

H.r. 2838 – (1 Cosponsor), Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ),9/2/11 – Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science andTransportation. Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Actof 2011. 11/16/11 Passed full House and sent to Senate.

Health care & medicareH.r.409 – (22 Cosponsors), Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL),

01/24/11 - Referred to House Armed Services Committee.e Chiropractic Health Parity for Military Bene\ciaries Actrequires the Secretary of Defense to develop and implement aplan to provide chiropractic health care services and bene\ts

for certain new bene\ciaries as part of the TRICARE program.

social securityH.r. 149 – (3 Cosponsors), Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), 01/04/11-

Referred to House Ways and Means Committee. e Social SecurityBene\ciaryTaxReductionActwouldamendtheInternalRevenue Codeof 1986 to repeal the 1993 increase in taxes on Social Security bene\ts.

H.r.456 – (33 Cosponsors), Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX),01/26/11 – Referred to the House Ways and Means, Educationand Workforce Committees. e Consumer Price Index forElderly Consumers Act would enable the establishment of aConsumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers to computecost-of-living increases for Social Security bene\ts.

s.123 – (No Cosponsors), Sen. David Vitter (R-LA),01/25/11 – Referred to Senate Budget Committee. e SocialSecurity Lock-Box Act of 2011 would establish a procedure tosafeguard the Social Security Trust Funds.

taxesH.r. 238 – (10 Cosponsors), Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO),

01/07/11 – Referred to House Ways and Means Committee. MilitaryRetiree Health Care Relief Act of 2011 would amend the InternalRevenue Code of 1986 to allow a refundable credit to militaryretirees for premiums paid for coverage under Medicare Part B.

s.113 – (1 Cosponsor), Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX),01/25/11 – Referred to Senate Committee on Finance. e PublicServant Retirement Protection Act seeks to repeal the windfallelimination provision and protect the retirement of public servants.

veteransH.r. 23 – (76 Cosponsors), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), 01/05/11 –

Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. e Belatedank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of2011 would direct the Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs to estab-lish the Merchant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund to pro-vide bene\ts to certain individuals who served in the UnitedStates merchant marine (including the Army Transport Serviceand the Naval Transport Service) during World War II.

H.r.28 - (No Cosponsors), Rep. Mike McIntyre (D-NC),01/05/11 - Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.Improve the outreach activities of the Department ofVeterans Affairs.

H.r.115 – (8 Cosponsors), Rep. Bob Filner (R-CA),01/05/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.e CHAMPVA Children's Protection Act of 2011 would in-crease the maximum age to 26 from 23 for children eligible formedical care under the CHAMPVA program.

H.r. 329 – (25 Cosponsors), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA),01/19/11 - Referred to House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.e Chiropractic Care Available to All Veterans Act would requirethe provision of chiropractic care and services to veterans at allDepartment of Veterans Affairs medical centers and to expandaccess to such care and services.

H.r. 814 – (7 Cosponsors), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), 02/18/11 –Referred to House Committees on Ways and Means, Energy and


Commerce, and Veterans’ Affairs. e Medicare VA ReimbursementAct of 2011 would provide Medicare payments to Departmentof Veterans Affairs medical facilities for items and services pro-vided to Medicare-eligible veterans for non-service-connectedconditions. (is is called Medicare Subvention)

H.r. 1288 – (99 Cosponsors), Rep. G.K. Butter\eld (R-NC),03/31/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.e World War II Merchant Mariner Service Act would directthe Secretary of Homeland Security to accept additional docu-mentation when considering the application for veteran statusof an individual who performed service in the merchantmarines during World War II.

H.r. 1742 – (24 Cosponsors), Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC),05/05/11 - Referred to House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommitteeon Disability Assistance and Memorial affairs. e Jamey Ens-minger Act would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs toestablish a presumption of service connection for illnesses as-sociated with contaminants in the water supply at MarineCorps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and to providehealth care to family members of veterans who lived at CampLejeune while the water was contaminated.

H.r. 2002 – (3 Cosponsor), Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT),05/26/11 – Referred to House Committee on Armed Services.Permit disabled or injured members of the Armed Forces to transferPost 9/11 Educational Assistance bene\ts aer retirement.

H.r. 2074 – (7 Cosponsors), Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle (R-NY), 6/1/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Af-fairs. e Veterans Sexual Assault Prevention and Health CareEnhancement Act. 10/5/11 Reported by Committee to fullHouse and placed on calendar for future consideration.

H.r. 2349 – (1 Cosponsor), Rep. Jon Runyan (R-NJ), 6/24/11 –referred to House Committee on Veteran’s Affairs. Direct theSecretary of Veterans Affairs to annually assess the skills of certainemployees and managers of the Veterans Bene\ts Administration,and for other purposes. 10/6/11 Reported by Committee toFull House and placed on calendar for future consideration.

H.r. 2383 – (No Cosponsors), Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH),06/24/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.e “Modernizing Notice to Claimants Act.” Authorize theSecretary of Veterans Affairs to use electronic communicationto provide required notice to claimants for bene\ts underlaws administered by the Secretary. NaUs Note: this wouldbe optional for those veterans who choose to receiveelectronic communications.

H.r. 2433 – (31 Cosponsors), Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL), 7/7/11 -Veterans Opportunity to Work Act of 2011. 10/13/11 Passedby full House and sent to Senate for further consideration.

H.r. 3612 – (37 Cosponsors), Rep. Gibson (R-NY), 12/8/11 -e Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2011. Referred toHouse Committee on Veterans Affairs. Clarify presumptions re-lating to the exposure (to Agent Orange) of certain veterans whoserved in the vicinity of the Republic of Vietnam, and for otherpurposes. companion Bill s. 1629 (8 Cosponsors), Sen. Gillibrand(D-NY), 9/23/11 - e Agent Orange Equity Act of 2011. Clarifypresumptions relating to the exposure of certain veterans, whoserved in the vicinity of the Republic of Vietnam.

H.r. 3662 – (41 Cosponsors), Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon(R-CA), 12/14/11 - Down Payment to Protect National Security Act

of 2011. Amend the Balanced Budget and Emergency De\cit Con-trol Act of 1985 to modify the discretionary spending limits to takeinto account savings resulting from the reduction in the number ofFederal employees. Referred to the Committees on Oversight andGovernment Reform and the Budget.

H.r. 3895 – (1 Cosponsor), Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL), 2/3/12 -Protect VA Healthcare Act of 2012. Amend the Balanced Budgetand Emergency De\cit Control Act of 1985 to clarify that all veter-ans programs are exempt from sequestration. Referred to HouseCommittee on the Budget.

s. 277 – (9 Cosponsors), Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), 02/03/11 –Referred to Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. e Caring forCamp Lejeune Veterans Act would furnish hospital care, medicalservices and nursing home care to veterans who were stationed atCamp Lejeune, N.C., while the water was contaminated atCamp Lejeune.

s. 491 – (13 Cosponsors), Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR),03/04/11 – Referred to Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.e Honor America’s Guard-Reserve Retirees Act of 2011would recognize the service in the reserve components of theArmed Forces by members who were never activated for Fed-eral Service during their careers, by honoring them with statusas veterans under law. companion Bill: H.r. 1025- (49Cosponsors), Rep. Tim Walz (D-MN), 03/10/2011 – Referredto House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.

s. 1359 – (5 Cosponsors), Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), 07/13/11 –Referred to Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.Honoring Service through National Park Access Act. Make theNational Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass availableat a discount to members of the Armed Forces and veterans.

survivorsH.r.120 – (10 Cosponsors), Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC),

01/05/11 – Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.e Disabled Veterans' Surviving Spouses Home Loans Actwould provide for eligibility for housing loans guaranteed bythe Department of Veterans Affairs for the surviving spousesof certain totally disabled veterans. 10/13/11 Bill language wasplaced into H. R. 2433 as an amendment and passed by theHouse and forwarded to the Senate for further consideration.

H.r. 178 – (171 Cosponsors), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), 01/05/11 –Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. e MilitarySurviving Spouses Equity Act would repeal the requirementfor reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Bene\tPlan for military surviving spouses to offset the receipt of vet-erans Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.companion Bill: s. 260 – (49 Cosponsors), Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), 2/2/11 - Referred to Senate Armed Services Committee.

s. 1852 – (1-Cosponsor), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), 11/10/11– Referred to House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “Spouses ofHeroes Education Act.” Expand the Marine Gunnery SergeantJohn David Fry scholarship to include spouses of members of theArmed Forces who die in the line of duty

Pay & compensationH.r. 186 – (24 Cosponsors), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), 01/05/11 –

Referred to House Committees on Armed Services, Veterans’Affairs and Budget. Expand the eligibility for concurrent receipt

®


of military retired pay and veterans’ disability compensation toinclude all members of the uniformed services who are retiredunder chapter 61 of such title for disability, regardless of themembers’ disability rating percentage.

H.r. 303 - (72 Cosponsors), Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL),01/18/11 – Referred to House Veterans’ Affairs and ArmedServices Committees. e Retired Pay Restoration Act wouldpermit additional retired members of the Armed Forces whohave a service-connected disability to receive both disabilitycompensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs fortheir disability and either retired pay by reason of their yearsof military service or Combat-Related Special Compensationand to eliminate the phase-in period under current law withrespect to such concurrent receipt. companion Bill: s. 344(27 Cosponsors), Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), 2/14/11 – Referredto Senate Committee on Armed Services.

H.r. 333 – (146 Cosponsors), Rep. Sanford Bishop (R-GA),01/19/11 – Referred to House Armed Services and Veterans’Affairs Committees. e Disabled Veterans Tax Termination Actwould permit retired members of the Armed Forces who havea service-connected disability rated less than 50 percent to receiveconcurrent payment of both retired pay and veterans’ disabilitycompensation, to eliminate the phase-in period for concurrent

receipt and to extend eligibility for concurrent receipt to chapter61 disability retirees with less than 20 years of service.

H.r. 1407 – e Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-LivingAdjustment Act of 2011 effective December 1, 2011, increases therates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabili-ties and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation forthe survivors of certain disabled veterans. 11/2/11 Houseagreed to Senate bill and passed S. 894. 11/09/11 Bill signed byPresident and became Public law 112-53

s. 696 – (5 Cosponsors), Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) – 03/31/11 –Referred to Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Treat Vet Centersas Department of Veterans Affairs facilities for purposes of paymentsor allowances for bene\ciary travel to Department facilities.

miscellaneousH.r. 1775 – (52 Cosponsors), Rep. Joseph Heck (R-NV),

05/05/11 – Referred to House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime,Terrorism and Homeland Security. Amend title 18, United StatesCode, to establish a criminal offense relating to fraudulent claimsabout military service. companion Bill: s. 1728 – (No Cosponsors),Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA), 10/18/11 – Referred to Senate Committeeon the Judiciary. “e Stolen Valor Act of 2011.” Establish a criminaloffense relating to fraudulent claims about military service.

Your 2012 NAUS election survey and NAUS Political Action Committee(NAUS PAC) contribution form will be mailed in mid-June.

We hope you will respond and thank you inadvance for your generous contributions.

The nonpartisan NAUS Political Action Committee provides a way forNAUS members to collectively contribute to the campaigns for members ofCongress. NAUS PAC contributes to congressional members who advocatemaintaining a strong national defense and support or our uniformed servicespersonnel, our retirees and other veterans, and their families and survivors.

With DoD’s continuing verbal attacks on TRICARE costs, defense programcutbacks and deficit reduction pressures that are likely to affect service-members and retirees, we must use every tool we have to remind ourgovernment leaders that the promises made in return for uniformedservice to our country must be kept. Your generous contributions to theNAUS PAC are another effective way to help us win.

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The following is a slightly edited letter receivedfrom a top NAUS member:

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The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter

how justified, shall be directly proportional as to how they perceive the

veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their Nation.”

~ GEORGE WASHINGTON ~

Uniformed Services Journal March/April 2012 9

As we go to press, President Barack Obama released his\scal year 2013 Defense Department spending plan.

NAUS does not endorse this budget. We rec-ognize the \scal situation we face, but one thing has notchanged—we continue to face a dangerous enemy and itis important to understand that our defense is the corereason for our national government.

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Army Gen.Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs ofStaff, have presented the plan on the annual DoD budgetto members of the Senate Armed Services Committee andthose of the House Armed Services. In addition, thePentagon leaders have also delivered testimony to theCongressional defense appropriations panel.

Overall, the top controversies initiated under the President’s proposals surround the proposed changes in military health care, force structure and the reduction inthe number of soldiers and Marines, and the closure ofbases and retirement of aircra, particularly in the AirNational Guard and Reserve. And certainly, as the yeargoes on and more details are revealed, new controversieswill arise.

In brief, the \scal 2013 military spending plan submit-ted to Congress by the President calls for base budget of$525 billion, a reduction of $45 billion from previous projections in the \rst year. e budget also requests $85 billion for overseas contingency funding. Accordingto the President and the Secretary, the FY2013 militarybudget begins a reduction of $480 billion over the nextdecade, called for under the Budget Control Act approvedlast year.

Clearly the Pentagon could do a better job of managingthe spending necessary to keep America free at home andprepared for threats from overseas. But our members of

Congress and the Administration need to realize that the defense budget is not the cause of this country’s \scalwoes. If, however, we proceed on the assumption that itis, we jeopardize our security and take an unacceptablerisk to our country, our freedom, and our interestsaround the world.

In historic terms, our federal government spends onlya small portion on defense. e base budget this yearprovides less than 3.5 percent of the Gross DomesticProduct (GDP). During the Cold War defense spendingwas 7.5 percent of our national economy as expressed byGDP. And at the height of the Reagan buildup in 1986,defense was 6.3 percent.

NAUS clearly recognizes that the growing debtthreatens our future. However, we also recognize thatthe nation continues to face serious threats, and it isimportant to understand that we cannot bury ourheads in the sand and wish them away. Defeat is not an option.

e lessons learned in experience tell us that the dan-ger of unintentionally creating a “hollow Force” is real. Ifthe United States is to meet the challenges that confrontus, it is imperative that we exercise common sense andbring a responsible approach to decisions on public pol-icy. Cutting our budget on the backs of our uniformedservices is a burden our country cannot afford and ourservice personnel, past and present, should not shoulder.

Cuts from the defense account include reductions in personnel, health care, weaponsprocurement, research, military construction and related systems. Let’s take a look at some of the President’s recommendations.

President’s 2013 Defense Dept. Budget Request

10 Uniformed Services Journal March/April 2012

Super Committee StumbleSets Unwise Course for

Nation’s SecurityAs readers know, when the Joint

Select Committee on De\cit Reduc-tion, the so-called Super Committee,failed to come upwith a bipartisanplan to cut the nation’s de\cit before lastanksgiving’sdeadline anacross-the-board cut wasput in place (asequester) that would mandate hundreds of billions of additional cuts in Pentagon spending.

e Super Committee’s inabilityto reach consensus means that theBudget Control Act’s sequestrationprovision triggers starting in Fiscal2013 a cut of more than a half trilliondollars from the Pentagon's budgetover the next 10 years on top of themore than $450 billion in reductionsthe White House already has askedthe Defense Department to absorb inits FY 2013 Budget submission.

Top officials in the Administrationincluding Defense Secretary LeonPanetta have called the committee’sfailure a disappointing setback for the country. Panetta called the sequester mechanism a “doomsdaybutton,” and he said the additionalcuts would “tear a seam in the nation’sdefense” and “lead to a hollow forceincapable of sustaining the missions it is assigned.”

NAUS is already gravely con-cerned that the President’s budgetpresents an unacceptable risk to our security and freedom. It is asclear to us as it is to the Secretary that further cuts under a sequesterwould be catastrophic. (See next article on following page about the introduction of legislation to reversesequestration cuts.)

––––

TRICARE Cost-Share Steeply Increased - The President’s new budget for ?scal year 2013 andbeyond seeks additional increases in bene?ciary payments for their earned health care. Retireesunder age 65 using TRICARE Prime would see increases ramped up over a four year period and tieredbased on military retirement pay. Beginning in 2017, increases in fees would increase by the rate ofmedical in@ation, increases in tiers would increase based on Cost of Living rate. (See table 1)

The Pentagon’s TRICARE Standard Healthcare Plan would establish for the ?rst time an enrollmentfee. It would ramp up these fees for the ?rst four years and index to medical in@ation afterward. Copays would remain at 25 percent. (See Table 2)

The President and Secretary would initiate “modest annual fees” for TFL coverage. Fees would be ar-bitrarily boosted for the ?rst four years, then based on the rate of medical in@ation. Fees would alsobe tiered on retirement pay with tiers adjusted by annual COLA. (See Table 3)

The President’s proposal also boosts pharmacy copays. Prescriptions ?lled at MTFs would continueat no costs. Mail Order would also see increases. Non-formulary would have limited availability inretail pharmacies in FY 2013 and beyond.

Military Personnel – Retirement - The President proposes Congress establish a Commissionto review military retirement and compensation. At this time, the Pentagon plan does not proposeany changes in retirement for currently serving or retired uniformed services. They would be fullygrandfathered. The Commission would follow BRAC procedures that would reform make recom-mendations, present those changes to the President who would decide whether to forward it toCongress. If forwarded, Congress would have to vote “yes” or “no” without amendments

Table 1 – TRICARE PRIME Families (Individual Rates are also Ramped up)Retired Pay FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017Tier 1, $0-$22,589 $520 $600 $680 $760 $850 $893Tier 2, to $45,178 $520 $720 $920 $1,185 $1,450 $1,523Tier 3, and above $520 $820 $1,120 $1,535 $1,950 $2,048

Table 2 – TRICARE Standard & Extra Family Rate (Individual Rates is 50%)Annual Enrollment FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017

Family $0 $140 $170 $200 $230 $250Annual Deductibles FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017

Family $300 $320 $400 $460 $520 $580

Table 3 – TRICARE for Life (per Individual)Retired Pay FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017Tier 1, $0-$22,589 $0 $35 $75 $115 $150 $158Tier 2, to $45,178 $0 $75 $150 $225 $300 $317Tier 3, and above $0 $115 $225 $335 $450 $475

Pharmacy CopaysRetail-1month fill FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017Generic $5 $5 $5 $5 $5 $5Brand $12 $26 $28 $30 $32 $34Non-Formulary $25 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/AMail-Order FY2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017Generic $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $9Brand $9 $26 $28 $30 $32 $34Non-Formulary $25 $51 $54 $58 $62 $65


Lawmaker Introduce Critical Legislation to Reverse Damaging Sequestration Cuts to Our Military

e Down Payment to ProtectNational Security Act (H.R. 3662),introduced by Armed Services Com-mittee Chairman Howard P. “Buck”McKeon to reverse damaging seques-tration cuts scheduled when theSuper Committee failed, has alreadygained 41 cosponsors in the House of Representatives.

As introduced, the Down Paymentto Protect National Security Act wouldprevent a further round of cuts, beyond the $465 billion already partof the President’s budget request,from hitting our military as a resultof sequestration. H.R. 3662 achievesthe \rst year of savings required insequestration through attrition in thefederal workforce by 10 percent overten years.

As readers know, a sequestermandates a reduction, calling for an“automatic” spending cutback. Unless repealed or revised, currentlaw directs that defense spendingwould be cut nearly $600 billion ontop of the cut already outlined in thePresident’s budget.

Defense Secretary Leon Panettacomments on the risks inherent insequester. e Secretary has said thatunder the large reductions of seques-tration, “We would have to reduce thesize of the military sharply. Rough estimates suggest aer ten years ofthese cuts, we would have the smallestground force since 1940, the smallestnumber of ships since 1915, and thesmallest Air Force in its history.”

In the Senate, U.S. Senators JohnMcCain, Jon Kyl, Lindsay Graham, JohnCornyn, Marco Rubio and Kelly Ayottehave introduced S. 2065, the “DownPayment to Protect National SecurityAct,” which would replace the devas-tating cuts under sequester with moreresponsible, lower priority expenditures.

e bill, S. 2065, speci\cally extendsthe federal employee pay freeze – \rstimplemented by President BarackObama – though June 2014, and restricts federal hiring to only twoemployees for every three leaving,until the size of the federal governmentworkforce is reduced by \ve percent.

According to a January 30 reportfrom the nonpartisan CongressionalBudget Office, federal employeesare compensated 16 percent higherthan their private sector counterparts,and enjoy a 48 percent advantage in beneQts.

In a press release announcing theintroduction of the bill the Senatorssaid, “During a time of persistent unemployment, stagnant economicgrowth, and record deIcits, it’s inex-cusable that federal employees arebeing compensated so much more thanthe taxpayers in the private sector whosubsidize those federal beneIts.”

NAUS agrees that the sequestershould be avoided, and we supportresponsible members of Congressworking to revise or repeal the se-quester. ere is no credible voice inAmerican politics that suggests the im-pact of the maximum sequestrationwould be anything other than devastat-ing for our defense posture and starklythreatening to our national security.

DoD Budget Cuts and Increasing Costs to Retirees

In a late January Pentagon pressconference, Secretary of DefenseLeon Panetta and Chairman of theJoint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E.Dempsey outlined the main areas ofproposed DoD spending cuts for thenext National Defense Budget.

Speaking in broad generalities, thePentagon leaders outlined some ofthe proposed cuts in manpower,equipment and operations. While manyof the proposals are not new, in factmany have been proposed in previousyears, there are a lot of changes.

“We believe this is a balanced andcomplete package,” Panetta said. Hesaid the plan begins to shi the Pen-tagon’s focus from the long wars inIraq and Afghanistan to future chal-lenges in Asia, the Mideast and in cyberspace. More special operationsforces will be available around theworld, he said, and the Pentagon willstress improvements in cyberdefenses.

Of most concern to NAUS areproposals to:

•Further increase premiums andfees paid for TRICARE Prime. Whilethis proposal does include a tieredapproach based on retired pay, DoD

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says it would increase the fees basedon medical in]ation costs rather thanon COLA increases as mandated inthe 2012 NDAA.

•Establishing a new enrollmentfee for the TRICARE for Life (TFL)program for retirees 65 and older,again using a tiered approach. Mostof those now using TFL were prom-ised free healthcare for life if theycompleted a full career in the military.at promise has already have com-promised with having to be enrolledin Medicare Part B to use TFL bene\ts.Now DoD wants to add a yearly fee,which would increase with in]ation,as well as the Part B costs, which alsoincrease with in]ation.

•Implementing additional in-creases in pharmacy co-pays in amanner that increases incentives foruse of generics and mail order againusing a tiered approach.

Secretary Panetta said that most ofthe changes proposed in this budgetwill not affect active duty personnelor their families and they are also exempting medically retired and sur-vivors of those who died on activeduty from all health care changes.

DoD will also ask the Congress toestablish a commission with BRAC-likeauthority to conduct a comprehensivereview of military retirement in thecontext of total military compensation.e goal of the commission would beto “recommend changes in order tomeet the personnel needs of the DoDin a cost effective manner.” DoDstrongly supports protecting the retirement bene\ts of those who currently serve by grandfatheringtheir bene\ts. Any reforms shouldonly affect future recruits.

e premise that military healthcare has seen rapid growth is some-what suspect in light of the recentdisclosure that medical in]ation,overall, had only increased 3.8 percent in 2008 and 3.9 percent in2009. DoD totally disregards anypromises made or the fact that

retirees have earned their promisedbene\ts and many count on them tomaintain their quality of life.

As you know last year NAUS led the Qght against the 13 percentincrease in TRICARE fees and copays. Now, less than a year later,DoD is once again proposing toraise healthcare fees for all retirees.Maybe now some associations whoagreed with DoD last year will rethink their positions. “Camel’snose underthe tent”ring anybells???

VA Funding and Sequestration

House Veterans’ Affairs CommitteeChairman Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL), recently introduced H.R. 3895, theProtect VA Healthcare Act of 2012.

e purpose of the legislation is toexempt the Department of VeteransAffairs from any funding cuts thatmay be proposed in the budget.NAUS applauds Chairman Miller andurge the rest of Congress to quicklyagree. Taking care of veterans is acost of war and there must be suffi-cient funding to continue to take careof those who sacri\ced so much indefense of our country.

NAUS applaudsChairman Miller, andwe urge Congress tocosponsor and toagree with his effortsto protect veteransfunding. Taking careof veterans is a cost ofwar and there must besufficient funding toprovide care for sickand disabled veteranswho sacriQced theirhealth in defense ofour country.

Fiscal 2013 Budget RequestCuts Deep into Air ForceUnder President Obama’s new

strategic guidance and his \scal year2013 budget recommendation, theAir Force plans to release 9,900 personnel from the force startingnext October and cut out nearly 300aircra through \scal2017. e cuts hit bothactive and reservestrength across nearlyevery State in the Union.

In its \scal year 2013budget request, Air Force SecretaryMichael B. Donley and Chief of StaffGen. Norton A. Schwartz present anAir Force Budget that would cut3,900 airmen from active-duty and5,100 from the Air National Guardand 900 from the Air Reserve.

e Air Force budget also looks toreduce its force structure to includecutting 286 planes over the next \veyears defense plan. e reduction includes more than 200 of those planesto stand down in \scal 2013 alone —123 \ghters, 133 cargo and transportaircra, and 30 intelligence, surveil-lance and reconnaissance platforms.

Ground troops in other Serviceswill be amazed to \nd the plan in-cludes speci\c cuts in the A-10 aircra,a combat proven aircra essential forclose air support in combined arms

CT-1 Chapter President RMCM Paul Dillon USN (Ret) (l) recently met withCongressman Joe Courtney (D-CT2) to discuss and obtain the Congressmansupport of H.R.3612 Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2011.


and stability operations. Gen. Schwartzsaid, “We’re reducing 102 A-10s, andthere’s still going to be 246 A-10s le ininventory.” According to the document,the Air Force plans to retire \ve A-10squadrons, while keeping the Air Forcebomber group intact to provide support to ground forces.

e plan the Air Force presentsfor \scal 2013 hits Maryland, Michi-gan, North Dakota, Ohio, Montana, Connecticut and Mississippi. In addition, signi\cant cuts in A-10swill remove 24 from Barksdale AirForce Base in Louisiana, 21 from Sel-fridge Air National Guard Base in

Michigan, 20 from Fort Smith inArkansas and another 20 from FortWayne in Indiana. Meanwhile,planned retirements of 65 of the old-est C-130 cargo aircra will affect 10bases and force the closure of the AirReserve Station in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Sec. Donley said the Air Force faceddifficult decisions in addressing thepreviously approved $487 billion reduc-tion in DoD spending over the nextdecade. “ese are tough choices, butthis is manageable.” And referring tothe possibility of an additional $600billion sequester he added, “providedthere are no further reductions.”

NaUs Joins “fightfraud first!” coalition

NAUS has joined leading healthcare, senior, veteran and patientgroups from across America’s health-care system in partnering to developcommonsense solutions to target andeliminate fraudulent and abusivespending in Medicare before theMedicare program is eaten by fraud.

As a member of the “Fight FraudFirst!” Coalition, NAUS is dedicated toadvancing solutions that strengthenAmerica’s vital healthcare programs.

Recognizing that an estimated tenpercent of Medicare and Medicaidfunding is lost to waste, fraud, andabuse each year, we are working withother organizations in a united beliefthat eradicating these payouts mustbe a \rst priority toward getting our\nancial house in order.

According to some governmentestimates, the Centers for Medicareand Medicaid Services (CMS) madeupwards of $70 billion in improperpayments last year. While this fundingis intended for healthcare services forour nation’s health programs, system]aws are allowing valuable taxpayerdollars to fall in the hands of crimi-nals. Instead of stemming the clearcriminality, federal government officials are looking at taxpayers andretirees to pay more.

Already, bipartisan members ofCongress have introduced legislationthat would deploy increased penalties,novel technologies, and pre-paymentreview policies to combat fraud.Likewise, proposals have been craedto target aberrant billing practicesthat will lead to substantial savingswithout harming seniors who dependon these programs.

With a staggering 10 percent of allMedicare and Medicaid and TRICAREdollars lost year-after-year to waste,fraud and abuse, NAUS and the“Fight Fraud First!” group overwhelm-ingly agree that our governmentneeds to make program integrity

Today, Medicare and Medicaid waste,

fraud and abuse cost American taxpayers tens

of billions of dollars.

That’s why — as Washington looks for ways to reduce federal spending —

strengthening Medicare and Medicaid program integrity and enforcement must be

a top priority.

Congressional leaders, the Administration, and community advocates have proposed strong measures

to fight Medicare and Medicaid waste, fraud and abuse.

This is the right direction, and it should be pursued before any dollar is taken from senior citizens and Americans with disabilities or

from the benefits they depend upon.

Americans overwhelmingly support program integrity and enforcement reform as a way to protect patients and generate savings. So do we. And so should Congress.

FIGHT FRAUD FIRST!CONGRESS:

ACT.AMERICANSAGAINSTFRAUD.ORG


improvement a top priority. Criminals should be targeted \rst.We need to stop paying crooks.

We urge lawmakers and policy-makers to focus on program integrityand reforms that will preserve goodhealth care and strengthen the programs. Fighting fraud \rst is the right approach, and it’s whatAmerican taxpayers and Americanvoters and Uniformed Services members expect Washington to do.

Update on Coast GuardAuthorization Legislation

As readers know, the Housepassed its version of a Coast Guardauthorization bill (H.R. 2838) in November and forwarded it to theSenate Committee on Commerce,Science, and Transportation for further consideration.

In January, the Senate Committeeon Commerce, Science, and Trans-portation also acted on its version ofthe authorization, S. 1665, a two-yearauthorization bill for the multi-missionoperations of the Coast Guard. eHouse bill, H.R. 2838, would providea three-year authorization of theCoast Guard’s budget.

NAUS applauds Sen. Mark Begich(D-AK), chairman of the Coast GuardSubcommittee, and Sen. John Rock-efeller (D-WV), chairman of the fullCommittee, on moving forward.

In past years, Coast Guard authoriza-tion has had difficulty moving throughthe Senate, but this year appears to

offer an improved opportunity with Rockefellerand Begich.

NAUS nowneeds our Senatechampions to as-sure that S. 1665Qnds an openingfor Roor time inthe MajorityLeader’s legislativeagenda. Once theSenate works itswill, a House-Senate

conference could be arranged and a Qnalmeasure worked out.

Passage is important. Today, theCoast Guard performs a diverse mis-sion that can be grouped broadly intothree categories—safety, security , andstewardship. And it consists of over42,000 active duty personnel, 7,000

reservists, 7,800 civilian employees,and 30,000 auxiliary volunteers.

At this point, NAUS is encouragedthat a completed authorization bill forQscal year 2012 or beyond is highly

possible. We will press forward. Itlooks good, but time is passing andonly time will tell.

Expedited Airport Security Processing

On January 3, President Obamasigned into law the Risk-Based SecurityScreening for Members of the ArmedForces Act (Public Law 112-86)

As enacted, the new law requirescoordination between TSA and theDepartment of Defense in establish-ing an expedited screening processand clari\es that the TSA Administra-tor retains the authority to require additional screening for a member of the Armed Forces should intelligenceor law enforcement information raiseany concerns.

NAUS is pleased to see the newlaw properly recognizes the pre-ciousness of time--nothing more important than time--to the patriotic men and women serving in our armed services, but it doesnot compromise aviation security.

While \rst ensuring safety, thepurpose of the new law is to devise amethod to help speed up the screeningprocess for our troops who are in uniform and who are traveling on airplanes while on official duty.

As our military presence in Iraqwinds down, more servicememberswill, thankfully, be coming home. We owe it to them and to all of ourservicemembers to do all we can to smooth their travels so that theycan get home and into the arms oftheir families.

NAUS agrees with Senator KayBailey Hutchinson, a leading spon-sor of the Senate bill, who said, “I think the vast majority of Americans would agree that our military members make sacriNces for our nation every day and haveearned the right from a grateful nation to go to the front of the line,when traveling on official orders.”


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Doctors Frustration Growing on

Reimbursement Problems NAUS recently came across re-

sults of a survey by the ConnecticutState Medical Society that indicates agrowing reluctance of doctors to acceptMedicare and TRICARE patients.

e survey, released January 18,reports that 19 percent of physiciansin Connecticut have begun limitingappointments for patients covered byMedicare and TRICARE or havebegun to reduce their patient-loadwith either type of coverage.

e Connecticut report stronglysuggests a growing frustration inadding more Medicare and TRICAREpatients due to the prolonged uncer-tainty about reimbursement rates andrelated bureaucratic hassles withMedicare, which diminish the bene\tof treating these patients.

Reports we have heard from retirees in Texas, California, Floridaand other States, with large popula-tions of military retirees, say \ndingcoverage is getting more difficult.is situation does not bode well forall the retirees now reaching or approaching the magic 65 age whenthe only available medical coverage isTRICARE for Life and Medicare.

As we go to press, members of the House and Senate are ready to approve an extension of the “DocFix.” NAUS knows there is clear

and Qrm bi-partisan support for asolution to this continuing situation.

Understanding the situation,NAUS supports a temporary exten-sion but is working with other military and medical associationsto Qnd a permanent reimbursementpolicy. Kicking the can down theroad, using temporary \xes, is betterthan failure, but the uncertainty ofthe situation is driving doctors andother medical providers to look else-where for patients who carry other,more certain, insurance.

NAUS Supports Legislation to Fight

“Super Bugs”NAUS has recently been alerted

to legislation that would help \ght a growing frequency of bacterial infections that have hit our woundedmen and women and now spread tocivilian hospitals.

Traditional medicines, includingPenicillin and a host of common antibiotic drugs, are proving less effective and in too many cases ineffective at battling these infections.In too many instances, the “super bugs”are resistant to known antibiotics.

Unfortunately, drug developmenthas not kept up with the pace of natural bacterial mutation and ourwounded and sick are paying the price.e “super bugs” are winning and theirinfection too oen results in death.

To address this growing healththreat, NAUS is supporting theGenerating Antibiotic IncentivesNow Act, otherwise known as theGAIN Act.

e GAIN Act is introduced in the House by Representatives PhilGingrey (R-GA), a medical doctor,and Gene Green (D-TX). e bill(HR 2182) at press time has 36cosponsors. Senators Bob Corker(R-TN) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) recently introduced a com-panion bill in the Senate (S.1734)with 7 cosponsors.

In summary, the GAIN Act is bipartisan legislation that seeks tospur development of new antibiotics,without putting federal dollars atstake, yet providing a number ofmarket-driven incentives to advanceinnovation and development.

ose in military combat medi-cine have repeatedly adapted and developed new ways to improve thesurvivability of those they serve. We do not want to lose them to anuntreatable, deadly bug for which no treatment is available.

It’s a real-life race against the“super bugs” and we don’t want tolose. We must harness American ingenuity to win and the GAIN Actmoves us forward.

NAUS encourages its membersto express support for the GAIN Actto their elected representatives.


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Not sure what these boxes are? They are QR codes. Here’s what to do with them:1. Download the app - Search “QR code” on your smartphone to find a free QR reader app2. Scan the Code - Hold your smartphone over the box. The app will use your camera to read the code.3. Enjoy - These codes direct your phone to an email address, website, video, etc. This one takes you

to CapWiz directly, right there on your phone! How easy is that!

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Tips on Writing to aMember of Congress

To a Senator To a RepresentativeThe Honorable (full name) The Honorable (full name)United States Senate US House of Representatives Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20515Dear Senator (Last Name): Dear Representative (Last Name):

The PresidentThe White House1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington, DC 20500Dear Mr. President:

Letters and emails are the most popular choices of communication with a congressional office. NAUS’ online CapWiz feature,http://capwiz.com/naus, makes sending an email easy. You may also call or send a fax. Regardless of how you contactelected officials, these tips will help make sure your representative knows where you stand.(When using email, include your name and address in your message.)

• State the purpose of your letter or email in the first paragraph. If it pertains to a specific bill identify it by the bill’s nameor bill number such as House bill (H.R. ____) or Senate bill (S. ____).

• Be courteous, to the point, and include key information using personal examples to support your position. • Address only one issue in each letter or email; and if possible, keep the letter to one page. • Ask for the congressional member to support your position, to provide his/her position on the issue and if he/she disagrees, to state the reason for disagreement.

AAddddrreessssiinngg CCoorrrreessppoonnddeennccee::

Get legislative alerts and contact Congressdirectly with the NAUS Legislative Action Center:

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tricare Newstricare Pharmacy

BeneKts and informationPhone Number changes

Recently the TRICARE RetailPharmacy and Home Delivery areashave merged and their phone num-bers have changed. TRICARE bene\ciaries should now call 1-877-363-1303 for TRICARE RetailPharmacy and Home Delivery concerns, update information or askquestions about their TRICARE prescription drug bene\ts.

In addition the TRCARE PharmacyHelp Desk number for Pharmacistswas also changed. Pharmacistsshould now call 1-877-363-1304for information or assistance onquestions, billing, or other concernsthey may have regarding their TRICARE bene\ciaries. TRICAREofficials also note that convertingyour prescriptions to home deliveryover the phone takes about 7 minutesand your \rst shipment will arrive in roughly 14 days.

tricare dentalProgram changing

Effective May 1, 2012, MetLife willbecome the dental carrier for theTRICARE Dental Program (TDP).MetLife will begin providing dentalcoverage to over 2 million familymembers of uniformed service activeduty personnel, members of the Selected Reserve and IndividualReady Reserve, their eligible familymembers, and Survivors.

Bene\ciaries will have access to MetLife's network with over161,000 dentist access points, andthis number continues to grow.

tricare PreventiveHealthcare services

Currently, TRICARE covers clinical preventive services for allTRICARE bene\ciaries. ose enrolled in Prime may receive clinical preventive services from theirprimary care manger or from anynetwork provider without a referralor authorization at no cost. For bene\ciaries using TRICARE Stan-dard and Extra, cost-shares apply for all services except screenings for

colorectal cancer, breast cancer, cervicalcancer and prostate cancer; immu-nizations; and well-child visits forchildren under six years of age.

TRICARE covers comprehensivehealth promotion and disease preven-tion examinations for bene\ciaries ages24 months and older. is coverageincludes one comprehensive preventiveclinical evaluation and a follow-up dur-ing the following age intervals: 2-4, 5-11, 12-17, 18-39, 40-64.

Historic low inHealth expenditure

According to the annual report of national health expenditures(NHE), published in the Januaryissue of the journal Health Affairs,U.S. healthcare spending experiencedhistorically low rates of growth in2009 and 2010

Analysts at the Centers forMedicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)report that the increase in spendingfor 2009 represents the lowest rate ofincrease in the entire 51-year historyof the NHE. e low rate of growthre]ects lower utilization in healthcare than in previous years. e report notes that U.S. health carespending grew only 3.9 percent in2010, reaching $2.6 trillion or $8,402per person, just 0.1 percentage pointfaster than in 2009.

As you know NAUS led an effortlast year to thwart the 13 percent increase in TRICARE Prime premium costs that went into effect on October 1. Unfortunately thiswas unsuccessful due to a schism in veterans organizations and military associations that led to disagreement in whether to agreewith the increase or Qght it. As cannow be seen the 13 percent increasewas 3-times the actual rate of increase in expenditures.

tricare contact information You can usually ?nd answers to your questions pertaining to your healthcare bene?ts simply

by visiting the TRICARE Web site. But you also have the option of calling the respective contractorfor information. Listed below are some of the most commonly requested phone numbers.

• Health Net Federal Services (Health Net) . . . . . . . . .(877) 874-2273• Humana Military Healthcare Systems (HMHS) . . . .(800) 444-5445 • TriWest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(888) 874-9378 • TRICARE Latin America & Canada (TLAC), TRICARE PaciQc,

and TRICARE Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(888) 777-8343 • TRICARE for Life (TFL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(866) 773-0404 • TRICARE Retail/Mail Order Pharmacy . . . . . . . . . . .(877) 363-1303• TRICARE Pharmacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(866) 363-8779• TRICARE Dental Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(800) 866-8499• TRICARE Retiree Dental Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(888) 838-8737• Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System . .(800) 538-9552• Fraud and Abuse Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(800) 977-6761


®

News Briefs

tricare summaryof BeneKts

With changes in TRICARE fees, copays and deductibles, TRICARE bene\ciaries may have questions aboutrecent changes. TRICARE published aneight page guidebook, “TRICARE: Sum-mary of BeneIciary Costs.” Recently updated in November, the guidebookprovides an overview of the costs associ-ated with stateside TRICARE programoptions and TRICARE pharmacy anddental bene\ts.

It contains cost information about copayments, cost-shares, deductibles, enrollment fees, premiums, catastrophiccaps and is organized by program option,bene\ciary type, and service/bene\t.Contact information is also included.

Contact your regional TRICARE contractor customer service support representative to request a copy of this guidebook.

a Number of vaccines available at tricare

authorized PharmaciesTRICARE has expanded the number

of preventive vaccines covered within itsretail pharmacy network. Some of the approved vaccines include, shingles vaccine, seasonal ]u vaccines, as well asthe H1N1 ]u and pneumococcal vaccines.is expanded program also covers immunizations for measles, mumps, and a number of other preventable illnesses.

Bene\ciaries should check ahead before making a trip to the pharmacy tomake the pharmacy is authorized to offerthe requested vaccine(s) and that the vaccine is in stock, as some may be inshort supply. For more information call 1-877-363-1303.

vaccine sees dramatic reduction in respiratory

infection among Navy recruits

Redenovirus vaccinations given toNavy recruits during basic training over

2012 Military HealthSystem Conference

In late January, NAUS legislative directorRick Jones attended the Military HealthcareSystem (MHS) Leadership Conference heldthis year at the Gaylord National Hotel andConvention Center at National Harbor, MD.More than 3,000 military and civilianmedical professionals attended the DefenseDepartment’s premier health conference.

Dr. Jonathan Woodson, Assistant Secretaryof Defense for Health Affairs and Director ofTRICARE Management Activity opened the conference event by thanking military per-sonnel for their commitment to militarymedicine. He commended all attendees for working to achieve a historically high

survival rate for those wounded in combat and the lowest non-battle injury or disease casualtyrates in history.

Woodson also outlined four main priorities in the coming year. “We must begin to planfor how our system will operate in the future and the long term.” He highlighted that patient-centered medical care, reducing the use of tobacco products and obesity in the military community, patient safety and innovation were all important factors in patient care.

In addressing healthcare costs, Woodson did not mention TRICARE fee increases, instead hestressed the need to slow costs through a more agile, innovative system. He also emphasizedthe need to engage with other federal health agencies, especially with the Department of VeteransAffairs, to improve health outcomes. Unfortunately, he fronted for the Pentagon saying thatrestructuring the medical system or, in fact, eliminating headquarters would “hardly make adent in overall costs.”

Also during the opening plenary session, Dr. Jo Ann Rooney, Acting Under Secretary forPersonnel and Readiness, reiterated many of Dr. Woodson’s points stressing the importance ofdeveloping an “agile, flexible” strategy ready to meet the challenges ahead and working toincorporate new advances in medical technology. She told the audience that there are diffi-cult decisions ahead on everything from compensation to force structure. “It will be hard butmust be done together,” she said.

Perhaps the most NAUS interesting observation, however, is the simple fact that the annual leadership gathering has changed dramatically from times only a few short years ago when NAUS and other service advocates had a larger role in the conference as did congressional staff from the House and Senate Armed Services Committees. In fact, the conference once carried the word "TRICARE" in the title.

The main emphasis has shifted to focus more directly on medical professionals and activeduty issues. Nothing massively wrong with that, it should be a strong focus. But advocacy formilitary retirees who earned the benefit seems now to play little to no role in the conference.

NAUS certainly agrees that, yes, the focus needs to be on wounded warriors, their care,and health readiness of the force. The TRICARE reason for the conference has not necessarilybeen hijacked, but there should be room for issues affecting the retiree community, after all,they make up a large portion of the patient load.

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®

News Briefs (cont.)the past two years have led to a dramatic decline in the number of recruits with febrile upper respiratoryinfections. e infection ratedropped from a 2010 high of 93 casesper week down to 11 cases per weekin the \rst month of 2012. Due tothe close quarter’s conditions of basictraining squad bays illness can spreadquickly and result in missed trainingdays for recruits. If too many aremissed they can be dropped fromtraining which will delay their gradu-ation and the time spent in medicalrecovery cost the government money.

is two-pill vaccination costs atotal of $222 per recruit and Navy officials cite its ability to reducefebrile upper respiratory infectionsby 89.5 percent and allowing morerecruits to graduate without medicaldelays as well worth the price tag.is vaccine is not currently availableto the general public, but was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for recruits enteringbasic training. Even so, Defensehealth officials acknowledge that any long-term outcomes must still be monitored.

fda Warns of Possibledrug mix-Up

e Food and Drug Administration(FDA) has issued a warning that pills,tablets, or caplets of Percocet andeight other opioid products may havebeen mixed up. e other productsinclude Opana ER CII, Opana CII,Percodan CII, Oxymorphone hydrochloride CII, Endocet CII, Endodan CII, Morphine sulfate ERCII, and Zydone CIII. A listing on theFDA website is augmented by a morecomplete list of strength and a guide to colors, shapes, and markings of theaffected products by their manufacturer,Endo Pharmaceuticals, here.

While the odds a drug mix-up arelow, individuals with new prescriptions

or re\lls of these medications shouldlook for any pills different in size,shape, color, or markings from theirstandard medication or if the med-ications are different from otherswithin their container. If you noticeirregularities like this, the FDA ad-vises that you return them to thepharmacy. e FDA has instructedpharmacists to visually inspect opioiddrugs that may be affected by thispackaging error. NAUS urges you totalk with your pharmacist to ensureyou receive the proper medicine.

coast Guard and tricaresouth launch Urgent care

Pilot ProgramBeginning January 1, 2012, the

Coast Guard (CG) and TRICARESouth began a pilot program for activeduty CG members and their familiesenrolled in TRICARE Prime or TRI-CARE Prime Remote within the TRICARE South region. is programwill hopefully decrease emergencyroom costs, increase access to care andimprove patient satisfaction.

Eligible CG TRICARE bene\ciariesunable make an appointment with theirPrimary Care manager for urgent caremay visit a TRICARE South networkurgent care provider. ey may visitthese urgent care providers up to fourtimes between Jan. 1, 2012, and Sept.30, 2012, and four times between Oct.1, 2012, and May 1, 2013. If theprovider at the urgent care center asksfor a follow-up visit, the follow up visitwill be counted as an additional visit.For additional information go to theCoast Guard demo site http://www.hu-mana-military.com/urgentcaredemo/.

veterans NewsNew BeneKts Handbooks

Beginning the \rst week in February,the VA began mailing a personalized

Veteran Health Bene\ts Handbook toall veterans that are enrolled in VAhealth care. e new handbooks aretailored speci\cally for each veteranand provide detailed informationabout the VA health services the veteran may be eligible to receive.

e Veteran Health Bene\t Hand-book provides answers to commonquestions such as contact informationfor the Veteran's local facility, instructions on how to schedule appointments, guidelines for com-municating treatment needs and anexplanation of the veteran's responsi-bilities, such as co-pays, if applicable.

Veterans enrolled in VA healthcarewill receive their personalized hand-books via mail as part of a nationalrollout campaign based on PriorityGroup, beginning with PriorityGroup 1 and ending with PriorityGroup 8. In the near future, VA willdevelop an online version of thehandbook for Veterans to access via MyHealtheVet. is will allowVeterans to access their up-to-datehealth bene\t information anywhere,anytime. e VA estimates it willtake around 16 months to get thehandbooks to everyone.

Go to http://www.va.gov/health-beneNts/assets/documents/publica-tions/faq_veterans.pdf for additionalinformation about the VeteransHealth Bene\ts Handbook or call VAat 1 877-222-VETS (8387).

small Business Boot campe Small Business Administration

(SBA) and Syracuse University are expanding the successful Entrepre-neurship Boot Camp for Veteranswith Disabilities (EBV) program to aneighth school, Cornell University.

Since inception of the program,more than 320 wounded warriorshave graduated and more than 150businesses have been launched bygraduates. Participating schools



include Syracuse University, Universityof Connecticut, UCLA, Florida StateUniversity, Texas A&M University,Purdue University, Louisiana StateUniversity, and Cornell University. To\nd out how to participate, visit theEBV Foundation Websitehttp://www.ebvfoundation.org/ .

secretary of the Navy outlines New standards for the

Purple Heart medal Recently, due to advances in the

diagnosis and treatment of mild traumatic brain injuries (MTBI), theSecretary of the Navy (SECNAV) updated the standards and proce-dures for the awarding of the PurpleHeart Medal. Sailors and Marinesmay be awarded the Purple Heart forcertain mild traumatic brain injuriesthat were caused by direct or indirectenemy actions with intent to kill ormaim. ose who suffered a loss ofconsciousness or were “not It for fullduty” by a medical officer for morethan 48 hours aer a concussiveevent may qualify for the PurpleHeart Medal.

e SECNAV stated that PurpleHeart Medals awarded for MTBI willcontinue to meet the historical stan-dards of severity applied to all typesof wounds, ensuring the prestige andintegrity of one of the U.S. military’smost recognized wards is maintained.

deadline extended forGulf War veterans With

Undiagnosed illnessVA has recently announced that

veterans of the 1990-91 Persian GulfWar now have \ve additional years toqualify for bene\ts tied to undiag-nosed illnesses related to their militaryservice. Possible exposure to chemicalweapons, environmental hazards and

vaccinations are among the possiblecauses of illnesses reported by veteranswho served in the Persian Gulf duringthis period.

e deadline to apply for medicaland possible disability bene\ts was extended to Dec. 31, 2016. Veteransor survivors who believe they mayqualify for bene\ts should contact theVA at 1-800-827-1000.

atomic veteransAtomic Era veterans with “presump-tive” cancer due to radiation exposureas a result of military service are eligi-ble for disability compensation fromthe Department of Veterans Affairs(VA). ese same veterans may be eligible for a separate disability compensation program administeredby the Department of Justice (DOJ). Under federal law, an Atomic EraVeteran is de\ned as a veteran whoparticipated in above ground nucleartest from 1945 to 1962; was part ofthe US military occupation forces inor around Hiroshima and Nagasakibefore 1946; or, in certain cases, washeld as a POW in or near Hiroshimaor Nagasaki.If you think you are an Atomic Eraveteran you can call 1-800-827-1000for more information and to contactyour local VA Medical Center for aregistry examination. You can alsocall the DOJ for more information on its compensation program at 1-800-729-7327.

va disability claims andPaperless Processing

On Tuesday, the House Veteran Affairs’ Subcommittee on Disability Assistance held a hearing where TomMurphy, Director of the Compensationand Pension service for the VeteransBene\ts Administration (VBA), out-lined plans for the near future for VA to rollout an electronic Claim for Disability. It will be available through

VONAPP Direct Connect (VDC), VA’sonline e-bene\ts site. Filling out theclaim will be similar to \lling out an online tax return that prompts the userfor answers. e VBA estimates it willtake an average of 30-45 minutes tocomplete a claim. At the same timeanyone initiating a claim will be able to submit any private records or docu-mentation, which will be added to theclaim. Murphy stated that this ability toelectronically \le a claim would takemonths off the average claim time.

tax relief to spouses ofdisabled veterans in texas

ousands of spouses of totallydisabled veterans in Texas now qualify for signi\cant property tax relief under a law which took affectJanuary 1. Texas law already exemptsveterans who are declared 100 percent disabled because of combatinjuries or other service-relatedcauses from paying property taxes ontheir home. As of Jan. 1, that “home-stead exemption” also applies to aspouse aer the veteran dies. Texashas about 300,000 disabled veterans,and nearly 25,000 of them are desig-nated as 100 percent service-relateddisabled, according to Texas VeteransCommission member and NAUSBoard of Directors Co-ChairmanBob Larson.

va expands mobile vetcenter fleet

On Wednesday, the VA deployed20 additional Mobile Vet Centers toincrease access to readjustment coun-seling services for Veterans and theirfamilies in rural and underservedcommunities across the country.

“Mobile Vet Centers allow VA to bringthe many services our Vet Centers offerveterans to all communities, whereverthey are needed,” said VA UnderSecretary for Health Robert A. Petzel.

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News Briefs (cont.)

ese customized vehicles, whichare equipped with a con\dentialcounseling space and a state of the artcommunication package, travel tocommunities to extend VA’s reach to

veterans, service members and theirfamilies, especially those living inrural or remote communities. evehicles also serve as part of the VAemergency response program.

In \scal year 2011, Mobile VetCenters participated in more than3,600 federal, State and locally sponsored veteran-related events.

During the announcement event Under Secretary Petzel also announced that Farber Specialty Vehicles, which built all 70 of theMobile Centers, recently won a competitive bid to produce 230 emer-gency shuttle vehicles for VA over the next \ve years. e shuttles willprovide routine transportation forveteran patients in and around various metro areas during normaloperations, but convert to mobileclinics that will facilitate the evacua-tion of patients and their care teamsduring disasters and emergencies.

e 20 new mobile Vet Centerswill be based at Birmingham, Alabama; San Diego, California.;Atlanta, Georgia.; Western Oahu,Hawaii; Cedar Rapids, Iowa;Evanston, Illinois.; Indianapolis, Indiana.; Baltimore, Maryland.;Pontiac, Michigan.; and KansasCity, Missouri., Jackson, Missis-sippi.; Greensboro, North Carolina;Lakewood, New Jersey; Reno, Nevada; Stark County, Ohio; Lawton, Oklahoma; Ponce, PuertoRico; Nashville, Tennessee; Washington County, Utah; andGreen Bay, Wisconsin.

New emergency care Guidance

e VA recently announced achange in regulations regarding payments for emergency care providedto eligible veterans in non-VA facilities.

“is provision helps ensure eligibleveterans continue to get the emergencycare they need when VA facilities arenot available,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.

e new regulation extends VA’sauthority to pay for emergency care

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News Briefs (cont.)


Largest Military Spouse Career Job Fairto Date, Held in Washington, DC

Employment of our military spouses is one of the many key elements in the quality of life ofour servicemembers and their families.

In early January, NAUS legislative assistant Tony Kennedy attended a US Chamber of Commercehosted Military Spouse Career Forum at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.Turnout for the military spouse job fair exceeded expectations with roughly 1,000 military spousesregistered for the event and another 200 walk-ins. The affair marked the largest job fair and careerforum dedicated solely to military spouses.

Spouses had the opportunity to receive on-site advice on resume writing and job interview skills.Workshops were also available to help spouses network and highlight their experiences to prospectiveemployers. Nearly 100 prospective employers attended this event and conducted on-site interviews.

Laura Dempsey, a senior advisor of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Hiring Our Heroes program,noted that military spouses move an average of nine times over the course of their servicemember’scareer. During this period spouses often struggle not only with the stress of taking care of theirfamily, but with their career as well.

Licensure and certifications are typically State-level functions. Clearly, States are concerned to ensurethat each person licensed in their State forduties such as EMTs, nurses, or relatedmedical professions are well qualified.Though training and significant job skillsdon’t change when a move occurs, licensingand certification requirements oftentimesare not readily accepted from State-to-State.

Currently eleven States have enactedlegislation to reduce the licensing or certi-fication process for some military spousesand another twenty-eight are consideringlegislation related to these issues. But jobfairs and legislation alone are not the onlyremedies for increasing employment formilitary spouses.

According to the Military Spouse and Business Association (MSBA), the number of military spouses thatown a small business or are self-employed is nearly ten percent. Several military spouse small businessand entrepreneurship organizations were on hand to give spouses advice and contact informationon setting up a small business.

This is one area that has seen progress over the years. Rikki Winters the director of operation forMSBA said, “Due to the frequent moves [military] spouses often make, they may want to considersetting up their own small business that allows them to work from home and minimize disruptionsthat accompany a PCS move.”

For additional information and assistance, visit the Military Spouse Employment Partnership(MSEP) Career Portal on spouse education and career opportunities at https://msepjobs.military-onesource.mil/ . MSEP is part of DoD’s broader initiative aimed at strengthening spouse employment.MSEP currently has 96 partners, who have hired more than 10,000 military spouses.

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provided to eligible veterans at non-VAfacilities until the veterans can be safelytransferred to a VA medical facility.

More than 100,000 veterans couldbe affected by the new rules, at a costof about $44 million annually.

VA operates 121 emergency departments across the country,which provide resuscitative therapyand stabilization in life-threateningsituations. ey operate 24 hours aday, seven days a week. VA also has46 urgent care units, which providecare for patients without scheduledappointments who need immediatemedical or psychiatric attention.

For more information about emer-gency care in non-VA facilities, visitthis VA website http://www.nonva-care.va.gov/

PdBrWe remind you that the Physical

Disability Board of Review (PDBR) isstill in existence and is looking for moreveterans. e PDBR was formed to revise the status of veterans who weremedically discharged with less than30 percent disability ratings from Sep. 11, 2001, through Dec. 31, 2009.

Of 77,000 veterans, who have theopportunity to apply for a review,fewer than 4,000 have done so. Atthis time, nearly 45 percent of casesreviewed have resulted in an increaseddisability rating or have beenawarded medical discharges versusservice separation.

When Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO.)was made aware of the situation heurged the VA to make a greater effortto contact those who may have theircases reviewed. Starting in Januarythe VA working with the PDBR began a phased mailing of information packets to every quali\ed veteran witha current home address on \le at VA.

If you believe you may be one of theveterans who can apply for a review youneed not wait for a letter. You can

apply now. For more informationemail [email protected],http://www.health.mil/About_MHS/Organizations/MHS_Offices_and_Programs/PDBR.aspxor write to:

PDBR intake unitSAF/MRBR500 C Street West, Suite 41Randolph AFB, Texas 78150-4743

dental for survivorsis new program went into effect

on Nov. 1, 2011. It sets up dental cov-erage for surviving family members ofmilitary members who died on activeduty. It also applies to members ofthe Guard & Reserve.

Highlights of the program include:1.Survivors do not need to have

prior enrollment in the TRICARE Dental Program (TDP) at the time of the sponsor’s death to receive the TDP Survivor Bene\t. In the past, enrollment was required to be eligible for bene\ts.

2.Surviving children are eligible to receive survivor bene\ts through the end of the month in which they turn age 21, or 23 if enrolled in a full-time accredited college or university. Incapacitatedchildren are eligible to receive TDP coverage for the greater of: 1) three years from the sponsor's date of death, 2) the date which the dependent turns 21, or 23 if enrolled in a full-time accredited college or university. is is an

increase in coverage from the three yearschildren received prior to legislation.

3.Eligible surviving family members not enrolled in the TDP at the time of the sponsor's death will be noti\ed by the government of their eligibility for enrollment in the TDP. e surviving spouse, parent, or dependent 18 years of age or

older may complete the enrollmentprocess for the TDP Survivor Bene\t to take effect.

more ships added to vavietnam ship list

e VA has updated the list of US Navy and Coast Guard ships thatoperated in Vietnam. It added 47more vessels and expanded informa-tion for others. is list can helpVietnam-era veterans \nd out if theyqualify for presumption of Agent Orange exposure when seeking VAdisability compensation for herbicide-related diseases.

To view this updated list, visit theVA ship list at http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/shiplist/list.asp or call 1-800-749-8367 (press option 3) formore information. NaUs Note: If your ship is still notlisted we still encourage you to applyfor health care and bene\ts. e VA is adding ships as evidence becomes available to con\rm the locations of ships. Your applicationfor bene\ts could be the catalyst thatallows your claim and that of many of your shipmates.

veterans Winclass action lawsuit

A federal judge recently approveda settlement in a class action lawsuitthat will deliver better bene\ts toroughly 2,100 veterans who weremedically discharged since 2002 with post-traumatic stress disorder(PTSD). Another 2,200 potentiallyaffected veterans opted out of theclass-action lawsuit and might takeindividual legal action. From De-cember 2002 to October 2008, the US military medically dischargedroughly 4,300 service members withPTSD and disability ratings below 50 percent. Aer congressional

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News Briefs (cont.)

pressure, in 2008, the DoD agreed to grant 50 percent disability ratingsto those diagnosed with PTSD in the future.

va aid and attendancee VA Aid and Attendance

(A&A) allowance provides bene\tsfor veterans and surviving spouseswho require the regular attendance

of another person to assist in eating,bathing, dressing and undressing ortaking care of the needs of nature. Italso encompasses individuals who areblind or in a nursing home due tomental or physical incapacity and offers eligibility for assisted care in an assisting living facility.

Due to the COLA increase theA&A rates have increased for 2012:

- Surviving Spouse: 2012 Rate/Month = $1,094 (increase of $38/month)

- Single Veteran: 2012 Rate/Month = $1,704 (Increase of $60/month)

- Veteran + One Dependent: 2012 Rate/Month = $2,020 (Increase $71/month)

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News Briefs (cont.)

On January 18, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)sponsored a Veterans Career Fair and Expo in Washington, DC,to help veterans find work and to address the high level ofveterans unemployment. The goal of is to bring employers andpotential employees together.

As the business community has discovered, our veterans andcurrent service members are proven leaders. They understanddiversity and teamwork, are physically fit and drug-free.They carry a can-do attitude and are on-time, all the time.They are valuable candidates who can bring employers the

assistance they need for manpower. However making these assets known to a potential employer can be difficult since

most job application processes are on-line and often use automated algorithms. This can createa barrier that even the most experienced combat engineer cannot breech. What separated this eventfrom most job fairs was the opportunity for veterans to receive on-site coaching in resumemaking and preparation for on-site interviews with both federal and private sector employers.

Some private employers were looking to hire qualified veterans on-the-spot and even somefederal agencies had on-site hiring authority, unusual for the federal government. The VAestimates that 4,100 veterans attended the January Expo; 2,600 on-site interviews were conductedwith federal and private sector hiring managers; and, 500 veterans walked away with job offers.

This VA Career Fair also offered many veterans the opportunity to VA programs and benefitswith government officials present at the event. Veterans received advice and answers to questionsabout Post-911 GI Bill benefits, health care, VA home loans and many more. Roughly 700 veteranssigned up for MyHealthVet and eBenefits, programs designed to manage health and benefits data.

While both the civilian and veterans unemployment rate needs to be reduced even further, theVA plans to conduct more VA career Expos and other job fairs across the country to combat veteransunemployment. TToo aassssiisstt vveetteerraannss iinn ffiinnddiinngg mmeeaanniinnggffuull eemmppllooyymmeenntt,, NNAAUUSS eennccoouurraaggeessVVAA SSeeccrreettaarryy EErriicc SShhiinnsseekkii ttoo ccoonnttiinnuuee hhiiss ppuusshh oonn vveetteerraannss eemmppllooyymmeenntt aass oonnee ooffhhiiss ttoopp pprriioorriittiieess..

NAUS also recommends that veterans looking for employment take a look at DoD’s Hero to Hired(H2H) Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program. Under this program, job seekers have access to greatfeatures to search for jobs, explore career paths, translate their military skills into matchingjobs, find training and education resources and become involved with the job market. VViissiitt wwwwww..HH22HH..jjoobbss// ffoorr uunnlliimmiitteedd ffrreeee jjoobb ppoossttiinnggss aanndd rreellaatteedd iinnffoorrmmaattiioonn..


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senate veteransJobs caucus

NAUS is working with a number ofother major military organizations tosupport Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) andSen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) in forming aSenate Veterans Jobs Caucus.

NAUS is pleased to add our name tothe Senators’ positive focus on veterans employment and thanks Sens.Manchin and Kirk for their support ofour veterans.

e caucus will hold: • Monthly meetings at the staff

level to share information on veterans employment initiatives.

• Monitor veterans employment issues by working with constituents, government and service organizations to help provide solutions.

• Work with local, State and national employers on an “I Hire Veterans” program.

NaUs Newssam’s club offers Gift card

In appreciation of your service toour country, Sam's Club® is offering a$15 Sam's Club Gi Card to militarypersonnel when you join or renew as aSam's Club Member.

You must present a valid military IDto the Member Services Desk of yourlocal Sam's Club. Upon payment, youwill receive a $15 Sam's Club Gi Card.

Only one offer per primary Mem-bership. Offer cannot be combined withany other Membership offers. Gi Cardmay not be used to pay for Membership.

Offer valid for active and retiredmilitary and civilian military employeesand their spouses.NaUs Note: Publishing of this offerdoes not imply an endorsement of Sam’sClub by NAUS.

®


If it Ain’t Broke,Don’t Fix It!

Members Respond to NAUS Retirement System SurveyThousands of members responded to our Military Retirement System Survey

included in our NAUS return address labels mailings late last fall and inJanuary. In general, the “If it Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It” headline above – acomment received on several survey responses – sums up the attitude ofthe vast majority of NAUS members.

Nearly three quarters – 73 percent – of members oppose any changes atall to the military retirement system. And while a little more than 20percent of members did agree the door should be open to some changes(four percent were “not sure” whether to make changes or not), not even onetenth of one percent of members agreed that a major reform is needed.

NAUS Retirement System Survey Results: Do you agree or disagree with these potential changes to the Military Retirement System?

Thank you toall members

who respondedto the survey.

Your answershelp shape our

legislative agenda.

Do you agree or disagree withthese potential changes to the Military Retirement System?

Neither -

4%

Disagree -

80%

Agree -

16%

Neither -

9%

Disagree -

83%

Agree -

9%

Neither -

5%

Disagree -

83%

Agree -

12%

Relying on 401K type of programwith government matching

contributions instead of pension

Delaying start of retired pay untillater age,imilar to current

Guard/Reserve retirement system



Health TodayQ & AQ & A

Written by

Dr. Joyce M. Johnson,RADM, USPHS (Ret), DO, MA

& Mr. James A. Calderwood, Jr.

Why should I exercise? Exercise is important to main-tain health. Exercise has many positive benefits on the heartand circulatory system – it increases the blood flow to the

heart and strengthens the cardiac muscle, lowers blood pressure, and helps to prevent manycardiovascular diseases. Exercise helps to convert fat to muscle. Since muscle, even at rest, usesmore calories than fat, increasing muscle mass increases one’s overall metabolism. Further,muscle is much more condensed than fat – two pounds of muscle takes the same space as onepound of fat. Thus, just by changing fat to muscular tissue helps one reach appearance goals.

Probably the most important, and often forgotten, reason to exercise is that it helps uswith all of our activities of daily life. Someone in “good shape” has the balance and strengthto climb a tall ladder to change a light bulb high in the ceiling, can run further and faster tocatch a bus or airplane, can compete in a game of golf or tennis. The more physically fit oneis, the more opportunities in daily life throughout the life cycle.

How do I start an exercise program? There are many sources of help in developingan exercise program. Books and DVDs are available, gym memberships often include as-sessments, or one can hire a personal trainer. You can also make an exercise plan yourself.First, assess your general level of fitness and make a list of the activities you enjoy. Fromthat develop a progressive plan that adds more exercise every week. The important thing isto begin slowly, increase gradually, but be consistent!

The Pentagon Channel has a program, “Fit for Duty” that is available on the internet at www.pentagonchannel.mil. Startslowly, but by working every day, you’ll be surprised at how your abilities grow.

Before beginning an exercise program, a quick check-up from your health care provider is a good idea.

What should an exercise program include?An exercise program should be comprehensive, and include activities thatdevelop various aspects of fitness – “cardio”, strength, flexibility, and balance and coordination.

What is “cardio”? “Cardio” exercises increase heart rate, and also the strength and endurance of the heart muscle. Cardioincludes running, lap swimming, cycling, jump-roping, stair climbing and other “active” exercises. With your health careprovider’s concurrence, cardio exercise progression is often designed to reach your maximum heart rate, measuring heart rateduring and after exercise.

What is strength exercise? Strength and resistance training develops muscles and bones in both the “core” (abdomen,back, and pelvis) and extremities (arms and legs). Examples are crunches for the core and abdomen, pushups and pull-ups forthe arms, and leg lifts for the lower extremity.

What is �exibility? Increasing flexibility increases the range of motion. A simple example is “toe touching”. Many yogaexercises also focus on flexibility. Flexibility exercise improves posture and general appearance.

What are balance and coordination exercises? Though you may not be a tightrope walker, balance and coordination areimportant for everyone. Balance and coordination exercises include a wide range of activities from standing with feet together andeyes closed (make certain you have a “spotter” to catch you the first time you try this) to turning somersaults on a balance beam.

What should I remember? The most important things to remember about an exercise program: everyone should exer-cise; start slowly and progress according to your ability; do some exercise every day. Try to incorporate exercise into your dailyactivities – walk, use stairs, and add activities like biking to work and yardwork to your exercise program.

Exercise

ACTIVE DUTYACTIVE DUTYDOWNLOADDOWNLOAD

New Nominee for Under Secretary ofPersonnel & Readiness

Ms. Erin Cathleen Conaton, 41, current Under Secretary of the AirForce, has been nominated by the President to be the Under Secretaryof Defense for Personnel and Readiness - USD(P&R), a position mostrecently held by Dr. Clifford Stanley, LtGen, USMC (Ret). USD (P&R) is responsible for advising the Secretary of Defense on recruitment, career development, pay and benefits, and military readiness. This includes oversight of the Defense Health System and programs, commissaries and exchanges, Defense Education Activity, the DefenseEqual Opportunity Management Institute, the Military Entrance Processing Command, and the Travel System. The USD is also responsiblefor training, health affairs, National Guard and Reserve affairs, personnelrequirements for weapons support, and military family matters. Before being appointed as Under Secretaryof the Air Force in 2010, Ms. Conaton served on the House Armed Services Committee professional staffsince 2001, and as staff director since 2007.

Budget Cuts to Shrink Army and Marine CorpsUnder the $487 billion, 10-year Defense budget cuts announced by the

Administration, the Army would shrink from 547,000 active duty soldiers to490,000 by 2017. The Marine Corps would be cut from 202,000 active dutyMarines to 182,000. That still leaves about 8,000 more soldiers and 10,000more Marines than before 9/11, but the cuts could even be deeper if even

steeper Defense budget cuts are made.

1.7% Pay Raise Proposed for 2013The President's FY2013 budget request includes a 1.7 percent raise in basic pay for

servicemembers. According to plans announced by Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in a meeting at the end of January, future pay raises would continue to rise at the same pace as private-sector wage growth - until 2015. Then pay would continue to rise, but at aslower rate.


USA USN USAF USMC USCG USPHS NOAA

DoD Launches New Website for KidsA new Defense Department website was launched for children experiencing the

challenges of military deployments. The interactive Military Kids Connect website -wwwwww..MMiilliittaarryyKKiiddssCCoonnnneecctt..oorrgg - was created by psychologists at the DoD's National Center forTelehealth and Technology. It's designed to helpchildren of deployed parents cope with the stress,changing responsibilities, and concern for the safetyof their parents. The center developed the websitewith informative videos, educational tools, andgames and activities for three age groups: Youth,ages 6 to 8; Tween, ages 9 to 12; and Teen, ages 13to 17. The site features monitored online social

network forums for the groups to safely share their experiences with deployments.

First Woman Four-star General for Air Force NamedPresident Obama nominated LtGen Janet C.

Wolfenbarger, USAF, to become the Service's firstever woman four-star general. Wolfenbarger, a1980 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, is currently the Military Deputy, Office of the AssistantSecretary of the Air Force for Acquisition. Sheoversees research and development, testing, production and modernization of Air Force programs worth more than $40 billion a year. Before her current assignment, she was the vicecommander, Air Force Materiel Command, atWright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. Her promotion requires Senate confirmation.

Combat Pay ChangesImminent danger pay is now paid only for actual days spent in hazardous areas

(officially defined as “places where members are subject to the threat of physical harm orimminent danger because of civil insurrection, civil war, terrorism or wartime conditions”).Previously, a servicemember received the pay monthly - $225 per month - for spendingany amount of time, even one day, in an area denoted as hazardous. The change waspart of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which required theDefense Department to pay servicemembers imminent danger pay only for the timethey spend in areas that qualify for the pay. Servicemembers will now receive $7.50per day for days spent in these zones. The change will require personnel traveling tothe zones for fewer than 30 days to keep track of each day they are in the area.


Mark Your Calendar Now!Join fellow Members, your NAUS President and Legislative Director, Board of Directors,staff, and member beneAts providers at 2012’s annual meeting. Enjoy an information-

packed keynote address, lunch, a short NAUS business meeting, networking, and discussions about issues you and other NAUS Members care about –

all for just $25* in exciting Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, right outside Washington, DC.

®


Annual MeetingSaturday, October 20, 2012Hilton Alexandria Old TownAlexandria, Virginia

Watch for more details and registration information in future editions of theJournal and on our website – www.NAUS.org, or call 1-800-842-3451, x1003.

* $25 fee includes meeting registration and lunch; members are responsible for their own travel, parking, and hotel/lodging costs.

®

TheThe Annual Annual

Scholarship ProgramScholarship Program

Apply Today!Apply Today!

Five $2,000 scholarshipsFive $2,000 scholarshipsto be awarded for theto be awarded for the

2012-2013 school year!2012-2013 school year!

Applicant must be a member of NAUS, or the spouse or child of a NAUS member. Applicant must also be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment in, an undergraduate degree- or certificate-granting program from an accredited institution of higherlearning on a full- or part-time basis. (If part-time, applicantʼs course load must beat least 12 semester hours or 24 quarter hours annually.)

One (easy)… Call 1-800-842-3451, ext. 18031-800-842-3451, ext. 1803, and leave a message with your name, email address, and your NAUS Scholarship application kit will be emailed to you.Two (even easier) … Email [email protected]@naus.org and request your NAUS Scholarship application kit.Three (easiest!)… Go online to www.NAUS.org/scholarshipwww.NAUS.org/scholarship and find all you need.3 Easy Ways

to Applyapplications and support materials due by april 27, 2012, applications and support materials due by april 27, 2012,

so get your application kit today.so get your application kit today.


Are you sociallynetworked?

BBeeccoommee aa NNAAUUSS FFaacceebbooookk ffaannaanndd ffoollllooww NNAAUUSS oonn TTwwiitttteerr!!That’s right, NAUS has a Facebook

page and we even started tweeting inNovember. (We’re a little too old forMySpace, even though we do have aMySpace page too!)NAUS uses Facebook and Twitter

to keep interested members and others up-to-speed on what we’redoing in a less formal and more interactive way than our news sectionson our website or our popular NAUSWeekly Update e-newsletter. You can find our Facebook and

Twitter feeds and links on the NAUSwebsite (Member News and the othernews sections), and we include them inthe Weekly Update occasionally as well.

If you haven’t checked us out onlineyet, here’s how:

Subscribe to NAUS Weekly Update:

wwwwww..NNAAUUSS..oorrggNAUS Facebook Page: Search on our name or NAUS, or go towwwwww..ffaacceebbooookk..ccoomm//ppaaggeess//NNaattiioonnaall--AAssssoocciiaattiioonn--ffoorr--UUnniiffoorrmmeedd--SSeerrvviicceess--NNAAUUSS//5522550000884488229933

Follow NAUS on Twitter: ttwwiitttteerr..ccoomm//NNAAUUSSHHQQ

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State: _____________________ Zip: ____________________________

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Status: � Retired � Active � Veteran � Reserve � National Guard �Widow

Date of Birth: ____/____/____ Required for Life Membershipmm dd yy

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Please Check: � This is a Gift Membership from:� New Member� Former Member� This is a Membership renewal

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remit application and Payment to:NAUS • 5535 Hempstead Way • SpringDeld, VA 22151

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or Join online at: www.NaUs.org

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Please circle Yourmembership type

chapter activitiesSequoia Chapter - Clovis / Fresno,CA – 17

e meeting of the Sequoia Chapterfeatured as their guest speaker Mr. ColeRojewski, the Field Representative forthe 21st District of California (Con-gressman Devin Nunes’ District).

Mr. Rojewski had never seen theNAUS magazine but was impressedand requested that CongressmanNunes’ district office located inVisalia, California receive copies offuture journals. Mr. Rojewski spokeon matters of interest to San JoaquinValley residents focusing on issuessuch as the planned High Speed RailProject, and for any questions he reminded those attending that he canbe reached at the following address:

Congressman Devin NunesAttn: Cole Rojewski, Field Representative113 North Church Street, Ste 208Visalia, California 93291Along with the guest speaker the

new chapter president, MSG MichaelLamb, USMCR (Ret) was announcedand he spoke about the future plansfor the chapter.

Al Stewart, Col. USAF (Ret),NAUS Regional Vice President (CA,HI, NV and Guam) honored BobApple, CPO, USN (Ret), outgoing

President of NAUS’s Sequoia Chapter.Col Stewart read two letters of recog-nition for Apple’s many years of dedicated service to NAUS and tomilitary retirees, their dependents,and other veterans of the Central SanJoaquin Valley of California. e letters were from NAUS President

Jack Klimp, Lt Gen. USMC (Ret) andfrom Colonel Stewart.H. Wayne Hein Chapter – Merced,CA – 18

e chapter participated in theVeterans Day Parade in Merced, Cali-fornia. e weather was cool andrainy but that did notdampen the spirits of hundreds of spectators asthey lined both sides ofthe street for 10 cityblocks. It was a great turnout by the general public.e H. Wayne Hein Chapter (CA-18) had twoGrand Marshals in the parade, TSgt Ed Mentz, Sr and MSgt Don Ray. We are sorry these photosdid not make it into theprevious journal butshould be shared by allproud NAUS members.

Northern Virginia, VA – 3 (NOVA Chapter)

e Northern Virginia ChapterVA-3 met on January 11th at theAmerican Legion Post #176, Spring-\eld, VA. As this was their \rst meeting of the new year they acknowledged the hard work of

their members during 2011 that resulted in the newly reactivatedchapter being selected as the “NAUSRunner-Up for Chapter of the Year -2011”. Following a short businesssession they welcomed Rick Jonesand Mike Plumer, NAUS HQ Directorand Assistant Director for Legislation

®

Chapter Newsedited by Mrs. Vicki Sumner

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Cole Rojewski, Field Representative for CongressmanDevin Nunes, CA 21, addresses the attendees of theNAUS Yosemite Chapter at its regular meeting inFresno, California, on January 28


Mike Lamb (r), speaks to the NAUS Sequoia Chapterupon assuming duties as its new president at the January 28 meeting in Fresno, California. Cole Rojew-ski sits in the background.

Al Stewart, Col. USAF (Ret), NAUS Regional Vice President(l) and Bob Apple, CPO. USN (Ret), outgoing presidentof NAUS's Yosemite Chapter are shown here after ColStewart read two letters of recognition for CPO Apple.

as their special guests. Rick providedthe chapter an update on the top issues before Congress and the WhiteHouse. e presentation laid out theimportant legislative actions on-goingwith the 112th Congress, primarilythose effecting the Military Servicesand veterans. All present appreciatedthe updates and “call for action”from the NAUS members as NAUScarries our message to Capitol Hill...that our veterans have sacri�cedalready for our nation and to notuse the veteran to �x the nations �scal challenges. e chapter’s nextmeeting will be March 13th, 11:30 -12:30 at the American Legion Post#176, they will welcome Mr. RichNilsen, Esq., who will speak on keyjudiciary actions effecting veteranssuch as the Federal Health Care Law. Rocky Mountain Chapter – Denver/Aurora, CO – 1

Chapter Treasurer KennethMelcher attended the base brie\ngheld on 1 Feb 12 at the Doubletree

Hotel in Aurora, where Col. DanDant briefed officials and citizens in the metro area on base status. Col Dant explained how the base hasbeen completely changed over pastyears from wooden buildings of 1942era, to modern facilities and how theCommand status changed over years

from a Navy facility, toNational Guard, and \nally to an AF Base.He explained why thisshould be a permanentbase for decades tocome, if we can keep residential areas fromencroaching around it.

e chapter whichpreviously met monthlyuntil 2008 now meetquarterly to reduce administrative work-load, postage, and otherexpenses. ey continueto do an outstanding jobwith the volunteer offi-cers and within the constraints oftheir changing environment.

With the closing of Lowry AFB in1994 and Fitzsimons Army MedicalCenter in 1997 (both served middleAmerica Veterans) those living in thearea were without most of their med-ical facilities but on the 21st of Nov2010 the official ground breaking

dedication tookplace broughtforward with thestrong backing,and aer a longtough battle, fromthe NAUS chapterand other localVeterans organizations.As of February2nd buildingdemolitionbegan with an expectedcompletion ofthe new 13building Veter-

ans Medical Center (VAMC) in 2014at Fitzsimons campus (570 acres)centrally located. anks to the hardNght from the Rocky MountainChapter – Denver/ Aurora, CO – 1 and the Veterans Committeeof Colorado.

Groton / New LondonChapter, CT – 1

Chapter President Paul Dillon hadthe honor to host Frank Rowe a seniorcongressional aide to Senator JoeLieberman (I-CT). Mr. Rowe, a retired Submariner, was the guestspeaker at the Chapter Luncheon andat the conclusion of the luncheon hejoined NAUS.

On the 9th of January ChapterPresident Dillon also met with Congressman Joe Courtney (D-CT2)to discuss and obtain the Congress-man’s support of H.R.3612 Blue WaterNavy Vietnam Veterans Act of2011.(see picture and caption in theLegislative Update)NAUS Region – 6

Dennis Freytes, Vice President forNAUS Southeast Region 6 traveled toPuerto Rico from the 6th through the24th of January and was able to com-bine member recruitment with somefamily visits. He took the opportunityto visit local military locations likethe Post Exchange and CommunityClub on Fort Buchanan and passedout almost a hundred of the January-February 2012 Uniformed ServicesJournals. At these locations he of-fered membership updates andhanded out NAUS membership ap-plications. We thank LTC Freytes forhis exceptional recruitment work.


Col. Dan Dant, commander 460th Space Wing, talks during the State of the Base on Feb. 1 at the DoubleTree Southeast in Aurora.

Frank Rowe (l) a senior congressional aide to Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT)Stands with HMCS (SS) Jim Mosley USN (Ret) (c) and CT-1 Chapter PresidentRMCM Paul Dillon USN (Ret). Rowe a retired Submariner was the guestspeaker at a Chapter Luncheon. At the conclusion of the luncheon hejoined NAUS.

Society of Military WidowsSMW’s President Jessie Brundige

would like to welcome the new SMWChaplain Mrs. Patsy Wetmore. Mrs.Wetmore has recently been appointedto her position and looks forward toworking with all of the SMW chaptersalong with the Board and RegionalVice Presidents. Welcome AboardMrs. Wetmore!

Mrs. Brundige would also like toremind those planning to attend the2012 SMW Convention/CRUISE thatthe cruise we will be on board the Carnival “Dream” through the EasternCaribbean from 6-13 October 2012.Stops will include Nassau, St omas,and St Maarten. She asked that you remember THE DOWN PAYMENTMUST BE MADE BY 1 APRIL 2012and that the Chapter Presidents havethe Registration Form and registrationis also on the militarywidows.orgwebsite (also the form can be found inthis issue of the Journal on page 37).Sounds like a wonderful way to cele-brate the hard work these ladies doevery day for both SMW and NAUS.SMW Chapter 13, California

SMW Chapter 13 President EttaBrown would like us to acknowledge

the passing of past Chapter PresidentMrs. Millie Hayes. Mrs. Haynes waspresident of SMW Chapter 13 from1998-2000 and again from 2004-2005.Her absence has been greatly felt sinceher passing in January.SMW Chapter 34 – Southern Nevada

SMW is proud and excited to announce the reactivation of the SMWChapter 34, newly named the “SMWof Southern Nevada.” ey held their\rst organizational meeting on Sunday,January 15, 2012, 12 noon, at theGrand Cafe', Palace Station Casino,2411 West Sahara Ave., Las Vegas, NVand voted to hold meetings every othermonth on the second Sunday, at 12noon in the same location. eir nextmeeting is planned for Sunday, March11 where Jessie Brundige, NationalPresident, will conduct the Installationof Officers Ceremony and present thenew Chapter Charter to the ladies.

We congratulate SMW on thisgroup of ladies and acknowledge the hard work that went into the reactivation and member recruitment.We know that this will be a strongchapter doing great work. Newlyelected officers are:

President- Janet Snyder (Also Historian & Newsletter Editor)Vice president- Taunya OffdenkampSecretary- Eileen MayTreasurer- Ruth Lynn Ratcliffe

SMW Chapter 38 Laurel / Fort Meade, Maryland

e Laurel/Fort Meade Chapter 38held elections recently and we areproud to announce the following officers of the chapter:

President- Peggy (Jeri) RobertsSecretary- Sandra WinansTreasurer- Betty JonesCongratulations ladies and have

a great 2012!

®

Chapter Newsedited by Vicki Sumner

First Chapter Meeting for SMW 34 – Southern Nevadaafter recent reactivation of chapter.(left side - front to back): Marina Jimenez, Pearl Ches-naky, Taunya Offdenkamp, Marilyn Fernandez, MidgeSparlin, Jeanne Lewis, Kay Milzer(right side - front to back): Eileen May, Bertha Hale,Nancy Paternico, Ilean Goodwill, Chuck Snyder, JanetSnyder, Lynn Ratcliffe


NAUS Upcoming Events - April/MayDover AFB Annual Retiree Day 12 Apr 2012 Dover, AFB, DE32nd Annual RAD 28 April 2012 Hanscom AFB, MAJoint Base Lewis-McChord RAD 18 May 2012 McChord Air Field, WANAUS Selfless Service Award at 21-22 May 2012 New London, CTCoast Guard Academy (CGA)CT-1 Annual Recruiter Recognition 21 May 2012 Groton, CTNAUS Selfless Service Award at the End May 2012 Bethesda, MDUniformed Services University of theHealth Sciences Graduation (USUHS)Naval Academy Class of 2012 29 May 2012 USNA, Annapolis, MDCommissioning and Graduation

NAUS would be please to provide a speaker for your next RAD or military/veteran event at no charge to the organizing group.Please have the group leader send a letter of invitation [with details of the event and speaker requirements] to Vicki Sumner, director of administration at [email protected] or call 1-800-842-3451, ext 1003.

Mail your change of address to:NAUS • 5535 Hempstead WaySpringfield, VA 22151-4094

email: [email protected]: (703) 354-4380 Call: 1-800-842-3451

or login to www.NAUS.organd update your profile online.

Avoid interruption in your membership Send us your CHANGE OF ADDRESS

Name: _______________________________________________________________

Member #:____________________ New Telephone #: _______________________

Old Address: __________________________________________________________

New Address: _________________________________________________________

Email Address: ________________________________________________________

chapter NoticesMark your calendars now for the

NAUS Annual Meeting!WED- 17 Oct 2012- RVP Workshop- NAUS HQ THU- 18 Oct 2012- Hill Visits(Board of Directors and RVPs)- Various Capitol Hill OfficesFRI- 19 Oct 2012- NAUS Boardof Directors Annual Meeting- Hilton Alexandria, Old TownSAT- 20 Oct 2012- NAUS Annual Membership Meeting- Hilton Alexandria, Old TownLook for more details coming soon!Its time again to start working

your “2012 CHAPTER OF THEYEAR AWARD” packages. Submitwhat your chapter has accomplishedor will accomplish this year andbegin to put your packages togetherfor submission later in 2012. eaward is given out at the NAUS Annual Membership Meeting on 20 October 2012 and includes cashawards for the top three winningchapters. Start your write-up now!

Go to www.NAUS.org/chaptersfor more information.

WE NEED YOUR PHOTOS!NAUS is looking for photos of Chaptermembers at events or meetings topublish in the Journal. Please forwardphotos to Vicki Sumner via email:[email protected] or via mail: 5535Hempstead Way, SpringNeld, VA22151 or call Vicki at 1-800-842-3451 ext. 1003 for more information.

It’s time to start working yoursubmissions for the “NAUS Distin-guished Warrior” Award for 2012.ese warriors for our cause, throughtheir personal commitment, initiativeand hard work make a real differencein the lives of those our associationrepresents. Submit someone you knowis a true warrior for our members. eaward is given out at the NAUS AnnualMembership Meeting on 20 October 2012.Start your write-up now!

e application period for the2012-2013 NAUS Scholarship Program is officially open and in fullswing. Five $2,000 scholarships will

be awarded for the 2012-2013 schoolyear. APPLY TODAY!

Go to www.naus.org/scholarship formore information and application kit.

Please ensure you read the changesin the NAUS Bylaws and mail yourproxy vote as soon as possible. Proxyvotes need to be received no later than2 April 2012. ese important changesneed to be implemented as soon as thevotes are counted.

Vote today and submit your proxyfor the changes in the bylaws!

During the NAUS Annual Mem-bership Meeting held last year on the5th of November 2011 a challengecoin was found at the Fort BelvoirOfficers’ Club in the area NAUS usedfor the meeting. If you are missing a“Superior Performance Award – AlUdeld, Air Base’ gold 2” coin presentedby the Flight Leadership please contactVicki Sumner via email:[email protected] or via mail: 5535 Hempstead Way, SpringNeld,VA 22151 or call Vicki at 1-800-842-3451 ext. 1003 for more information.

LtGen Klimp attended the 25th Anniversary of the Bill Ryerson El Paso Area Chapter (EPAC-NAUS) 2012 Board ofDirectors Installation Ceremony on Saturday, January 14,2012 at their Annual Membership Meeting and Luncheon.LtGen Klimp installed the officers during this wonderful oc-casion and was presented the Texas State Flag and a “Distin-guished Service Award” plaque. Among the special guestswere Congressman Silvestre Reyes and BG Doyle (Commanderof the William Beaumount Medical Center). Ladies of theDesert Sun Chapter 30 of the Society of Military Widows were also in attendance at the meeting and luncheon and honored all by performing the cake cutting ceremony.

Bill ryerson el Paso area chapter, tX – 16President COL James G. Scott1st Vice-President CPT Louis G. Chamales2nd VP Mrs. Irene Hendley3rd VP Legislative Maj Edwin S StoneSecretary MAJ James E. GriffithAssistant Secretary Mrs. Jacqueline WelshTreasurer LTC Rafael GarciaChaplain CPT Louis G. Chamales(was the project officer for the Coast Guard's Leadership Diversity)


email: [email protected] • website: www.militarywidows.orgEstablished 1968 • Affiliated 1984

Jessie Brundige, National SMW President

Hello from Oklahoma. We are all looking forward to the nextSMW Convention/CRUISE. We will be on board the Carnival"Dream" for the Eastern Caribbean from 6-13 October 2012.

We will visit Nassau, St Thomas, and St Maarten. REMINDER: Downpayment must be made by 1 April 2012. The Chapter Presidents havethe Registration Form and it is also on the militarywidows.org website.We can only get inside or balcony cabins. You must plan your arrival atthe Orlando Airport to arrive NO LATER THAN 1:30 p.m. on the 6thof Oct. Do not book your return flight home until 1:00 p.m. or later on13 October. We need your registration as soon as possible. There canbe no last minute registrations on this. Un-booked cabins will have tobe turned back to Carnival for booking after the April deadline. Wecannot guarantee availability or costs after that date. No last minuteplans. Buy now, there is insurance included if you get sick.

As you know we have been losing participating members throughdeath (46 I believe was the count at the Memorial Service in Las Vegas),plus old age, and illness which has made it impossible for some to partic-ipate any longer. We cannot solve that problem. However, I have somegood news for SMW. Janet Snyder has formed a new SMW Chapter inLas Vegas, Nevada. We congratulate her on her work there. As of thiswriting I plan to go to Las Vegas for the 11 March meeting to present theCharter to the new chapter and install the officers. We look forward toworking with Janet and the new chapter.

The SBP/DIC Offset still has not been repealed so our work goeson. We also have to keep in touch with our representatives regardingour TriCare and Medicare benefits. They are being threatened too.With the drawdown on troops and budget cuts the future does notlook good at this point for the military and their families. We have tolet our representatives know how we feel. With so many people out ofwork and the world in turmoil as it is - Iran threatening to go nuclear,China's army building up, unrest all through the middle east it justdoes not make sense to me to make such deep cuts where our nationalsecurity is concerned. They need to study history a little more as wecannot rebuild the military overnight and the cost is a lot more whenwe have to do it in an emergency. Also, what do these young soldiersdo when they are released from the military and the unemploymentrate at 8 1⁄2% to 10% percent already. The president did not sign for theconstruction of the pipeline that would have helped with our depend-ence for oil from the middle east with the added bonus of jobs forthousands of people. With the work from that it would stimulate otherjobs that would coordinate with the pipeline. We pray that this deci-sion will be corrected. As a result of that decision Canada is talking ofshipping the oil to China. This nation needs to watch the decisions ourgovernment is making right now and for the next few years for it couldmean our very survival and the end toour standing in the world. May GodBless the United States of America.

As we all know, 2012 is an electionyear and the results of this election may

well determine whether we retain our individual freedoms under the Constitution or ex-change them for the dubious security of a socialist government mired down by debt and in-creased government control of nearly every phase of life. One of our Founding Fathers oncesaid something to the eJect that if we give up freedom for security then eventually we willhave neither. Our actions now determine our expectations for the future of our nation.

The good news is that we received an increase of 3.6% in our DIC and Social Security de-posits this month. I am delighted on the one hand, and dismayed on the other. Costs of justabout everything are up, but how can we aJord a raise when we are in so much debt?

EJorts to correct the SBP/DIC oJset are still alive with H.R.178, the Military Surviv-ing Spouses Equity Act, led by Rep. Joe Wilson [R.SC] and Companion Bill S.260 spon-sored by Senator Bill Nelson [D.FL]. Additionally, there is legislation proposed that wouldallow some survivors of totally disabled veterans to be eligible for home loans guaran-teed by VA. [HR 2433 was passed by the House and sent on to the Senate.] We also needto lobby Congress to support H.R 1003 [Senate Companion Bill S.542, S. 1768] whichwould allow DIC recipients to travel “space-available.”

Other bills which deserve support include:• H.R.1092 would prohibit increases in TRICARE fees and co-pays for militaryhealth care.

• H.R.1285 would prohibit any increases in health care costs until 2014.• H.R.1263 would provide protection for surviving spouses relating to mortgages andmortgage foreclosures. [This has passed the House and was sent on to the Senate.]

• H.J.Res.13 [S.J.Res19] would amend the Constitution to prohibit physical dese-cration of the Flag of the United States.

All of our members should be receiving the NAUS Journal. Please refer to the “KeyBills in Congress” section for updates on legislation proposed and progress through theestablished system for approval. CAP WHIZ is available for your use and makes it veryeasy to contact your representatives and senators. This is an Election Year! Speak out anddemand support for the issues that concern all of us!

We all need to take a stand, not only on beneLts, but on legislation that aJects our wayof life. We know medical expenses are going to go up and it has already started with newrules and fees. We need a permanent resolution of the “doc-Lx” situation so that we will notlose doctors and clinics that cannot aJord to serve us any more. A recent study from Con-necticut indicates that 19% of doctors there do not want to add any new patients dependingon MEDICARE or TRICARE. Connecticut is not the only State where this is happening.

BEWARE of changes in our whole Health Care situation. If some parts of the Presi-dent’s program are not repealed, our taxes, our ability to sell or buy homes and evenour expectations of adequate health care as we get older will be aJected. My congress-man’s local oKce has aKrmed that a new tax on the sale of homes is supposed to gointo eJect in 2013. This federal tax money is designated to help fund new costs formedical care. One thing is certain: New Taxes added to the sale of homes are not likelyto help us when we want or need put our homes on the market.

Finally, we need to be aware that cuts demanded of our military could undermineour national security. Above all other considerations, we need to demand that our ac-tive duty personnel have whatever they need to function in our defense.

Patricia Walker /SMW Legislative Chair/ [email protected]

SMW Legislative Report


Society of Military Widows 2012 Convention Registration

Cruise Line/Ship: Carnival/”Dream” October 6 thru 13, 2012

7 day Eastern Caribbean Cruise & Convention

* Deposit of $250 + $15 Administrative Fee = $265 due to SMW Treasurer by April 1, 2012

Send to: Cathy McGraw

11 Monarch Ct, Stafford, VA 22554

(make checks payable to National SMW)

Contact: Phone: (951) 316-5073/Email: [email protected]

* Final payment due on Cruise to Rainbow Travel by July 15, 2012

P.O. Box 60128, Oklahoma City, OK 73146

Full Name(as appears on your ID) : _____________________________________________________

Street___________________________________________ City________Zip Code_____________

Phone:_____________________ Cell:___________________ Email:_________________________

Chapter & National Office:___________________________________________________________

Emergency Contact: Name:_____________________________________Phone:________________

Date of Birth:______________ Roommate(s):__________________________________________

Circle Cabin Preference: [based on two (2) per cabin, 1 or 3 on request]

Interior Balcony

$724* per person $1014* per person

*Includes Insurance if need to cancel.

Things to remember:

1. You must make your own travel arrangements to Orlando, Florida to catch the ship. Jay Musgrove or Norma Jabara from Rainbow Travel at (800) 522-8548 can assist you.

2.Be sure to circle type of cabin wanted.

3.Prices are per person (2 to a Cabin).

4.Credit Card number must be provided for Ship’s account.

5.Must bring Gov’t issued ID and Birth Certificate or Passport.

6.Must bring $10 to $12 for each day for tips.

7.Price includes cabin/most meals/entertainment on ship/insurance/roundtrip transfers from Orlando airport for specific arrival & departure times.

8.Personal purchases/excursions/drinks are at your own expense.


TRICARE Dental Program Contract Switching Over to MetLife on May 1, 2012 EAective, May 1, 2012 TRICARE will be changing the

TRICARE Dental Program coverage from United Concor-dia to MetLife. @e change toMetLife will apply to the roughly2 million members of the Se-lected Reserve, Individual ReadyReserve. All family membersand survivors of service mem-bers both active and reserve willalso be covered under this newcontract with MetLife. @e Ac-

tive Duty Dental Program will continue to be administeredby United Concordia and the TRICARE Retiree DentalProgram coverage will remain under Delta Dental.

According to TRICARE oBcials, beneCciaries can ex-pect to see enhanced dental coverage at a lower premiumshare under this new contract. Some highlights to these newbeneCts and enhancements under this new contract are: • Coverage of posterior resin (tooth colored/white) Cllings• Increase in the annual maximum to $1,300 per en-

rollee (formerly this was $1,200)• Increase in the lifetime orthodontic maximum to $1,750• $1,200 per year for services related to dental treatment

due to an accident as deCned in the TDP handbook• No cost shares for scaling and root planning (deep

cleaning) for diabetics• Coverage of an additional (3rd) cleaning for women

during pregnancy

• Expansion of the survivor beneCts to survivingspouse and child(ren)To see if your current dentist is already part of the

MetLife network, click Find a Dentist on the right andsearch for a Dental Preferred Provider Organization. Ifthe dentist is not a member, dentists can easily requestan application on the MetLife website athttp://www.metdental.com. Additional informationabout the contract is available at www.tricare.mil/TDP-contract and TRICARE beneCt updates are available atwww.tircare.mil. In addition, MetLife oBcials an-nounced that it will distribute information with detailson this new program beginning in Crst quarter 2012.

Medical Care While Out of the Country

If you are planning an overseas trip in the future thereare some things you should know about what is and whatis not covered by Medicare and TRICARE for Life (TFL).

While Medicare does not pay for medical servicesabroad, TFL does provide the same coverage as TRI-CARE Standard for beneCciaries overseas and has thesame cost-shares and deductibles. When seeking carefrom a host nation provider, TFL beneCciaries should beprepared to pay up front for services and submit a claimto the overseas claims processor.

TFL beneCciaries living aboard can choose to disen-roll from Medicare. However this will cause them to losetheir TFL beneCts. Any decision to discontinue or main-tain one’s Medicare Parts A and B (currently 99$ formost recipients) should be done with care.

Information that can help you make a more informeddecision is available by contacting a TFL representative at888-363-5433, the TRICARE Overseas Toll-Free Line at888-777-8343 or visiting the TRICARE Overseas website athttp://www.tricare-overseas.com/ContactUs/default.htm.

Additional contact information and Medicare op-tions for retirees living aboard can be found on the So-cial Security Administration’s (SSA) website,http://www.ssa.gov/foreign. From there, you can Cnd acontact numbers by scrolling down and clicking on thelink “Contact Us by Phone.” You can also visitwww.MyMedicare.gov to review your personalized in-formation about Medicare coverage, other resources andfrequently asked questions. If you prefer to speak di-rectly to a SSA representative call 1-800-633-422, TTYusers can call 1-877-486-2048.

NAUS urges you to purchase a supplementary healthinsurance policy when travelling out of the country.@ey are available from some banks, travel agencies andinsurance companies. If you do you will have the pieceof mind that you are fully covered for most if not allmedical happenings.

New Telephone Number for TRICARE Pharmacy Bene*ts and Information

Recently, the TRICARE Retail Pharmacy and Home Deliverynumbers have been merged. TRICARE beneficiaries can call 1-877-363-1303 for TRICARE Retail Pharmacy and Home Delivery con-cerns, update information or ask questions about the TRICAREprescription drug benefits.

In addition, the TRICARE Pharmacy Help Desk number for pharma-cist was also changed. Pharmacist can call 1-877-363-1304 for infor-mation or assistance onquestions, billing, or other con-cerns they may have regardingtheir TRICARE bene(ciaries.TRICARE o'cials also note thatconverting your prescriptionsto home delivery over thephone takes about 7 minutesand your (rst shipment will ar-rive in roughly 14 days.


®

by Tony Kennedy

Seniors’ Corner


The American Merchant Marine Veterans (AMMV) was founded to serve the interests of Merchant Marine veterans and affiliated with NAUS in July 2008.


Mr. Doyle E. AbbottSSgt William G. Abbott, USAF (RET)Maj John F. Adams, USAF (RET)CDR Kenneth H. Alderson, USNR (RET)Mrs. Patricia A. AlexanderCAPT Frederick A. Allis, USN (RET)LtCol Merle E. Anderson, USAF (RET)TSgt Marlo B. Anderson, USAF (RET)CMSgt William F. Andrews, USAF (RET)Mr. John ArnoldMrs. Barbara R. AtenCPT John L. Aultman, USA (RET)Mrs. Joyce K. Bacon (SMW)LtCol Lawrence Bandt, USAF (RET)COL Robert T. Bard, USA (RET)Mrs. Clara A. BarickLtCol Robert Baron, USAF (RET)Maj George E. Bartges, USAF (RET)CPO David W. Bass, USCG (RET)PR1 Joe Bass, Jr., USN (RET)COL Paul L. Bates, USA (RET)Mrs. Arlene H. BauerSFC Don Baxter, USA (RET)MSgt Cletus L. Beatty, USAF (RET)Mrs. Cora E. BeckLTC Arnold B. Becker, USA (RET)LtCol Peter M. Beloberk, USAF (RET)MG Calvert P. Benedict, USA (RET)LTC John L. Berg, USA (RET)SP5 S. I. Bersales, USA (RET)Maj Ervin H. Best, USAF (RET)Mrs. Grada BillingsleyCAPT Richard H. Blair, USN (RET)CMSgt Richard E. Blair, USAF (RET)Ms. Bettie BlairBG Jack S. Blocker, USA (RET)COL David R. Blossom, USAR (RET)LtCol Paul J. Bodenhofer, USAF (RET)TSgt Robert W. Boissiere, USAF (RET)SP5 Bernard Bomagat, USA (RET)MSgt Macon P. Booker, USAF (RET)COL Velena Boyd, USA (RET)COL Robert W. Breaks, USA (RET)Maj Theodore W. Bremer, USAF (RET)LTC Charles A. Brown, USAR (RET)TSgt Frank S. Brown, USAF (RET)LCDR Elmer O. Brudvig, USN (RET)MSgt Dewey A. Bryant, USAF (RET)Mrs. Mabel J. BuellSFC William U. Buettgenbach, USA (RET)Capt Max H. Burmann, USAF (RET)MSgt James M. Bussey, USAF (RET)RADM William C. Butler, USN (RET)MSgt Tommie E. Byars, USAF (RET)Mrs. Helen K. ByarsSMSgt Leslie Cabler, USAF (RET)LTC Donald B. Cane, USA (RET)LtCol Dennis Cannon, USAF (RET)MSgt Jack H. Carlman, USAF (RET)CAPT Carl A. Carlson, USN (RET)COL Leo G. Carlson, USA (RET)LCDR Joseph J. Cavanaugh, USN (RET)

SFC Mike Cazares, USA (RET)SSgt Albert A. Champion, USAF (RET)MSgt Irving Chartoff, USAF (RET)Mr. George E. ChenevertMrs. Sophie A. ChrestLtCol Otto L. Christenson, USAF (RET)MSgt Eldred A. Clark, USAF (RET)1SG Robert H. Clark, USA (RET)Mrs. Leola M. CobbCOL John T. Collier, USA (RET)MSgt David A. Collins, USAF (RET)LTC Byron R. Coltrin, USA (RET)MSG Paul Z. Cooke, USA (RET)GySgt Frederick Corcoran, USMCR (RET)LTC Robert R. Craddock, USA (RET)CMSgt Thomas J. Croke, USAF (RET)MSG Hershel Cunningham, USA (RET)SFC Donald E. Curry, USA (RET)COL Donald Mcb Curtis, USA (RET)CW4 Lonnett H. Cypert, USA (RET)Mrs. Helen P. DavisMSG Caster C. Davis, USA (RET)LTC Kenneth A. Davison, USAR (RET)Col Norman A. Degenhardt, USAF (RET)ATC William R. Deister, USN (RET)TSgt Thomas A. Diamond, USAF (RET)LTC Forrest V. Diehl, USA (RET)SFC Patrick F. Doeseckle, USA (RET)Mrs. Beatrice N. DomanskiSFC Marion J. Donati, USA (RET)COL Leonard Drazen, USA (RET)COL Carl T. Dubuy, M.D., USA (RET)COL Deane A. Dunloy, USA (RET)BMC Robert M. Dunne, USN (RET)MSgt Roger C. Dunster, USAF (RET)CDR John S. Earwaker, Jr., USN (RET)LtCol Marwin G. Eberlein, USAF (RET)MAJ Marie L. Edson, USA (RET)RADM John E. Edwards, USN (RET)LtCol Hugh Eldridge, USAF (RET)CW2 Ephraim H. Elledge, USA (RET)SMSgt Harry R. Epperly, USAF (RET)ET3 Warren G. Evans, USN (VET)LtCol James E. Fantone, Jr., USAF (RET)SGM Gerald T. Farrell, USA (RET)CPO Jack G. Fiddes, USN (RET)LTC James L. Fink, USA (RET)LTC John G. W. Finke, USA (RET)COL Joshua A. Finkel, USA (RET)MSgt William G. Finlay, USAF (RET)Mrs. Evelyn FischerCDR Wilfred E. Fleshman, USN (RET)SFC James S. Flood, USA (RET)1SG Ixon Fontenot, USA (RET)SGM Sebastian P. Formica, USA (VET)Mrs. Mary FranceLtCol John F. Frank, USAF (RET)EM2 Angelo J. Franzone, USN (RET)Mrs. Irene FrazerWO-1 M. R. Fuerst, USN (RET)SFC James Gabriele, USA (RET)

LTC Wilbert J. Galetto, USA (RET)COL James B. Gall, USA (RET)CPT Dorothea E. Gauker, USA (VET)SGM Harley Gholson, USA (RET)Mrs. Audrey S. GiddensCOL A. Ward Gillette, USA (RET)LTC Gerald E. Gilmore, USA (RET)SFC Don W. Ginter, Sr., USA (RET)CMSgt Donald G. Ginther Sr., USAF (RET)LtCol Charles F. Glaenzer, USAF (RET)Col Latimer W. Glowa, USAF (RET)Col Lloyd E. Gould, USAF (RET)MSG E. Graham, USA (RET)COL Donald H. Greeley, USA (RET)COL Robert C. Greene, USA (RET)LCDR Joseph M. Greene, USN (RET)LTC Carl H. Griffin, USA (RET)MSgt Charles E. Griswold, USAF (RET)COL Robert W. Grote, USA (RET)COL Francis G. Hall, USA (RET)COL Frank T. Hall, USA (RET)MSgt Gerald T. Hamilton, USAF (RET)Mrs. Justine N. HansonSSgt Dorthea E. Hard, USMC (RET)CMSgt Claude T. Harmon, USAF (RET)Maj Richard I. Harris, USAFR (RET)CPT John W. Harrison, USA (RET)Mrs. J. J. Hayer2LT Laura Hayward, USA (RET)Col Alvin E. Hebert, USAF (RET)CPO Edward O. Hill, USN (RET)SSgt John M. Hill, USAF (RET)Mrs. Gertrude HindsMG William J. Hixson, USA (RET)CDR William I. Hobbs, USN (RET)COL James D. Holland, USA (RET)MSG Charles F. Hunt, USA (VET)CSM Ernest M. Hunter, USA (RET)LTG Oren E. Hurlbut, USA (RET)CMSgt John F. Hutcheson, USAF (RET)Capt Johnston A. Irwin, USAF (VET)Col Ernest L. Isenhower, USAF (RET)SMSgt Roland E. Jacques, USAF (RET)Maj Edmond F. Jared, Sr., USAF (RET)MSG David A. Jean, USA (RET)Mrs. Aileen H. JewettLTC Elizabeth C. Jones, USA (RET)CW2 Humphrey B. Jones, USA (RET)Mrs. Vera M. JorgensenCAPT Robert Juarez, USN (RET)Mrs. Jackie M. KastenLtCol Charles W. Kelley, USAF (RET)MSgt Hubert W. Kennedy, USAF (RET)CW3 J. A. Koenig, USA (RET)CPO Onni G. Koski, USCG (RET)MSgt Joseph R. Krehel, USMC (RET)MSgt Kenneth E. Kross, USAF (RET)CMSgt Charles R. Kruggel, USAF (RET)Dr. Stanley E. Krumbiegel1SG Floyd J. Kruszka, USA (RET)MSgt Carl J. Kuchera, USMC (RET)Mr. William J. KulasMrs. Conrad T. KvamSCPO Nicholas G. LaBella, USN (RET)Maj Joseph L. Lambert, USAFSMSgt Norbert J. Lamberty, USAF (RET)MSG James B. Lanier, USA (RET)SFC Robert John Lanza, USA (RET)MSgt Andrew Lawrence, USAF (RET)MSG Otha E. Lawson, USA (RET)COL C. A. Leavitt, USA (RET)CSM Alfred W. Ledger, USA (RET)MSgt Glen H. Lee, USAF (RET)LCDR Cletus A. Lee, USN (RET)LTC Edward Lesowitz, USA (RET)COL Joe Levinson, USA (RET)

MSgt Wayne G. Lewis, USAFR (RET)COL John H. Lien, USA (RET)PO1 Jack K. Lieupo, USN (RET)LtCol Herbert C. Link, USAF (RET)SSG Howard W. Livingston, USA (VET)MAJ Charles N. Lloyd, USA (RET)Mrs. Joel D. LongCAPT Adrian V. Lorentson, USN (RET)SFC Francisco Lg Lujan, USA (RET)Msgt Tim Lum, USAF (RET)COL James P. Lyke, USA (RET)SGM Charles E. Lyon, USA (VET)Col Mitchell A. Mabardy, USAFLTC Charles R. Madary, USA (RET)SMSgt Jack R. Madritsch, USAF (RET)MSgt Raymond Marinelli, USMC (RET)CW4 Robert R. Marsh, USA (RET)Mrs. Carolyn S. MartinMAJ Lorraine H. Martin, USNG (RET)MSG Roy B. Mason, USA (RET)PO1 Jesse J. Mauk, Jr., USN (RET)MSgt Carlos F. McCuiston, USAF (RET)LCDR Eldon L. McDaniel, Jr., USN (RET)MSG James M. McDonald, USA (RET)LTC Halfred L. McKeever, USA (RET)Mrs. Constance F. McKivettLCDR Elizabeth A. McLaurin, USN (RET)CAPT Roy C. McNett, USN (RET)CDR Thomas McNiff, USN (RET)CAPT Leo J. McNulty, USN (RET)CSM John A. Mead, Jr., USA (RET)COL William F. Meany, USA (RET)LCDR Frank W. Medlock, USN (RET)MSgt Joseph M. Mendegro, USAF (RET)SGM David E. Meyer, USA (RET)CAPT Roger F. Miller, USN (RET)CDR Kermit Miller, USN (RET)MAJ William W. Miller, USA (RET)LtCol Dale T. Milne, USAF (RET)CWO-3 Walter J. Mitchell, USN (RET)Mr. Robert H. MitchellMSgt Medoro M. Montemarano, USAF (RET)COL Brian O. Montgomery, USA (RET)Mrs. Lyda A. MooreCOL Bidwell Moore, USASFC James A. Morehead, USA (RET)Mrs. Elizabeth M. MorganCAPT Grover L. Morris, USPHS (VET)Mrs. Murl W. Morrow

MSG Mitchell T. Murkerson, USA(RET)MSgt George Murphy, USAF (RET)MajGen Thomas C. Musgrave, Jr., USAF (RET)MAJ Bernice A. Nelson, USA (RET)SMSgt Donald S. Nichols, USAF (RET)Mrs. Pauline NicholsMaj Geoffrey L. Nolan, USAF (RET)MSG Vernon R. Norris, USA (RET)LTC J. O. Nottingham, USA (RET)LtCol Eugene A. Novak, USAF (RET)CPT Lynn H. O'Brien, USA (RET)SCPO John P. O'Connor, USN (RET)MSG David T. Ogden, USA (RET)MSgt John E. Oliver, USAF (RET)Mrs. Theodora E. OlsenMSG Ronald H. Olson, USA (RET)DKC Daniel C. Opperman, USN (RET)Mrs. Eveltina OstlundCPO Joseph M. Ouge, USN (RET)MSG Edwin A. Pacheo, USA (RET)LtCol Herman J. Pardey, USAF (RET)Maj Limuel G. Parks, USAF (RET)MSG Paul B. Parsons, Sr., USA (RET)CW4 Franklin E. Pauli, USA (RET)Mrs. Alice T. PeaceMrs. Virginia R. PearsonMr. Juan B. PerezCPO Ralph R. Perkins, Jr., USCG (RET)CAPT Robert A. Phillips, USN (RET)MAJ Richard C. Place, USA (RET)Col Alfred Pleasonton, USAF (RET)PO1 Frank Potter, USNR (VET)LTC William J. Powers, USA (RET)CSM Neale T. Praska, USA (RET)CDR Robert H. Prickett, USN (RET)LtCol Elizabeth N. Pukas, USAF (RET)LT Orlando J. Purdom, USN (RET)CAPT Robert J. Quinn, USN (RET)SSG Kenneth A. Raack, USA (RET)LTC Cornelius Radu, USA (RET)Mrs. Edna E. RandolphLtCol Ward S. Randolph, USAF (RET)CDR Russell Reddoch, USN (RET)LtCol Glenn A. Reich, USAF (RET)LTC Carn R. Reid, USA (RET)Mrs. Roma P. RentzATN2 John E. Rice, USN (RET)Col Preston E. Rice, USAF (RET)

TAPSNAUS,

2ank you so much for your reply, care,concern and compassion. Pop, AKA “2eColonel” was so very proud of his militaryexpierence and his country, a trait that heinstilled in his daughters, their husbandsand his grand-children. We have peace inknowing that Pop is resting comfortablyalongside those brave men and women whogave their lives so that we may be free. Ourfamily wishes you and yours, including all ofthe members of NAUS, a safe and longjoourney through life.2ank you again.

Tom Beaver and the family of Lt. Colonel John F. Frank, USAF (Retired)

SFC Paul Ridilla, USA (RET)CW2 Angel M. Rivera, USA (RET)Mrs. Rose M. RobbLTC Edward B. Roberts, Jr., USA (RET)SMSgt Charles W. Robertson, USAF (RET)LTC Robert B. Robinson, USA (RET)SSG George I. Rock, Sr., USA (RET)LtCol Richard J. Rommer, USAF (RET)LTC R. A. Rowlands, USA (RET)SMSgt Edmund J. Ruehle, USAF (RET)Capt Jimmy T. Runer, USMC (RET)CPO Hyman C. Runkle, USN (RET)SFC Alfred G. Rushing, USA (RET)CDR David N. Russell, USCG (RET)CWO-4 Philip N. Ruth, USN (RET)CAPT Richard J. Ryan, USN (RET)LTG Frank J. Sackton, USA (RET)LtCol Joseph W. Samuels, USAF (RET)MAJ Leontina M. Savage, USA (RET)MSG Elvin E. Scheer, USA (RET)SGT Marshal M. Schley, USA (RET)Mrs. Anna O. SchmiedelMSgt Lloyd F. Scott, USAF (RET)SSG Wilfred G. Scotti, USA (RET)Col Owen H. Seatz, USAF (RET)Mrs. Blanche S. SeaverCAPT William Seidel, USN (RET)TSgt Robert H. Sellman, Jr., USAF (RET)SMSgt Charles R. Senteney, USAF (RET)CW4 Edward D. Shaffield, USA (RET)A1C Everett W. Sheldon, Sr., USAF (RET)BrigGen George R. E. Shell, USMC (RET)

SFC Fredrick F. Shellhart, USA (RET)Mrs. Frances C. SheppardMSG Leonard H. Shouse, USA (RET)BrigGen Clifford H. Shuey, USMC (RET)LTC C. W. Shults, Jr., USA (RET)LTC William R. Slone, USA (RET)CWO Lester V. Smith, USAF (RET)LTC Herman R. Smith, Jr., USA (RET)Mrs. Anna Perle SmithMaj Val Smith, USAF (RET)LtCol Anthony R. Smolar, USAF (RET)RADM William O. Snead, USN (RET)LTC Joseph Solomonow, USA (RET)LCDR Roy K. Sorensen, USN (RET)LTC John R. Spark, USA (RET)MG Herbert G. Sparrow, USA (RET)Capt Lloyd V. Spear, USAF (RET)MSgt Loy J. Stafinbil, USAF (RET)COL Mortimer R. Staley, USA (RET)COL Cyril D. Stapleton, USA (RET)Mrs. Emma P. StarnesSFC William H. Starr, USA (RET)COL Ralph O. Steele, USA (RET)SFC Theodore Stewart, USA (RET)MAJ Max Stokes, USA (RET)SMSgt Raymond Stoll, USAF (RET)SFC Robert W. Stone, Jr., USA (RET)LtCol Ross D. Strode, USAF (RET)PFC Leo Strom, USA (RET)1SG Oscar L. Svenson, USA (RET)CWO-4 Donald R. Sweigart, USN (RET)MAJ James P. Swift, USA (RET)

MSG Stanley Szymanski, USA (RET)SFC Sau T. Tagaloa, USA (RET)CDR Philip M. Tansey, USN (RET)COL Marion F. Thurston, Jr., USA (RET)COL Edmund J. Tomasik, USA (RET)COL Harold J. Tucker, USA (RET)SFC Henry Tuting, USA (RET)LTC Hiram L. Tuttle, USNG (RET)COL John S. Tyler, USA (RET)SMSgt Thomas P. Valdez, USAF (RET)CAPT Donald O. Van Ness, USNR (RET)Mrs. Lila WalkerMSG Albert T. Walker, USA (RET)SFC Clarence E. Wall, USA (RET)COL James L. Wallace, USA (RET)SSgt Roger Walters, USAF (RET)CAPT Joseph W. Weaver, USN (RET)Mrs. Jeanlouise WebsterSFC Robert F. Welch, USA (RET)LTC Louis C. Welch, USA (RET)SFC James M. Welsh, USA (RET)CW3 Daniel S. West, USA (RET)1SG Leonard P. Wheatley, USA (RET)Mrs. June WhisnerLTC Beatrice Whitcomb, USA (RET)MSgt Joseph W. White, USAF (RET)LtCol William W. White, USAF (RET)Mrs. Elizabeth E. WhitingCPT Harry Whitmore, USA (RET)LTC Richard C. B. Whitten, USA (RET)SMSgt Randolph A. Wildes, USNGMrs. Mary L. Williams

COL Lawrence H. Williams, USA (RET)SFC Charles S. Willis, USA (RET)CAPT William G. Willson, USN (RET)Mr. George WilsonSMSgt Dorrell J. Wilson, USAF (RET)Mrs. Leola WilsonCAPT Albert W. Winchell, USN (RET)Mrs. Nina M. WittCOL Charles H. Wood, USA (RET)Mr. J. Carter Wright

LtCol John Yauk, USAF (RET)SFC Richard S. Yokota, USA (RET)CAPT Maynard F. Young, USCG (RET)MSG Lawrence W. Zablan, USA (RET)MAJ Lawrence F. Zant, USA (RET)MSG John F. Zatovich, USA (RET)LTC Alfonso S. Zawadski, USA (RET)LTC Alexander R. Zenz, USA (RET)MG Frederick R. Zierath, USA (RET)VADM James A. Zimble, USN (RET)

In Lieu of Flowers: NAUS wishes to thank those who have asked that

“In lieu of �owers” a donation be made to theNational Association for Uniformed Services®. 2is is

a thoughtful and lasting salute to the memory ofthose dedicated veterans of the uniformed services.

2ank you for thinking of those who will follow.Donations should be sent to:

NAUS5535 Hempstead WaySpring�eld, VA 22151


Mr. Doyle E. AbbottSSgt William G. Abbott, USAF (RET)Maj John F. Adams, USAF (RET)CDR Kenneth H. Alderson, USNR (RET)Mrs. Patricia A. AlexanderCAPT Frederick A. Allis, USN (RET)LtCol Merle E. Anderson, USAF (RET)TSgt Marlo B. Anderson, USAF (RET)CMSgt William F. Andrews, USAF (RET)Mr. John ArnoldMrs. Barbara R. AtenCPT John L. Aultman, USA (RET)Mrs. Joyce K. Bacon (SMW)LtCol Lawrence Bandt, USAF (RET)COL Robert T. Bard, USA (RET)Mrs. Clara A. BarickLtCol Robert Baron, USAF (RET)Maj George E. Bartges, USAF (RET)CPO David W. Bass, USCG (RET)PR1 Joe Bass, Jr., USN (RET)COL Paul L. Bates, USA (RET)Mrs. Arlene H. BauerSFC Don Baxter, USA (RET)MSgt Cletus L. Beatty, USAF (RET)Mrs. Cora E. BeckLTC Arnold B. Becker, USA (RET)LtCol Peter M. Beloberk, USAF (RET)MG Calvert P. Benedict, USA (RET)LTC John L. Berg, USA (RET)SP5 S. I. Bersales, USA (RET)Maj Ervin H. Best, USAF (RET)Mrs. Grada BillingsleyCAPT Richard H. Blair, USN (RET)CMSgt Richard E. Blair, USAF (RET)Ms. Bettie BlairBG Jack S. Blocker, USA (RET)COL David R. Blossom, USAR (RET)LtCol Paul J. Bodenhofer, USAF (RET)TSgt Robert W. Boissiere, USAF (RET)SP5 Bernard Bomagat, USA (RET)MSgt Macon P. Booker, USAF (RET)COL Velena Boyd, USA (RET)COL Robert W. Breaks, USA (RET)Maj Theodore W. Bremer, USAF (RET)LTC Charles A. Brown, USAR (RET)TSgt Frank S. Brown, USAF (RET)LCDR Elmer O. Brudvig, USN (RET)MSgt Dewey A. Bryant, USAF (RET)Mrs. Mabel J. BuellSFC William U. Buettgenbach, USA (RET)Capt Max H. Burmann, USAF (RET)MSgt James M. Bussey, USAF (RET)RADM William C. Butler, USN (RET)MSgt Tommie E. Byars, USAF (RET)Mrs. Helen K. ByarsSMSgt Leslie Cabler, USAF (RET)LTC Donald B. Cane, USA (RET)LtCol Dennis Cannon, USAF (RET)MSgt Jack H. Carlman, USAF (RET)CAPT Carl A. Carlson, USN (RET)COL Leo G. Carlson, USA (RET)LCDR Joseph J. Cavanaugh, USN (RET)

SFC Mike Cazares, USA (RET)SSgt Albert A. Champion, USAF (RET)MSgt Irving Chartoff, USAF (RET)Mr. George E. ChenevertMrs. Sophie A. ChrestLtCol Otto L. Christenson, USAF (RET)MSgt Eldred A. Clark, USAF (RET)1SG Robert H. Clark, USA (RET)Mrs. Leola M. CobbCOL John T. Collier, USA (RET)MSgt David A. Collins, USAF (RET)LTC Byron R. Coltrin, USA (RET)MSG Paul Z. Cooke, USA (RET)GySgt Frederick Corcoran, USMCR (RET)LTC Robert R. Craddock, USA (RET)CMSgt Thomas J. Croke, USAF (RET)MSG Hershel Cunningham, USA (RET)SFC Donald E. Curry, USA (RET)COL Donald Mcb Curtis, USA (RET)CW4 Lonnett H. Cypert, USA (RET)Mrs. Helen P. DavisMSG Caster C. Davis, USA (RET)LTC Kenneth A. Davison, USAR (RET)Col Norman A. Degenhardt, USAF (RET)ATC William R. Deister, USN (RET)TSgt Thomas A. Diamond, USAF (RET)LTC Forrest V. Diehl, USA (RET)SFC Patrick F. Doeseckle, USA (RET)Mrs. Beatrice N. DomanskiSFC Marion J. Donati, USA (RET)COL Leonard Drazen, USA (RET)COL Carl T. Dubuy, M.D., USA (RET)COL Deane A. Dunloy, USA (RET)BMC Robert M. Dunne, USN (RET)MSgt Roger C. Dunster, USAF (RET)CDR John S. Earwaker, Jr., USN (RET)LtCol Marwin G. Eberlein, USAF (RET)MAJ Marie L. Edson, USA (RET)RADM John E. Edwards, USN (RET)LtCol Hugh Eldridge, USAF (RET)CW2 Ephraim H. Elledge, USA (RET)SMSgt Harry R. Epperly, USAF (RET)ET3 Warren G. Evans, USN (VET)LtCol James E. Fantone, Jr., USAF (RET)SGM Gerald T. Farrell, USA (RET)CPO Jack G. Fiddes, USN (RET)LTC James L. Fink, USA (RET)LTC John G. W. Finke, USA (RET)COL Joshua A. Finkel, USA (RET)MSgt William G. Finlay, USAF (RET)Mrs. Evelyn FischerCDR Wilfred E. Fleshman, USN (RET)SFC James S. Flood, USA (RET)1SG Ixon Fontenot, USA (RET)SGM Sebastian P. Formica, USA (VET)Mrs. Mary FranceLtCol John F. Frank, USAF (RET)EM2 Angelo J. Franzone, USN (RET)Mrs. Irene FrazerWO-1 M. R. Fuerst, USN (RET)SFC James Gabriele, USA (RET)

LTC Wilbert J. Galetto, USA (RET)COL James B. Gall, USA (RET)CPT Dorothea E. Gauker, USA (VET)SGM Harley Gholson, USA (RET)Mrs. Audrey S. GiddensCOL A. Ward Gillette, USA (RET)LTC Gerald E. Gilmore, USA (RET)SFC Don W. Ginter, Sr., USA (RET)CMSgt Donald G. Ginther Sr., USAF (RET)LtCol Charles F. Glaenzer, USAF (RET)Col Latimer W. Glowa, USAF (RET)Col Lloyd E. Gould, USAF (RET)MSG E. Graham, USA (RET)COL Donald H. Greeley, USA (RET)COL Robert C. Greene, USA (RET)LCDR Joseph M. Greene, USN (RET)LTC Carl H. Griffin, USA (RET)MSgt Charles E. Griswold, USAF (RET)COL Robert W. Grote, USA (RET)COL Francis G. Hall, USA (RET)COL Frank T. Hall, USA (RET)MSgt Gerald T. Hamilton, USAF (RET)Mrs. Justine N. HansonSSgt Dorthea E. Hard, USMC (RET)CMSgt Claude T. Harmon, USAF (RET)Maj Richard I. Harris, USAFR (RET)CPT John W. Harrison, USA (RET)Mrs. J. J. Hayer2LT Laura Hayward, USA (RET)Col Alvin E. Hebert, USAF (RET)CPO Edward O. Hill, USN (RET)SSgt John M. Hill, USAF (RET)Mrs. Gertrude HindsMG William J. Hixson, USA (RET)CDR William I. Hobbs, USN (RET)COL James D. Holland, USA (RET)MSG Charles F. Hunt, USA (VET)CSM Ernest M. Hunter, USA (RET)LTG Oren E. Hurlbut, USA (RET)CMSgt John F. Hutcheson, USAF (RET)Capt Johnston A. Irwin, USAF (VET)Col Ernest L. Isenhower, USAF (RET)SMSgt Roland E. Jacques, USAF (RET)Maj Edmond F. Jared, Sr., USAF (RET)MSG David A. Jean, USA (RET)Mrs. Aileen H. JewettLTC Elizabeth C. Jones, USA (RET)CW2 Humphrey B. Jones, USA (RET)Mrs. Vera M. JorgensenCAPT Robert Juarez, USN (RET)Mrs. Jackie M. KastenLtCol Charles W. Kelley, USAF (RET)MSgt Hubert W. Kennedy, USAF (RET)CW3 J. A. Koenig, USA (RET)CPO Onni G. Koski, USCG (RET)MSgt Joseph R. Krehel, USMC (RET)MSgt Kenneth E. Kross, USAF (RET)CMSgt Charles R. Kruggel, USAF (RET)Dr. Stanley E. Krumbiegel1SG Floyd J. Kruszka, USA (RET)MSgt Carl J. Kuchera, USMC (RET)Mr. William J. KulasMrs. Conrad T. KvamSCPO Nicholas G. LaBella, USN (RET)Maj Joseph L. Lambert, USAFSMSgt Norbert J. Lamberty, USAF (RET)MSG James B. Lanier, USA (RET)SFC Robert John Lanza, USA (RET)MSgt Andrew Lawrence, USAF (RET)MSG Otha E. Lawson, USA (RET)COL C. A. Leavitt, USA (RET)CSM Alfred W. Ledger, USA (RET)MSgt Glen H. Lee, USAF (RET)LCDR Cletus A. Lee, USN (RET)LTC Edward Lesowitz, USA (RET)COL Joe Levinson, USA (RET)

MSgt Wayne G. Lewis, USAFR (RET)COL John H. Lien, USA (RET)PO1 Jack K. Lieupo, USN (RET)LtCol Herbert C. Link, USAF (RET)SSG Howard W. Livingston, USA (VET)MAJ Charles N. Lloyd, USA (RET)Mrs. Joel D. LongCAPT Adrian V. Lorentson, USN (RET)SFC Francisco Lg Lujan, USA (RET)Msgt Tim Lum, USAF (RET)COL James P. Lyke, USA (RET)SGM Charles E. Lyon, USA (VET)Col Mitchell A. Mabardy, USAFLTC Charles R. Madary, USA (RET)SMSgt Jack R. Madritsch, USAF (RET)MSgt Raymond Marinelli, USMC (RET)CW4 Robert R. Marsh, USA (RET)Mrs. Carolyn S. MartinMAJ Lorraine H. Martin, USNG (RET)MSG Roy B. Mason, USA (RET)PO1 Jesse J. Mauk, Jr., USN (RET)MSgt Carlos F. McCuiston, USAF (RET)LCDR Eldon L. McDaniel, Jr., USN (RET)MSG James M. McDonald, USA (RET)LTC Halfred L. McKeever, USA (RET)Mrs. Constance F. McKivettLCDR Elizabeth A. McLaurin, USN (RET)CAPT Roy C. McNett, USN (RET)CDR Thomas McNiff, USN (RET)CAPT Leo J. McNulty, USN (RET)CSM John A. Mead, Jr., USA (RET)COL William F. Meany, USA (RET)LCDR Frank W. Medlock, USN (RET)MSgt Joseph M. Mendegro, USAF (RET)SGM David E. Meyer, USA (RET)CAPT Roger F. Miller, USN (RET)CDR Kermit Miller, USN (RET)MAJ William W. Miller, USA (RET)LtCol Dale T. Milne, USAF (RET)CWO-3 Walter J. Mitchell, USN (RET)Mr. Robert H. MitchellMSgt Medoro M. Montemarano, USAF (RET)COL Brian O. Montgomery, USA (RET)Mrs. Lyda A. MooreCOL Bidwell Moore, USASFC James A. Morehead, USA (RET)Mrs. Elizabeth M. MorganCAPT Grover L. Morris, USPHS (VET)Mrs. Murl W. Morrow

MSG Mitchell T. Murkerson, USA(RET)MSgt George Murphy, USAF (RET)MajGen Thomas C. Musgrave, Jr., USAF (RET)MAJ Bernice A. Nelson, USA (RET)SMSgt Donald S. Nichols, USAF (RET)Mrs. Pauline NicholsMaj Geoffrey L. Nolan, USAF (RET)MSG Vernon R. Norris, USA (RET)LTC J. O. Nottingham, USA (RET)LtCol Eugene A. Novak, USAF (RET)CPT Lynn H. O'Brien, USA (RET)SCPO John P. O'Connor, USN (RET)MSG David T. Ogden, USA (RET)MSgt John E. Oliver, USAF (RET)Mrs. Theodora E. OlsenMSG Ronald H. Olson, USA (RET)DKC Daniel C. Opperman, USN (RET)Mrs. Eveltina OstlundCPO Joseph M. Ouge, USN (RET)MSG Edwin A. Pacheo, USA (RET)LtCol Herman J. Pardey, USAF (RET)Maj Limuel G. Parks, USAF (RET)MSG Paul B. Parsons, Sr., USA (RET)CW4 Franklin E. Pauli, USA (RET)Mrs. Alice T. PeaceMrs. Virginia R. PearsonMr. Juan B. PerezCPO Ralph R. Perkins, Jr., USCG (RET)CAPT Robert A. Phillips, USN (RET)MAJ Richard C. Place, USA (RET)Col Alfred Pleasonton, USAF (RET)PO1 Frank Potter, USNR (VET)LTC William J. Powers, USA (RET)CSM Neale T. Praska, USA (RET)CDR Robert H. Prickett, USN (RET)LtCol Elizabeth N. Pukas, USAF (RET)LT Orlando J. Purdom, USN (RET)CAPT Robert J. Quinn, USN (RET)SSG Kenneth A. Raack, USA (RET)LTC Cornelius Radu, USA (RET)Mrs. Edna E. RandolphLtCol Ward S. Randolph, USAF (RET)CDR Russell Reddoch, USN (RET)LtCol Glenn A. Reich, USAF (RET)LTC Carn R. Reid, USA (RET)Mrs. Roma P. RentzATN2 John E. Rice, USN (RET)Col Preston E. Rice, USAF (RET)

TAPSNAUS,

2ank you so much for your reply, care,concern and compassion. Pop, AKA “2eColonel” was so very proud of his militaryexpierence and his country, a trait that heinstilled in his daughters, their husbandsand his grand-children. We have peace inknowing that Pop is resting comfortablyalongside those brave men and women whogave their lives so that we may be free. Ourfamily wishes you and yours, including all ofthe members of NAUS, a safe and longjoourney through life.2ank you again.

Tom Beaver and the family of Lt. Colonel John F. Frank, USAF (Retired)

SFC Paul Ridilla, USA (RET)CW2 Angel M. Rivera, USA (RET)Mrs. Rose M. RobbLTC Edward B. Roberts, Jr., USA (RET)SMSgt Charles W. Robertson, USAF (RET)LTC Robert B. Robinson, USA (RET)SSG George I. Rock, Sr., USA (RET)LtCol Richard J. Rommer, USAF (RET)LTC R. A. Rowlands, USA (RET)SMSgt Edmund J. Ruehle, USAF (RET)Capt Jimmy T. Runer, USMC (RET)CPO Hyman C. Runkle, USN (RET)SFC Alfred G. Rushing, USA (RET)CDR David N. Russell, USCG (RET)CWO-4 Philip N. Ruth, USN (RET)CAPT Richard J. Ryan, USN (RET)LTG Frank J. Sackton, USA (RET)LtCol Joseph W. Samuels, USAF (RET)MAJ Leontina M. Savage, USA (RET)MSG Elvin E. Scheer, USA (RET)SGT Marshal M. Schley, USA (RET)Mrs. Anna O. SchmiedelMSgt Lloyd F. Scott, USAF (RET)SSG Wilfred G. Scotti, USA (RET)Col Owen H. Seatz, USAF (RET)Mrs. Blanche S. SeaverCAPT William Seidel, USN (RET)TSgt Robert H. Sellman, Jr., USAF (RET)SMSgt Charles R. Senteney, USAF (RET)CW4 Edward D. Shaffield, USA (RET)A1C Everett W. Sheldon, Sr., USAF (RET)BrigGen George R. E. Shell, USMC (RET)

SFC Fredrick F. Shellhart, USA (RET)Mrs. Frances C. SheppardMSG Leonard H. Shouse, USA (RET)BrigGen Clifford H. Shuey, USMC (RET)LTC C. W. Shults, Jr., USA (RET)LTC William R. Slone, USA (RET)CWO Lester V. Smith, USAF (RET)LTC Herman R. Smith, Jr., USA (RET)Mrs. Anna Perle SmithMaj Val Smith, USAF (RET)LtCol Anthony R. Smolar, USAF (RET)RADM William O. Snead, USN (RET)LTC Joseph Solomonow, USA (RET)LCDR Roy K. Sorensen, USN (RET)LTC John R. Spark, USA (RET)MG Herbert G. Sparrow, USA (RET)Capt Lloyd V. Spear, USAF (RET)MSgt Loy J. Stafinbil, USAF (RET)COL Mortimer R. Staley, USA (RET)COL Cyril D. Stapleton, USA (RET)Mrs. Emma P. StarnesSFC William H. Starr, USA (RET)COL Ralph O. Steele, USA (RET)SFC Theodore Stewart, USA (RET)MAJ Max Stokes, USA (RET)SMSgt Raymond Stoll, USAF (RET)SFC Robert W. Stone, Jr., USA (RET)LtCol Ross D. Strode, USAF (RET)PFC Leo Strom, USA (RET)1SG Oscar L. Svenson, USA (RET)CWO-4 Donald R. Sweigart, USN (RET)MAJ James P. Swift, USA (RET)

MSG Stanley Szymanski, USA (RET)SFC Sau T. Tagaloa, USA (RET)CDR Philip M. Tansey, USN (RET)COL Marion F. Thurston, Jr., USA (RET)COL Edmund J. Tomasik, USA (RET)COL Harold J. Tucker, USA (RET)SFC Henry Tuting, USA (RET)LTC Hiram L. Tuttle, USNG (RET)COL John S. Tyler, USA (RET)SMSgt Thomas P. Valdez, USAF (RET)CAPT Donald O. Van Ness, USNR (RET)Mrs. Lila WalkerMSG Albert T. Walker, USA (RET)SFC Clarence E. Wall, USA (RET)COL James L. Wallace, USA (RET)SSgt Roger Walters, USAF (RET)CAPT Joseph W. Weaver, USN (RET)Mrs. Jeanlouise WebsterSFC Robert F. Welch, USA (RET)LTC Louis C. Welch, USA (RET)SFC James M. Welsh, USA (RET)CW3 Daniel S. West, USA (RET)1SG Leonard P. Wheatley, USA (RET)Mrs. June WhisnerLTC Beatrice Whitcomb, USA (RET)MSgt Joseph W. White, USAF (RET)LtCol William W. White, USAF (RET)Mrs. Elizabeth E. WhitingCPT Harry Whitmore, USA (RET)LTC Richard C. B. Whitten, USA (RET)SMSgt Randolph A. Wildes, USNGMrs. Mary L. Williams

COL Lawrence H. Williams, USA (RET)SFC Charles S. Willis, USA (RET)CAPT William G. Willson, USN (RET)Mr. George WilsonSMSgt Dorrell J. Wilson, USAF (RET)Mrs. Leola WilsonCAPT Albert W. Winchell, USN (RET)Mrs. Nina M. WittCOL Charles H. Wood, USA (RET)Mr. J. Carter Wright

LtCol John Yauk, USAF (RET)SFC Richard S. Yokota, USA (RET)CAPT Maynard F. Young, USCG (RET)MSG Lawrence W. Zablan, USA (RET)MAJ Lawrence F. Zant, USA (RET)MSG John F. Zatovich, USA (RET)LTC Alfonso S. Zawadski, USA (RET)LTC Alexander R. Zenz, USA (RET)MG Frederick R. Zierath, USA (RET)VADM James A. Zimble, USN (RET)

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SFC Bobby L. Austin, USA (RET)CAPT Henry D. Baldridge, Jr., USN (RET)SMSgt Fred R. Berneski, Sr., USAF (RET)LtCol Lucile A. Bianchi, USAF (RET)LtCol Harold O. Bohn, USAF (RET)SFC Frank T. Bragdon, Jr., USA (RET)PFC George J. Breckenridge, USA (RET)Mr. Brady BryanCol John W Burt, USAF (RET)RDML James J. Carey, USNR (RET)CAPT T. E. Crowder, USNR (VET)Mr. Harry G. Davis1SG John De Jesus, Jr., USA (RET)COL William B. Dillingham, USA (RET)MAJ Charles E. Douglas, Jr., USA (RET)Col Anthony J. Dunleavy, USMC (RET)Mr. Howard S. EdelsteinLTC William F. Edgar, USA (RET)CMSgt Byron Gene Fish, USAF (RET)SFC Gilbert H. Flores, USA (RET)MSgt Wayne M. Gatewood, Jr., USMC (RET)MSgt Olaf F. Gouchie, Jr., USAF (RET)SgtMaj Arthur R. Graham, USMC (RET)TSgt John H. Gray, USAF (RET)CMSgt Richard R. Hall, Jr., USAF (RET)SGM Walter Y. Harimoto, USA (RET)"TSgt Almon C. Hemore, USAF (RET)Mrs. Dorothy F. Horne\usMs. Sylvia E. HosegoodSSG Jack E. Hughes, USA (RET)1SG Royce Hunt, USA (RET)MSgt Donald R. Hyatt, USAF (RET)LTC Bruno H. Jachmann, USA (RET)SMSgt Robert L. Kukua, USAF (RET)SCPO Sterling M. Latsha, USN (RET)2LT Robert E.Y. Lee, USA (RET)LTC Henry Lee, USA (RET)LTC Henry Lee, USA (RET)2LT Dallas G. Lehn, USA (RET)SGM James E. McBurney, USA (RET)Col Raymond R. McClean, USAF (RET)SFC Harold F. McQuaid, USA (RET)CSM Charles L. McQuerry, USA (RET)Col Billy Millis, USAF (RET)Col Margaret Y. Mishima, USAF (RET)MAJ Lucien A. Morin, USA (RET)LtCol Howard L. Naslund, USAF (RET)MSG Aloysius M. Norris, USA (RET)CDR Bernard P. O'Brien, Jr., USCG (RET)MSG Alvin Parker, USA (RET)SMSgt George H. Peary, Jr., USAF (RET)LTC Mark T. Pilgrim, USA (RET)CAPT Corley E. Puckett, USNSMSgt Charles W. Robertson, USAF (RET)MSG Keith Salyer, USA (RET)COL Paul Schweikert, Jr., USA (RET)LTC Carl V. Shoemaker, USA (RET)LtCol Gerald R. Shrawder, USAF (RET)CSM Russell L. Smith, USA (RET)

LtCol Glenn E. Staggs, USAF (RET)COL Joseph P. Summa, USA (RET)RADM Jeremy D. Taylor, USN (RET)SFC Audrey V. Toombs, USA (RET)COL Lawrence R. Walker, USARCol Warren H. Wiedhahn, USMC (RET)

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1SG Gibson P. Abshire, USA (RET)LTC Raymond A. Acker, USA (RET)SGM Betty L. Adams, USA (RET)CPT William A. Adams, USA (RET)MSgt Richard R. Ail, USAF (RET)CWO-4 Chester L. Allen, Jr., USN (RET)SFC Robert J. Allen, USA (RET)COL Paul D. Anderson, USA (RET)LTC John H. Anderson, USA (RET)1SG Augustine Aragon, USA (RET)MGySgt Robert P. Baldwin, USMC (RET)MSgt Ezra E. Ballard, USAF (RET)Mr. Raymond BantzCOL Margaret H. Bask\eld, USA (RET)LTC Marshall Beall, USA (RET)1SG Hugh L. Beasley, USA (RET)Col Donald Beitsch, USAF (RET)Mrs. Marlene J. BengeSMSgt William L. Black, USAF (RET)COL Daniel M. Blaho, Jr., USA (RET)LCDR Richard A. Blanchette, USN (RET)Col Robert L Bowen, III, USAF (RET)TSgt Jared B. Brandenburg, USAF (RET)TSgt William B. Breen, USAF (RET)Maj Richard G. Britner, Jr., USAF (RET)SFC Jimmy L. Broderway, USA (RET)PFC William L. Brown, Jr., USA (RET)LtCol Edward G. Brown, Jr., USAF (RET)LTC Edward M. Brown, USA (RET)Mrs. Ruth C. BrownTSgt John A. Brunet, USAF (RET)COL Benjamin C. Buckley, USA (RET)Col Jack P. Bujalski, USAF (RET)MSgt Lyle W. Burton, USAF (RET)SGM Jacob P. Busch, USA (RET)Mr. Robert CarrettaCOL Mark C. Carrigan, USA (RET)CDR Richard W. Carter, USN (RET)CW4 Melvin K. Chock, USA (RET)COL Bruce Cleary, USA (RET)SGM Robert Cole, USNG (RET)1SG Kennie L. Coleman, USA (RET)MSgt Karl W. Corser, Jr., USAF (RET)MSgt Karl W. Corser, Jr., USAF (RET)BGen James F. Culver, M.D., USAF (RET)MajGen Lewis Curtis, USAF (RET)TSgt Roy R. Daschofsky, USAF (RET)LtCol Jay A. Daugherty, USAF (RET)LTC James De Vage, USA (RET)MSgt Herbert C. Dean, USAF (RET)Col John J. Donnelly, USAF (RET)MSgt Harley T. Duffy, USAF (RET)LTG Charles W. Dyke, USA (RET)LtCol Edward D Ehrenberger, USAF (RET)"

COL Webb Ellis, USA (RET)"Mrs. Roberta Erbacher-ZerdaCDR Mary Ewing, USPHS (VET)CPL William H. Ferguson, USA (VET)Col Ralph E. Fisher, USAF (RET)Maj Lyle G. Fjelsted, USAF (RET)SFC Gilbert H. Flores, USA (RET)MSgt Richard M. Fujishige, USAF (RET)PSG Richard H. Glass, USA (RET)MAJ Robert G. Gleason, USA (RET)LTC Bob Glick, USA (RET)CSM Arnold Greenberg, USA (RET)Maj George A. Hall, USAF (RET)LtCol Robert L. Hanlin, USAFR (RET)Col Franklin A. Hart, Jr., USMC (RET)"MSG eodor Haupt, USA (RET)Col Edward A. Hauss, USAF (RET)LTC Richard W. Hawes, USA (RET)SgtMaj David L. Hellums, USMC (RET)Ms. Marleane M. HethCol Neal Hickle, USAF (RET)CMSgt Lawrence E. Hicks, USAF (RET)CAPT Shirley A. Hill, USN (RET)LTC Frank J. Hill, USA (RET)COL Gerald A. Holt, USA (RET)1SG Walter D. Hoppenbrouwer, USA (RET)Mrs. Virginia HornPSG Gilbert J. Houghton, USA (RET)COL John D. Howard, USA (RET)COL John W. Hulme, USA (RET)Capt Charles M. Huntington, USAF (RET)SSG Andrew L. Johnson, USA (RET)LtCol Raymond W. Kalm, USMC (RET)Mr. Clete KetnerCMSgt Kenneth K. Kimseu, USAF (RET)CSM Lloyd H. Kindred, USA (RET)SSG James W. Kircher, USA (RET)COL William M. Klemme, USA (RET)SFC Morris Kushner, USA (RET)BG George A. Landis, USA (RET)Col Wayne Lanphear, USAF (RET)SFC Donald C. LaPiere, USA (RET)LtCol Richard F. Lasher, USAF (RET)Ms. Mary Evelyn LasiterCol Jimmy S. Lassetter, USAF (RET)SFC Jack Lawrence, USA (RET)MAJ John R. Lee, USAR (RET)LtCol Stephen C. Leisge, USAF (RET)COL James L. Long, USA (RET)Col Chester C. Lukas, USAF (RET)MAJ Bernard J. Magelky, USA (RET)LtCol George S. Mark, Jr., USAF (RET)CW4 Manuel Martinez, USA (RET)MAJ Steven J. Matheke, USAR (RET)MAJ John R. McCullough, USAR (RET)Mrs. Johanna M. McGeeLTC Gary T. Meagher, USA (RET)SFC urmond O. Meetze, USA (RET)Col George J. Mercuro, USAF (RET)Maj John B. Mertens, USAF (RET)Ms. Caroline E.. MottLtCol Newell D. Moy, USAF (RET)

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Mrs. Betty W. MullenCol Edward A. Munns, USAF (RET)Col William D. Murchie, USAF (RET)CSM George L. Murray, USA (RET)Mrs. Glenice MyersMrs. Helene D. NickersonSFC Joseph Olsofsky, USA (RET)MSgt Donald L. Oswald, USAF (RET)COL Charles C. Partridge, USA (RET)1SG Robert C. Peters, USA (RET)Mrs. Christina L. PetterutiMaj Earl C. Phillips, USAF (RET)MSgt Leslie D. Poff, Jr., USAF (RET)SSG Howard Poppell, USA (RET)COL Arthur F. Pottle, Jr., USA (RET)LTC Terry E. Powell, USA (RET)SFC James Prioleau, Jr., USA (RET)LtCol Richard M. Prior, USACSM Wallace W. Rapp, USA (RET)Maj Roy G. Reed, USAF (RET)LT Elena H. Reifel, USNR (RET)1SG Robert A. Ridderbusch, USA (RET)CAPT Carolyn K. Riley, USPHS (RET)Mrs. Grace L. RobertsMG George R. Robertson, USA (RET)LtCol Robert G. Rollins, USAF (RET)

ADJ2 Phillip J. Ronish, USN (RET)SFC Jesus T. Rosario, USA (RET)LCDR Samuel J. Ross, USN (RET)CAPT Larry J. Rousseau, USNR (RET)LtCol Garrett S. Runey, USAF (RET)Col Gerald H. Sanders, USMC (RET)LTC Bobbye J. Sanders, USA (RET)Mrs. Gerda SanoLTC Joseph H. Saul, USA (RET)Mrs. Patricia J. ScallyTSgt Morris R. Scholz, USAF (RET)COL Donald H. See, USA (RET)LCDR Robert A. Shaver, USN (RET)1SG Paul W. Sheriff, Jr., USA (RET)LtCol Carl Shidell, USAF (RET)CWO2 Austin E. Shirley, USMC (RET)Mrs. Marie C. SlaterCPT Wallace E. Small, USA (RET)Maj Jan W. Smith, USAF (RET)Mrs. Louise L. SmithMrs. Kitty S. Smith1SG Walter J. Sowell, USA (RET)Col Donald W. Spearel, USAF (RET)LtCol James H. Stanhope, USAF (RET)CW3 Haskell M. Stillman, USA (RET)LTC Robert H. Stitzinger, USA (RET)

Mrs. Madeleine H. TappSFC Charles W. omas, USA (RET)COL William E. ompson, Jr., USAR (VET)Mr. Francis W. unMSgt Ronald G. Todhunter, USAF (RET)LTC Charles E. Toole, USA (RET)Mrs. Mary B. TreadwellLTC Frederick Trzos, USA (RET)LtCol Don Van Dyke, USAF (RET)SFC Glenn R. Vealey, USA (RET)MSG Philip Velez, USA (RET)RMC Paul Weise, USN (RET)TSgt Robert A. Wekke, USAF (RET)LTC George B. Werthan, USA (RET)CAPT Ross Westley, USPHS (RET)COL eron D. Whidden, Jr., USA (RET)COL Robert R. White, USA (RET)SMSgt Lester H. Wicks, USAF (RET)COL Leslie P. Williams, Jr., USA (RET)Col James E. Williamson, USAF (RET)CAPT William G. Willson, USN (RET)BMC Jon C. Wilson, USN (RET)SMSgt Leo J. Wright, USAF (RET)TSgt Vandey V. Yates, USAF (RET)Ms. Bettye J. YoungTSgt Pedro Zepeda, USAF (RET)


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Unifromed Services Journal March April 2012

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Transcript of Unifromed Services Journal March April 2012