From: FRA NewsBytes [Newsbytes@fra.org]
Sent: Saturday, February 06, 2010 00:27
To: fra@fra367.org
Subject: FRA NewsBytes -- 02-05-10
This week in NewsBytes:
Administration Releases FY 2011 Budget Requests
President Signs Veterans' Emergency Care Fairness Act  
Current TRICARE Contractors Remain for Now
New Website Makes Federal Employment Easier
Early Closing at FRA NHQ

Administration Releases FY 2011 Budget Requests
President Obama sent details of his FY 2011 budget to Congress this week, asking for increases in the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans' Affairs (VA), and cuts in the Coast Guard budget.  The DoD request totals $708.3 billion (a 3.4 percent increase over FY 2010) and, for a second year in a row, fully funds military health care programs without requesting out-of-pocket costs for TRICARE beneficiaries. The budget calls for a 1.4-percent active duty pay increase that equals the Employment Cost Index (ECI), which FRA believes is inadequate, and boosts funding for family readiness programs. Funding is also included for phasing-in the concurrent receipt of military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation for service members who were medically retired with a 30-percent or greater disability (so-called Chapter 61 retirees).

The FY2011 VA budget request of $125 billion includes funding for 4,000 additional claims adjudicators to process the growing backlog of VA disability claims - an FRA priority - and new technologies to streamline the disbursement of education benefits and create an electronic recordkeeping process. The proposal also provides for $54.3 billion in advanced funding for VA  health care and to further expand health care access for 500,000 Priority Group 8 veterans, and expand care and support for wounded warriors and female veterans.  

The U.S. Coast Guard budget reflects a three-percent decrease and includes an end-strength reduction of 1,100 billets.  FRA is particularly concerned about this manpower reduction, given the service's growing mission requirements.


President Signs Veterans' Emergency Care Fairness Act  
President Barack Obama signed The Veterans' Emergency Care Fairness Act this week, legislation that enables the VA to reimburse enrolled veterans for the cost of emergency treatment not covered by his/her outside health insurance. Previously, VA could reimburse veterans or pay outside hospitals directly only if a veteran had no third-party health insurance. The VA can now pay the difference between the amounts paid by the third-party and the VA allowable amount. VA is not responsible for copayments the veteran owes to the third party.

The FRA-supported measure, sponsored by House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairmen Rep. Bob Filner (Calif.) and Sen. Daniel Akaka (Hawaii), also allows the VA to provide retroactive reimbursements for care received prior to the passage of this bill. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that this legislation will cover approximately 700 future claims per year and as many as 2,000 veterans retroactively.  


Current TRICARE Contractors Remain for Now
Last July, TRICARE Management Activity (TMA) announced that contractors currently administering TRICARE's North and South Regions had lost their competitive bids for the next contract period. In November, government auditors concluded that the winning bids for TRICARE contracts were mismanaged and TRICARE officials have vowed to take corrective action. Until then, the current TRICARE contracts (HealthNet Federal Services for the North Region and Humana Military Healthcare Services for the South Region) will be extended at least until March 31, 2011.


New Website Makes Federal Employment Easier
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently announced the official launch of FedsHireVets.gov, a website that will help ensure military retirees, veterans, transitioning military service members, their families, human resource professionals, and hiring managers receive accurate and consistent information regarding veteran's employment in the Executive Branch.  The website is a one-stop gateway to veterans' employment resources throughout the government to help veterans find good federal jobs when they leave the military.  There are approximately 480,000 veterans working within the Federal Executive Branch.  For more information, visit: www.FedsHireVets.gov.


Early Closing at FRA NHQ
Due to a mid-Atlantic snow storm, FRA National Headquarters will close at noon today and will re-open at 8:00am on Monday, February 8, 2010.
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