Report
Meeting at Building 9, VAMC Campus
• Call to order – 9:30, Invocation – Pledge of Allegiance
• Greetings: Recognition of visitors and guests
• Announcements –Jerry Kyser,Chair,Mike Rivard, Vice Chair.
1. Federal Congressional Representatives
Senator Amy Klobuchar – Kurt Johnson
• Not present.
Senator Tina Smith – Alex Schueller reporting
• Schueller reintroduced the Mark Takai Atomic Veterans Healthcare Parity Act and signed onto a letter urging the VA secretary to be careful about implementing the new VA Mission Act. She is also signing onto a letter urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to fulfill their mission to include compliance to the Military Lending Act.
• Plans to sign onto the VA Mental Health Improvement Act (name subject to change).
• It is unclear how the VA plans to respond to the Blue Water act after the court case.
• The office phone number is (651) 221 1016.
1st District Representative – Jim Hagedorn – Joe Steck reporting
• We have been reaching out to the CVSOs to determine what is going on in the community.
• Contact information is (507) 316 8440 and joe.steck@mail.house.gov
2nd District Representative – Angie Craig
• Not present.
3rd District Representative – Dean Phillips – Zach Rodvold
• Not present.
4th District Representative – Betty McCollum – Connie Haddeland reporting
• McCollum attended a welcome home ceremony with the governor, with three companies of the 347th Regional Support Group; one headquarters company based in Brooklyn Park and two resources units based in Arden Hills.
• The academy information night will be held on April 16th at Mounds View High School at 6:30 PM.
• McCollum is on the following bills: Blue Water Navy Veterans and Burn Pits, Homeless Veteran Families, Merchant Mariners from WWII, a Veteran Court Coordination Act, the Mark Takai Atomic Veterans Healthcare Parity Act, Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act, Women Veterans And Family Health Services And VA Employee Fairness Act, and TriCare Select Improvement.
5th District Representative – Ilhan Omar – Mike Siebenaler
• Not present.
6th District Representative – Tom Emmer – Alejandra Henriquez
• Not present.
7th District Representative – Collin Peterson – Meg Louwagie reporting
• Peterson was able to get a waiver to remain chairman on the Agricultural Committee and stay on the Veteran Affairs Committee. His issues are health and oversight. He has held four VA Veteran Town Halls and plans to continue doing so.
• Reports are coming back from the service academies concerning placements.
8th District Representative – Peter Stauber – Margaret Cavanaugh reporting
• Stauber has supported numerous veteran bills that are before congress and several of which have already passed, such as the Veterans Access to Childcare Act and the Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act. He is on the Burn Pit Registry Enhancement Act, Homeless Veteran Family Act, and the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act, the Blue Water Navy Veterans Act, and the Benghazi Congressional Gold Medal.
• Potential upcoming legislation includes the VA Opioid Return Act.
2. Federal Agencies
VISN 23 – Director Robert McDivitt – Andre Kok reporting
• The new chief medical officer will be joining at the end of April.
• As of February 22nd, the Access standards were published and are available for input.
• For the first time, VISN 23 has published a network annual report.
Q. There was an announcement that all active duty and reserve dental services were being let go. Do you know anything about that?
A. I have heard there is a restructuring underway, but I am not the best person to ask about it.
Q. Do you have any information you can share about the discussions between the DOD and the VA in terms of merging?
A. I have not received any definitive information on this. I will let you know if that changes.
VA Regional Office – Kim Graves – Ron Woolery reporting
• The VA is changing the priority of Purple Heart claims processing. All original (first time) claims for Purple Heart recipients will receive the highest priority.
• In terms of Blue Water, the VA expects to receive 61,000 additional claims in the first year, with a total increase of 268,000 over the next ten years. The VA is waiting for decisions from congress and in the process of assessing potential scenarios. The VA has filed a motion to stay any implementation. It may go to the Supreme Court.
Q. Is there any more talk about doing reverse mortgages for veterans?
A. I will ask the regional office and get back to you.
VAHCS Minneapolis – Director Patrick J. Kelly – Ralph Heussner reporting
• A major renovation and expansion of the mental health area is underway in the hospital. Instead of four separate waiting rooms, there will be a single common area to avoid confusion. There will be four new group rooms, bringing the total to eight. There will be sixteen offices, seven for the Suicide Prevention team. The project cost $5 million and the first section will open in July. The rest will be opened next winter.
• Though the total amount of veterans enrolled has decreased, the amount of veterans receiving mental healthcare is increasing.
• Congressman Peterson has held four town hall meetings. The Minneapolis VA has held one this calendar year, in February. There will be at least one every month. The next will be on March 21st at Northwest Metro in Ramsey.
• The research group has put in an application to become a Research Center of Excellence for Gulf War illness. Last year, Senator Klobuchar sponsored a bill, which passed, to create a VA center to study Gulf War illness. Two of the lead investigators for the grant will be speaking on Minnesota Military Radio on March 31st on 7:30 AM. A podcast will be available as well.
• March 29th is Vietnam Veterans Celebration Day at the medical center. There will be a number of activities, including a claims clinic.
• The Ft. Snelling Upper Post is undergoing another renovation in Warehouse Building
222. Nine clinical staff offices will be moved over there.
Q. In terms of the move to Community Care, are you seeing any change in the number of vets who are not coming to the VA because they have switched to private care?
A. The access rules, if finalized, would take effect this summer.
St. Cloud VA HCS – Interim Director Heath Streck – Dave Hintgen
• Not present.
Ft. Snelling Cemetery – Luis Ramirez reporting
• In February, there were 255 internments: 123 caskets, 103 cremations, 29 column burials. The rifle squad provided honors to 936 veterans here to date. Breakdown by service organizations is as follows: 28 WWII, 42 Korea, 45 Vietnam, 3 Persian Gulf, and 121 dependents.
• We do not have any news about the openings of the new national cemeteries due to weather concerns. We are currently advertising for a cemetery manager up in Fargo.
• The Memorial Rifle Squad made the news during February for rendering services despite the extreme cold.
• Planning for Memorial Day has started.
3. State Agencies and MN Veteran Assistance Organizations
MN Department of Veteran Affairs – Ben Johnson reporting
• A spreadsheet of bills impacting veterans in the house and senate is available on our website (https://mn.gov/mdva/news/legislative-updates/). March 15th is the committee deadline.
• The governor released the budget recommendations in February. MDVA presented to the house in February and will be going before the senate on March 7th presenting their recommendations. The base budget is stable and we are looking to cut several FTEs. We are looking for an increase in the operating budget for the Programs and Services team. MDVA’s funding output increased 27% between 2017 and 2018, the Tribal Veterans
Service Claims increased 6%, and the Apprenticeship Programs through the MN GI Bill increased over 5.5%.
• There are three new veteran cemeteries and a forth legislatively approved. Duluth had a soft opening last year and a grand opening on Memorial Day.
• We are looking for an increase in funding for cemetery operations, and have been forced to rely on Development and Maintenance Accounts instead of paying salaries directly out of the general fund.
• There has been a great opportunity to reach veterans through our partnership with the CVSOs and Lutheran Social Services through the CORE program. In 2018, CORE served 822 veterans in Minnesota. Lutheran Social Services provides care, including mental health assistance, chemical dependency counseling, and family and financial counseling. There has been a steady increase in use and requests for the last three years, though the funding has remained stable. We are seeking an increase of $250,000 each year for the CORE program.
• In terms of cost savings, we have been asked to look for some efficiencies and different models for delivering care.
• We are looking at a 0.5% increase in direct general fund appropriations, a 1% decrease in homes, and just under 5% increase for programs and services. The current budget in general fund appropriations is $150.8 million. We are seeking $151.6 million.
• All existing staff have been retained in leadership positions. We are in final interviews for a new Communications director.
MN Military Affairs – Director Brian Winters – Annette Kuyper reporting
• The Department of Military Affairs briefed the House Committee on Veterans and Military Affairs on our budget request on February 26th and on March 7th. The request would add $2 million to restore the level of funding we received in the past for enlistment incentives and adds approximately $500,000 for Yellow Ribbon reintegration activities.
• Col. Winter is meeting with the Adjutant General in DC on March 6th for office calls with the federal CODEL. Topics include the Adjutant General’s people-first related legislative priorities; mobilization authority fix, increased fulltime staffing levels within the MN National Guard, and TriCare Reserve Select eligibility for federal technicians. We are working to get the five new members to join the National Guard caucus at the federal level.
• The TriCare issue is currently being addressed in the following bills: HR 613 and Senate 164.
• Representative Emmer was recently named as costar for the star based caucus. There are two star based programs in Minnesota, in St. Paul and Duluth.
• The St. Cloud Technical and Community College Action Plan has been approved. The proclamation ceremony will be on April 18th at 10:00 AM on campus. They will be the 67th Yellow Ribbon Company.
• The newest Yellow Ribbon Companies scheduled to come on deck are Boston Scientific, NETRONIC, and the MN Department of Transportation.
MN Assistance Council – Jon Lovald reporting
• The legal clinic in Anoka is on March 7th.
• The next legal clinic will be at the Minneapolis VA on March 12th.
• Homeless Day on the Hill is March 13th.
• Our job team will be at the Job Fair at the VA on March 13th.
• Veterans Day on the Hill is March 20th.
• The 2019 MDVA Women Veterans Conference will be on March 23rd at the YMCA in the Maplewood Community Center.
• We are interested in getting feedback on the MACV newsletter.
• The Star Tribune did an article on the Assistance Council. Fox News National also highlighted some of the work being done in MN to end veteran homelessness.
• As of March 6th, the number on the veteran homeless registry is 204. We are meeting with the city council on March 7th to discuss the next women’s house.
• The 2019 Stand Down schedule is getting set. Several locations need more details first. More information will be forthcoming.
Military Action Group – Jerry Kyser reporting
• Vietnam Veterans Day is March 31st at the American Legion post at Forest Lake at 2:00
PM. The memorial scholarship
• Veterans Day on the Hill is March 20th. Preparations are underway. We are pushing for the creation of a Veterans Omnibus Bill and an American Allied Veterans Day.
• The next MAG meeting will be March 18th at 9:30 AM.
County Veteran Service Offices – Robbie Robinson reporting
• We are in preparations for Veterans Day on the Hill on March 20th. Please remember to make appointments with your legislators. There will be a rally in the rotunda at 1:30 PM.
• The website is now live (macvso.org).
• We have entered into a contract with SnowGlobe Communications to better our name in the state and expand our influence.
• If you know veterans who could qualify as Blue Water veterans, please encourage them to get in touch with their CVSO. We are working on Intent to Files.
• Commissioner Herke is coming on March 8th to meet with the CVSOs and leadership to discuss what the organization does.
• Our legislative chair will be testifying on House File 203, an administrative issue on data sharing for the Homestead Market Exclusion act.
Veterans For Peace – David Cooley reporting
• Secretary Wilkie was on the hill recently, looking to move up Asset Adjustment Review on potential facility closings.
• There have been discussions between the DOD and VA on potentially merging the two healthcare systems. This would likely result in veterans benefits turning into an insurance program as opposed to a benefits program.
• Optum Health Division of UnitedHealth was recently given the contract for managing the community care program under the VA Mission Act.
• An updated version of 2018’s HR 1025 has been resubmitted.
• How to comment on the proposed rules for the Mission Act and Community Care. St. Paul Veterans Center – Dr. Lisa Wallace reporting
• We are in the process of relocating back to a St. Paul location. The open house is planned for September 2019. There are six potential locations we are reviewing. All of them are on the light rail system. Once a location is decided on, we will be procuring a mobile vet center. We have increased our access to care for veterans by creating several new community access points and formed a partnership with the Veteran Courts. We also work closely with the CVSOs.
MN Military Museum at Camp Ripley – Randal Dietrich reporting
• The Vietnam War Roundtable has three more dates before wrapping up, and will start again in September. The March program will be looking at nurses in Vietnam, starting at
7:00 PM on March 18th at 400 Hamline Avenue at Concordia University.
• More information is available at (mnvietnam.org).
• After 40 years, the MN Military Museum at Camp Ripley has put together a proposal to build a new museum adjacent to Camp Ripley. We are gathering state support. There is currently a house file in consideration with bipartisan support.
• Anticipating the 20th anniversary of 9/11 (which will be 2021), we are proposing a statewide imitative to gather stories from civilians and veterans to look at the Minnesota experience since 9/11.