Top 10 Veterans Stories in Today’s News

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Top Veterans Stories in Today’s News

1. Cashing in on electronic health records San Francisco – Coming soon to a doctor’s office near you: Electronic health records. But it may take longer to find out whether broader use of health information technology lives up to its acronym and becomes a HIT.
2. VA hospital doc on trial over contracts Brattleboro, Vermont – A Veterans Affairs administrator who also worked at Dartmouth College went on trial Monday for allegedly using his dual roles to steer federal research money into a faculty account that he controlled, in violation of federal conflict-of-interest laws. Dr. William B. Weeks, 47, of Lyme, N.H., is accused of using his position as a psychiatrist and administrator at the VA hospital in White River Junction to design five contracts worth $1.5 million that he then — unbeknownst to the VA — executed at Dartmouth’s medical school.
3. Happier Vets, Lower Costs Mabelvale, Arkansas – The federal government’s ambitious new drive to cut costs and improve care for disabled military veterans begins not in a big-city hospital, but here in small-town Arkansas, in a tidy brick bungalow set back from a country road.
4. State Audit Reveals Fraud Within the Missouri Veterans Commission Jefferson City, Missouri – A new audit report shows a former Missouri Veterans Commission employee stole more than $100,000 from the commission. In 2008, Missouri auditors took a look at the use of state-provided fuel cards. About week before auditors visited the Missouri Veterans Commission in, MVC administration saw some financial items that didn’t match up. During the audit, the state confirmed this discovery. State auditors found former MVC accountant Stacy Griffin-Lowery took more than $17,000 in state fuel cards for personal use. These findings are recorded in Missouri Audit Report No. 2008-68.
5. Honor guard pays tribute to fallen service members Swartz Creek, Michigan (AP) — For the 12 men who comprise the AMVETS/VFW Post 3720 Honor Guard, service to country didn’t end when they returned from the battlegrounds of World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Now men in their 60s, 70s and 80s, they remain the silent stalwarts of the fallen, devoting themselves to a patriotic and memorable farewell to their fellow veterans.
6. Oklahoma tea party leaders and legislators envision militia designed to fight federal mandates Oklahoma City, – Frustrated by recent political setbacks, tea party leaders and some conservative members of the Oklahoma Legislature say they would like to create a new volunteer militia to help defend against what they believe are improper federal infringements on state sovereignty. Tea party movement leaders say they’ve discussed the idea with several supportive lawmakers and hope to get legislation next year to recognize a new volunteer force. They say the unit would not resemble militia groups that have been raided for allegedly plotting attacks on law enforcement officers.
7. Documentary Recounts Struggle of Agent Orange Veterans Danang, Vietnam) – Our friend and fellow activist, Masako Sakata, has made her extraordinary documentary film available via the on-line Russian TV Channel. Masako explains that it was seven years ago when Greg Davis, her husband of more than 30 years, died at the age of 54. She said, “The cause was liver cancer, suspected to be brought on by his exposure to the defoliant Agent Orange while he served in the US army in Vietnam.”
8. Former Senator Pays for Veterans Memorial Igo, California – Former State Senator Maurice Johannesen is doing his part to boost the economy. He is spending up to a half million dollars of his own money to build a chapel at the Northern California Veterans Cemetery in Igo. The native of Norway says that for all the military did for him, like teaching him English, paying for his schooling, and getting a Cal-Vet loan for his first home, this is the least he can do.
9. Volunteers build handicap accessible home for Columbia veteran Columbia, Missouri – Residents of Columbia’s Thornbrook subdivision may have noticed that something different has been going on since Friday. A motorcade that included more than 100 motorcycles and three U.S. Army Humvees might have piqued resident’s interest, and if not, the structure of a brand new house built in less than 48 hours could have tipped them off that something was happening in their neighborhood.
10. Feds push social media, but should you? Washington, DC – The federal government is making a concerted effort to encourage the use of social media as a way to communicate with its constituents. The Department of Veterans Affairs recently set up Facebook pages and a Twitter account, reports Amanda Erickson at the Washington Post. While not all veterans see the efforts as progress, the Facebook page is gaining in popularity, with about 20,000 “friends” so far.

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