MAY 2010

In This Issue
Memorial Day
Useful Links
Wall Street Reform


"Each and every member of our military is part of the American family.  Their service is a tremendous sacrifice  …  All Americans owe them a debt of gratitude."

Sen. Barbara Mikulski


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Honoring Our Fallen Heroes

    

 

Throughout our nation's history, there have been brave men and women who have willingly left their homes and families to serve in our uniformed services. We gather together at this time of year to remember and honor those who gave their lives in service to our country.

This year as we observe Memorial Day, we are at war and the number of United States casualties continues to grow.   Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of all of those who have lost loved ones in service to the United States of America.

Memorial Day is a time to honor the sacrifices made by every military member in the service of our country. Some have made the ultimate sacrifice of laying down their lives. Others are still with us. We must work to ensure that for those who are still with us, the promises of good health care and benefits are promises kept. For the latest generation of soldiers, this means fighting for better health care and mental health services for our service members and veterans. I assure you that as long as I remain a United States Senator, I will continue to fight for better health care and mental health care for our nation's active duty service members and for our veterans.

Supporting caregivers of wounded veterans

I was so proud to support the Caregiver's and Veteran's Health Services Act of 2009, which President Obama signed into law on May 5, 2010.

For the first time in our nation's history, this bill recognizes the essential role played by family members who care for wounded veterans. Under this new law, the VA is responsible for providing family caregivers of the most severely injured veterans with help in meeting some of their own basic needs - including training and support, respite care, counseling, health coverage, and modest financial support. The family caregiver-assistance provisions of the new law become effective in nine months, giving the VA time to develop an implementation plan.

While we must never expect family members to take the place of the VA health care system, we must not ignore the vital role they play and the physical, emotional, and often financial sacrifices they make to care for a wounded family member. I am proud that Congress at long last recognized this need.

Thank you for serving our country. May God bless you, and may God continue to bless the United States of America.

 

Wall Street Reform Will Strengthen Consumer Protection for Military Families

Moving from base to base and frequent overseas deployment make service members more vulnerable to deceptive and abusive financial practices.  Our troops are doing their job to protect our nation, and Congress needs to do its job to protect them. 

That's why I supported an amendment to the financial reform bill that would create a military liaison within the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).   This new Office of Service Member Affairs will be a consumer watchdog for military personnel, monitoring financial scams targeting service members and their families and responding to complaints.

This amendment had overwhelming support and is part of the Wall Street Reform bill that was approved by the Senate last night.  When the provisions of this amendment are implemented, it will:

* educate and empower service members and their families to make better informed decisions regarding consumer financial products and services;

* help monitor and respond to complaints by service members and their families; and

* coordinate efforts among federal and state agencies regarding consumer protection measures for service members and their families.

The next step for the financial reform bill is to reconcile the differences between the House and Senate version of the bill. When this is complete, the final bill will head to President Obama for his signature, and then this new Office of Service Member Affairs will be created.

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Useful Links

The VA on Facebook
The VA on Twitter
VA Blog
MyHealthVet
Returning Service Members
Veterans Services in Maryland
Family and Caregiver Support
Benefits Handbook for Veterans, Dependents and Survivors


Contact the VA

Benefits:
1-800-827-1000
Education & Training:
1-888-442-4551
Health Care:
1-866-606-8216
Special Issues
1-800-749-8387
VA  Insp. General:
1-800-488-8244
TDD:
1-800-829-4833