WEBVTT 00:00:04.809 --> 00:00:08.630 All across America and around the world, this 00:00:08.630 --> 00:00:15.009 is Veterans Radio. This is Veterans Radio. And 00:00:15.009 --> 00:00:19.030 now, your host for today's program, Dale Throneberry. 00:00:22.089 --> 00:00:24.769 Hey, welcome to veterans radio. Good afternoon. 00:00:24.870 --> 00:00:26.809 Good morning wherever you are whenever you're 00:00:26.809 --> 00:00:28.910 listening to our program We're really excited 00:00:28.910 --> 00:00:32.609 to have you with us today It's our monthly benefits 00:00:32.609 --> 00:00:35.250 program. And so we're going to be talking a little 00:00:35.250 --> 00:00:36.729 bit about benefits We're going to be talking 00:00:36.729 --> 00:00:39.530 about of course the government shutdown and how 00:00:39.530 --> 00:00:41.409 that might have affected a few things that are 00:00:41.409 --> 00:00:44.679 going on out there And our guest today, we've 00:00:44.679 --> 00:00:49.299 got a family affair going here. We've got Jim 00:00:49.299 --> 00:00:51.979 and Carol Ann Faustone are going to be joining 00:00:51.979 --> 00:00:55.039 us and talking about what's going on in the world 00:00:55.039 --> 00:00:57.460 of benefits out there. They're both, obviously 00:00:57.460 --> 00:00:59.320 Jim is one of the founders of Legal Help for 00:00:59.320 --> 00:01:02.479 Veterans and Carol Ann is a big part of that 00:01:02.479 --> 00:01:05.239 organization now. And we're really pleased to 00:01:05.239 --> 00:01:07.819 have had them as a sponsor now for, I don't know, 00:01:07.959 --> 00:01:11.879 20 years or more. Seems like something like that. 00:01:12.969 --> 00:01:15.370 But so they're going to be here to answer any 00:01:15.370 --> 00:01:17.049 questions that you might have. And let me give 00:01:17.049 --> 00:01:19.849 you that number. For those of you that are listening 00:01:19.849 --> 00:01:22.109 later on, it's recorded. So I'm sorry you won't 00:01:22.109 --> 00:01:24.530 be able to get in there. You got to come on the 00:01:24.530 --> 00:01:27.709 first Sunday of every month at 5 PM Eastern time 00:01:27.709 --> 00:01:30.750 and we can answer your questions live. on the 00:01:30.750 --> 00:01:33.829 air, or you can send me an email to dale at veteransradio 00:01:33.829 --> 00:01:37.370 .org and we'll answer your question. The number 00:01:37.370 --> 00:01:45.829 is 734 -822 -1600. Before we get into the program, 00:01:46.189 --> 00:01:48.250 I need to thank our sponsors, and I guess that 00:01:48.250 --> 00:01:53.790 can kind of give my little segue into Radio on 00:01:53.790 --> 00:01:57.750 the River. Well, I'm not sure where to start 00:01:57.750 --> 00:02:01.269 with this thing. Anyway, last week we had our 00:02:01.269 --> 00:02:04.530 fundraiser and we made our goal. So we're really 00:02:04.530 --> 00:02:06.890 excited about that, obviously. It was out at 00:02:06.890 --> 00:02:10.789 Freedom River. Freedom River is a veterans retreat 00:02:10.789 --> 00:02:13.210 center really out in Brighton, Michigan. It's 00:02:13.210 --> 00:02:15.830 on Winans Lake Road for those of you here in 00:02:15.830 --> 00:02:19.050 southeastern Michigan. It's Jeff and Jenayaki. 00:02:19.750 --> 00:02:22.370 They've got a wonderful, I don't know how many 00:02:22.370 --> 00:02:25.090 acres it is, but they had enough space for us 00:02:25.090 --> 00:02:27.250 to have a helicopter come in and land and not 00:02:27.250 --> 00:02:30.219 blow everything. to smithereens all over the 00:02:30.219 --> 00:02:34.979 place. I'm guessing maybe we had two, maybe 250 00:02:34.979 --> 00:02:37.520 people show up, maybe more than that. I don't 00:02:37.520 --> 00:02:40.539 know, they were everywhere it seemed like. We 00:02:40.539 --> 00:02:44.000 had musicians, we had Lem Genovese, we had Wayne 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:49.319 Deloria, both veteran troubadours, excellent 00:02:49.319 --> 00:02:52.680 musicians, it was fun. We had raffles, we had 00:02:52.680 --> 00:02:56.039 many, many prizes. We had helicopter rides by 00:02:56.039 --> 00:02:59.449 the hundreds it seemed like. uh it was a big 00:02:59.449 --> 00:03:02.110 draw we had a lot of veteran service organizations 00:03:02.110 --> 00:03:05.469 that were out there sort of like a a mini vet 00:03:05.469 --> 00:03:09.490 fest um and I thought that went really well let 00:03:09.490 --> 00:03:11.930 me think what else we had free food we had an 00:03:11.930 --> 00:03:15.229 awesome cake from Dom's Bakery in Ypsilanti Michigan 00:03:15.229 --> 00:03:20.289 again uh Alicia over at Dom's Bakery she outdid 00:03:20.289 --> 00:03:22.629 herself with this one she had a helicopter actually 00:03:22.629 --> 00:03:25.819 on the cake which was kind of cool So I wanted 00:03:25.819 --> 00:03:29.439 to make sure we got them a little, you know, 00:03:29.620 --> 00:03:32.259 plus going on for that. The other people that 00:03:32.259 --> 00:03:34.259 we really wanted to thank, obviously, and real 00:03:34.259 --> 00:03:36.879 quickly, I'm going to do this as a list, and 00:03:36.879 --> 00:03:38.580 that's Freedom River, of course, themselves. 00:03:38.939 --> 00:03:40.979 You can find more information about them by going 00:03:40.979 --> 00:03:45.180 to freedomriver .org. It's a great organization. 00:03:45.319 --> 00:03:47.580 They've got really wonderful plans out there 00:03:47.580 --> 00:03:50.199 for veterans and veterans' health and fishing 00:03:50.199 --> 00:03:53.840 and... camping, and all kinds of things out there. 00:03:54.099 --> 00:03:58.180 So our sponsors were the Shaw Family Foundation, 00:03:58.319 --> 00:04:01.979 the Bob Woodruff Foundation, Washtenaw County 00:04:01.979 --> 00:04:05.500 Veterans Affairs Office, Arrow Strategies, the 00:04:05.500 --> 00:04:08.240 Todd and Chris Knickerbocker Family Foundation, 00:04:09.699 --> 00:04:13.219 Trillomed was one of them, Kearns Brothers, Nader 00:04:13.219 --> 00:04:17.240 Builders, J &B Painting Specialists, Arbor Avenue, 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:20.610 Private Wealth, which is a financial planning 00:04:20.610 --> 00:04:23.610 organization, Cornerstone Real Estate, Fisher 00:04:23.610 --> 00:04:26.769 House, Michigan, the Melcher family, in honor 00:04:26.769 --> 00:04:29.110 of all those who've served, our good friend Walter 00:04:29.110 --> 00:04:33.029 Orline, and many, many others. Yeah, I want to 00:04:33.029 --> 00:04:36.129 mention the Britton family of companies over 00:04:36.129 --> 00:04:38.170 in Traverse City area. It was really nice of 00:04:38.170 --> 00:04:41.290 them to support us as well. There you go, Britton. 00:04:44.470 --> 00:04:47.709 Anyway, thank you to all of you. out there for 00:04:47.709 --> 00:04:52.189 helping us out. A little side story was, so this 00:04:52.189 --> 00:04:55.670 was the first time that we brought out the UH 00:04:55.670 --> 00:04:59.230 -1 Huey from the Michigan Flight Museum, better 00:04:59.230 --> 00:05:01.310 known as the Yankee Air Museum for those locally, 00:05:01.910 --> 00:05:05.649 and they were providing rides for people willing 00:05:05.649 --> 00:05:09.930 to pay the fee to take a ride in a Huey helicopter, 00:05:09.949 --> 00:05:16.740 UH -1H model, Vietnam veteran itself. And they 00:05:16.740 --> 00:05:20.060 would take about eight to ten people at a shot 00:05:20.060 --> 00:05:23.120 and they would take you up and I got a ride. 00:05:23.600 --> 00:05:29.660 It was cool. And I have to tell you, when I was 00:05:29.660 --> 00:05:32.639 flying, I was flying in the front seat with the 00:05:32.639 --> 00:05:34.560 windshield and everything else. I wasn't in the 00:05:34.560 --> 00:05:39.720 back. So I was way back in the door gunners well 00:05:39.720 --> 00:05:45.470 back there. the wind was just blew me apart. 00:05:45.870 --> 00:05:47.629 Now you know what you were doing to those other 00:05:47.629 --> 00:05:50.829 guys. Yeah, I felt so bad. Yeah, I issued a, 00:05:50.829 --> 00:05:54.430 you know, a general apology to anybody that I 00:05:54.430 --> 00:05:57.649 was flying with if I if I was at a trim, which 00:05:57.649 --> 00:06:00.389 just meant that the wind could come flying through. 00:06:01.310 --> 00:06:03.870 We thought it was just being very helpful for, 00:06:03.889 --> 00:06:07.589 you know, air conditioning over there. But we 00:06:07.589 --> 00:06:10.089 were told not. It's funny, you know, don't use 00:06:10.089 --> 00:06:12.250 your cell phone outside, you know, Don't reach 00:06:12.250 --> 00:06:14.449 out to take a fancy picture, because if you drop 00:06:14.449 --> 00:06:17.509 your phone, we're not going back to get it. Hold 00:06:17.509 --> 00:06:19.470 on to your glasses, because they might fly off. 00:06:19.550 --> 00:06:22.370 No hats were allowed and all these other things. 00:06:22.689 --> 00:06:26.810 So I'm backing this wheel well back there. And 00:06:26.810 --> 00:06:30.569 the pilots were excellent. They were terrific. 00:06:31.129 --> 00:06:35.029 And so they took off and took off out over the 00:06:35.029 --> 00:06:39.129 area out there. Well, it's cool. And this is 00:06:39.129 --> 00:06:41.110 something we always talk, you know, a kid about 00:06:41.110 --> 00:06:43.670 with jet pilots and stuff. We stopped at 500 00:06:43.670 --> 00:06:49.589 feet hover. And then he did a rollover to about 00:06:49.589 --> 00:06:52.750 a 45 degree angle and headed down toward the 00:06:52.750 --> 00:06:55.389 earth. And on one side of the helicopter, you 00:06:55.389 --> 00:06:59.050 were looking down at the earth coming up at you 00:06:59.050 --> 00:07:01.410 rapidly. And on the other side, you're just looking 00:07:01.410 --> 00:07:07.689 at the sky and and know that the ubiquitous Wop 00:07:07.689 --> 00:07:09.529 -wop -wop sound that you get? Well, when you 00:07:09.529 --> 00:07:13.110 start to pull out of one of these dives, the 00:07:13.110 --> 00:07:15.209 whopping gets really loud because it's trying 00:07:15.209 --> 00:07:18.610 to grab as much air as it can so you don't go 00:07:18.610 --> 00:07:22.490 into the earth, which is never good. So he did 00:07:22.490 --> 00:07:26.430 this twice, so you could get the sensation of 00:07:26.430 --> 00:07:28.730 looking at the sky and also looking at the ground. 00:07:29.180 --> 00:07:32.100 And, you know, it was fun. I mean, it was, it 00:07:32.100 --> 00:07:34.660 was just great. I don't know how many people 00:07:34.660 --> 00:07:38.160 took that ride, but they were from kids to grandparents. 00:07:38.420 --> 00:07:42.040 I mean, it was really an opportunity for some 00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:45.399 family members to be able to say, oh, that's 00:07:45.399 --> 00:07:49.259 what you flew in. There were well, one of our 00:07:49.259 --> 00:07:52.660 board members was on there. Willem was on there 00:07:52.660 --> 00:07:56.199 with his son and his son. Nobody can see what 00:07:56.199 --> 00:07:59.189 I'm doing. I'm covering my ears. because his 00:07:59.189 --> 00:08:02.269 son held his fingers over his ears the whole 00:08:02.269 --> 00:08:04.529 time. They gave us earplugs, which of course 00:08:04.529 --> 00:08:06.550 they didn't give us in Vietnam, which is why 00:08:06.550 --> 00:08:10.730 all your Vietnam veteran pilots are deaf. We 00:08:10.730 --> 00:08:16.470 can't hear anything. But that was exciting for 00:08:16.470 --> 00:08:20.389 me personally. And it was funny. I mean, it brought 00:08:20.389 --> 00:08:23.029 back a lot of memories right away. And I was 00:08:23.029 --> 00:08:26.930 shocked at how emotional it was when we first 00:08:26.930 --> 00:08:31.639 took off. So all the guys I'd flown with That 00:08:31.639 --> 00:08:33.840 survived and unfortunately many of that didn't 00:08:33.840 --> 00:08:36.740 survive as we were flying along, but it was it 00:08:36.740 --> 00:08:39.639 was cool I'm hoping that we can Maybe have them 00:08:39.639 --> 00:08:42.139 out there again that that was it was certainly 00:08:42.139 --> 00:08:46.580 was an attraction brought more people in I'm 00:08:46.580 --> 00:08:47.899 trying to think of all the people that we need 00:08:47.899 --> 00:08:51.419 to thank obviously our board for veterans radio 00:08:51.419 --> 00:08:55.740 Kate Melcher Lydia Pinkham, especially And her 00:08:55.740 --> 00:08:58.759 family. And her family and her new baby. The 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:01.820 new baby was there all the time. Never heard 00:09:01.820 --> 00:09:05.480 of her. She was just a kid. Volunteers who showed 00:09:05.480 --> 00:09:09.480 up just, you know, part of Freedom River's gang 00:09:09.480 --> 00:09:13.720 to help her. There were guys. We had cooks. We 00:09:13.720 --> 00:09:17.350 had... people that were, you know, doing a raffle 00:09:17.350 --> 00:09:19.629 for us and just everything and all of the gifts. 00:09:20.029 --> 00:09:22.490 Ryan Graf got, I don't know how many hundred 00:09:22.490 --> 00:09:24.429 gifts that we were given, you know, that we were 00:09:24.429 --> 00:09:27.070 able to raffle off. So I think everybody had 00:09:27.070 --> 00:09:30.309 a good time. We ran out of food. We ran out of 00:09:30.309 --> 00:09:32.889 dishes. We ran out of all kinds of stuff, which 00:09:32.889 --> 00:09:36.429 is really kind of unusual. You know, previously 00:09:36.429 --> 00:09:39.509 we were in a much smaller venue. So I'm anxious 00:09:39.509 --> 00:09:41.450 to go out there again. I think we can, you know, 00:09:41.830 --> 00:09:44.049 move things around and make it a little bit easier. 00:09:44.350 --> 00:09:47.529 for people to get from one part of the program 00:09:47.529 --> 00:09:49.570 to another part of the program without having 00:09:49.570 --> 00:09:53.649 to walk too far. And next year, of course, the 00:09:53.649 --> 00:09:56.929 Freedom River will be even more built up than 00:09:56.929 --> 00:10:01.049 it is now. So again, kudos to those out there 00:10:01.049 --> 00:10:04.149 at Freedom River and to everybody who came out 00:10:04.149 --> 00:10:06.769 to support Veterans Radio. We thank you, appreciate 00:10:06.769 --> 00:10:10.049 you. We can't do this program without your support. 00:10:10.389 --> 00:10:14.289 And speaking of support. segue into our regular 00:10:14.289 --> 00:10:21.509 sponsors because we just got a nice sponsorship 00:10:21.509 --> 00:10:25.350 back from National Veterans Business Development 00:10:25.350 --> 00:10:29.009 Council, better known as NVBDC. They're the leading 00:10:29.009 --> 00:10:31.750 nation's leading third party authority for certification 00:10:31.750 --> 00:10:34.350 of veteran owned businesses. For more information, 00:10:34.409 --> 00:10:38.009 please go to their website nvbdc .org or give 00:10:38.009 --> 00:10:43.539 them a call at 888 -237 -8433. three three two 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:48.039 threes right eight four three three and I always 00:10:48.039 --> 00:10:49.759 saying you know if you're a veteran -owned business 00:10:49.759 --> 00:10:52.179 or you're claiming to be a veteran -owned business 00:10:52.179 --> 00:10:54.480 you need to get certified if you're going to 00:10:54.480 --> 00:10:56.240 do business with the federal government and with 00:10:56.240 --> 00:10:58.700 many corporations out there and these are the 00:10:58.700 --> 00:11:02.159 folks that can get you certified so check them 00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:04.019 out I think you'll find that they're they're 00:11:04.019 --> 00:11:07.590 great people too as well PuroClean, known as 00:11:07.590 --> 00:11:10.289 the paramedics of property damage. Each PuroClean 00:11:10.289 --> 00:11:12.870 office is independently owned and operated. In 00:11:12.870 --> 00:11:14.889 fact, PuroClean is one of the nation's leading 00:11:14.889 --> 00:11:17.529 restoration franchise networks and is made up 00:11:17.529 --> 00:11:20.769 of entrepreneurs just like you. And the best 00:11:20.769 --> 00:11:23.590 thing is veterans get a 25 % off the franchise 00:11:23.590 --> 00:11:26.190 fee. So for more information, go to puroclean 00:11:26.190 --> 00:11:29.389 .com. The Irwin Prescor in American Legion Post 00:11:29.389 --> 00:11:32.210 46 and the Charles S. Kettles Vietnam Veterans 00:11:32.210 --> 00:11:35.570 of America, Chapter 310, both of Ann Arbor, Michigan. 00:11:36.230 --> 00:11:38.309 I did not leave out legal help for veterans. 00:11:41.549 --> 00:11:45.279 Which of course. specializes in veterans disability 00:11:45.279 --> 00:11:50.559 claims give them a call at 800 -693 -4800 or 00:11:50.559 --> 00:11:53.779 go to their website legalhelpforveterans .com. 00:11:54.000 --> 00:11:56.759 If you'd like to support Veterans Radio please 00:11:56.759 --> 00:11:59.559 go to our website veteransradio .org and click 00:11:59.559 --> 00:12:02.659 on the donate button. All right let's get into 00:12:02.659 --> 00:12:07.879 today's program here. All right as I mentioned 00:12:07.879 --> 00:12:11.659 earlier on our guests today are retired Brigadier 00:12:11.659 --> 00:12:14.679 General Carol Ann Faustone. She's a veterans 00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:18.379 advocate for probably her whole life, I bet. 00:12:21.030 --> 00:12:24.769 She's my source of any questions I have on what's 00:12:24.769 --> 00:12:27.149 going on on the benefits side. She's the one 00:12:27.149 --> 00:12:29.210 I want to talk to. Carol Ann, welcome back to 00:12:29.210 --> 00:12:32.029 Veterans Radio. Well, Dale, thank you so kindly. 00:12:32.649 --> 00:12:36.149 But it's just not me. It's our entire team. And 00:12:36.149 --> 00:12:38.690 the credit goes out. And if we don't know the 00:12:38.690 --> 00:12:42.330 answer, we'll certainly help you and get it. 00:12:42.470 --> 00:12:46.210 And I'd like to also give a shout out. Dale during 00:12:46.210 --> 00:12:53.549 the month on September 24th, we held the 16th 00:12:53.549 --> 00:12:57.210 annual Veterans Summit. It was in Westland. I 00:12:57.210 --> 00:13:00.690 give a huge kudos to the Canton Foundation, their 00:13:00.690 --> 00:13:05.149 Alliance. The room was packed and I was privileged 00:13:05.149 --> 00:13:08.789 to be one of the speakers along with my good 00:13:08.789 --> 00:13:11.629 buddy, Christina Darrow, our attorney at the 00:13:11.629 --> 00:13:17.159 firm. We answered many questions and I think 00:13:17.159 --> 00:13:19.600 you know maybe one of these years it would be 00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:22.620 great to get Veterans Radio out there and be 00:13:22.620 --> 00:13:25.019 live and interview some of these individuals. 00:13:25.220 --> 00:13:28.419 But it was a great day so I really want to say 00:13:28.419 --> 00:13:33.940 thank you to all that supported us. Okay so I 00:13:33.940 --> 00:13:36.720 should mention also that Carol Ann was and still 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:38.220 is a nurse because I think it's sort of like 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:40.059 Marines once you're a nurse you're always a nurse 00:13:40.059 --> 00:13:45.059 right? Right. And also joining us today is my 00:13:45.059 --> 00:13:47.460 partner Jim Falzone. And let me give you a little 00:13:47.460 --> 00:13:50.480 background on Jim here. Jim served with the National 00:13:50.480 --> 00:13:53.899 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, 00:13:54.080 --> 00:13:57.940 from 1976 to 1980. Went to law school on the 00:13:57.940 --> 00:14:03.220 GI Bill. Married his college sweetheart, Carol 00:14:03.220 --> 00:14:05.460 Anne Falzone. He was admitted to the, let's see. 00:14:06.149 --> 00:14:09.269 What you do you went to law school at Gonzaga? 00:14:09.450 --> 00:14:12.570 University law school. So he has a graduate University 00:14:12.570 --> 00:14:15.309 of Michigan College of Engineering Member of 00:14:15.309 --> 00:14:17.350 the National Organization of Veterans Advocates, 00:14:17.429 --> 00:14:19.190 which we're going to talk about a little bit 00:14:19.190 --> 00:14:23.450 as we get going With that so Jim is a pretty 00:14:23.450 --> 00:14:26.129 good lawyer from what I understand He's helped. 00:14:26.590 --> 00:14:29.769 I heard good rumors. He's allowed. He's uh, let's 00:14:29.769 --> 00:14:32.360 see. He's admitted before the United States Court 00:14:32.360 --> 00:14:34.899 of Appeals for Veterans Claims, United States 00:14:34.899 --> 00:14:36.600 Supreme Court, Michigan Supreme Court, as well 00:14:36.600 --> 00:14:40.879 as various federal district courts. Ta -da! That's 00:14:40.879 --> 00:14:44.539 why they call it the practice of law, Dale. No 00:14:44.539 --> 00:14:46.259 matter how long you've been doing it, and I've 00:14:46.259 --> 00:14:48.779 been doing it 40 -some years, we're still practicing 00:14:48.779 --> 00:14:51.179 what we hope to get it right. I know, unless 00:14:51.179 --> 00:14:54.200 you're still learning. Yes, absolutely. It's 00:14:54.200 --> 00:14:58.539 constantly upgrading. And I'm sure you have to 00:14:58.539 --> 00:15:01.100 continually take these continuing ed classes 00:15:01.100 --> 00:15:03.960 and so forth to maintain your license and all 00:15:03.960 --> 00:15:06.840 these other things So anyway, I wanted to bring 00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:10.360 you both on today to talk about what's going 00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:13.500 on And Jim, I'll start off with you a little 00:15:13.500 --> 00:15:16.139 bit. We know that the government shut down. I 00:15:16.139 --> 00:15:19.320 think it was Wednesday And there've been all 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:22.320 kinds of stories flying around out there about 00:15:22.320 --> 00:15:25.899 what's what's affected what's not affected And 00:15:25.899 --> 00:15:28.539 I was wondering if you could kind of lead us 00:15:28.539 --> 00:15:32.320 along into what you think has happened so far 00:15:32.320 --> 00:15:35.139 and what's going to go on. Certainly. Yeah, we 00:15:35.139 --> 00:15:38.100 were wondering ourselves Monday, who's going 00:15:38.100 --> 00:15:40.700 to answer the phones at VA? Are they going to 00:15:40.700 --> 00:15:46.039 issue any decisions? Is the board going to continue 00:15:46.039 --> 00:15:48.320 with hearings? Is the court going to continue 00:15:48.320 --> 00:15:50.720 scheduling hearings? And the answer to all this 00:15:50.720 --> 00:15:54.860 has turned out, yes, they are. So we're pleasantly 00:15:54.860 --> 00:15:57.320 surprised that now withstanding the shutdown 00:15:57.320 --> 00:16:01.779 that the VA benefits group is is seen as essential 00:16:01.779 --> 00:16:08.299 and that We are still getting decisions and finding 00:16:08.299 --> 00:16:12.379 folks on the other end of the phone Hard to tell 00:16:12.379 --> 00:16:15.539 and I think this is just human nature, but it's 00:16:15.539 --> 00:16:18.600 hard to tell how much this is impacting productivity 00:16:19.500 --> 00:16:23.320 I have to believe it is. I think in any business 00:16:23.320 --> 00:16:27.700 where there is talk of layoffs or reduction in 00:16:27.700 --> 00:16:31.440 force or payless paydays, there's a lot of water 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:34.399 cooler talk that goes on among the employees 00:16:34.399 --> 00:16:36.120 about, hey, what's going to happen? What are 00:16:36.120 --> 00:16:38.899 you going to do? So it's got to impact productivity. 00:16:39.820 --> 00:16:44.100 But we'll start the good news being we were pleasantly 00:16:44.100 --> 00:16:47.519 surprised to see that the benefit side was still 00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:51.679 moving forward. as planned. Carol Ann, you may 00:16:51.679 --> 00:16:53.840 want to talk about the health care side because 00:16:53.840 --> 00:16:57.419 you've been in and out of contact with the hospital 00:16:57.419 --> 00:16:59.980 folks and the pharmacy folks and all that kind 00:16:59.980 --> 00:17:02.879 of stuff. So maybe give us some observations 00:17:02.879 --> 00:17:05.880 as to the shutdown and its impact on the health 00:17:05.880 --> 00:17:10.160 care side. You know, I don't think there's been 00:17:10.160 --> 00:17:16.779 any bubbles, any issues. Matter of fact, They 00:17:16.779 --> 00:17:21.480 seem to be faster. And all the providers are 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:25.039 there. And between the lab work, now this is 00:17:25.039 --> 00:17:28.740 at the Ann Arbor VA Medical Center. And it seems 00:17:28.740 --> 00:17:34.099 like it's as usual practice. And I haven't seen 00:17:34.099 --> 00:17:36.279 anything. Matter of fact though, and I don't 00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:39.500 know, Dale, if you've seen this, it seems like 00:17:39.500 --> 00:17:43.799 the halls are quieter. You know, and I don't 00:17:43.799 --> 00:17:46.079 know if that means there were cancellations, 00:17:46.299 --> 00:17:49.779 but I saw busloads of veterans being dropped 00:17:49.779 --> 00:17:54.460 off. I saw people in the halls for their appointments, 00:17:55.200 --> 00:17:59.640 and particularly the primary care area was busy 00:17:59.640 --> 00:18:03.559 and people were, you know, being received on 00:18:03.559 --> 00:18:09.140 time. So, Jim, I... also think the veteran world 00:18:09.140 --> 00:18:12.059 is very happy that they're going to get their 00:18:12.059 --> 00:18:15.680 pay. Those were some of the remarks, you know, 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:19.440 as people sat there and were talking to one another, 00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:23.779 it was, oh my gosh, thank God, we're going to 00:18:23.779 --> 00:18:28.140 get our benefits and our paycheck because I think 00:18:28.140 --> 00:18:31.420 that's really significant. Well, I think a lot 00:18:31.420 --> 00:18:33.240 of it has to do with how long this thing goes 00:18:33.240 --> 00:18:39.539 on. I don't know. I got something off of Military 00:18:39.539 --> 00:18:42.960 Times This morning that says what will and won't 00:18:42.960 --> 00:18:46.660 change and it just basically It you know, it 00:18:46.660 --> 00:18:48.640 kind of repeats what you both just said says 00:18:48.640 --> 00:18:50.720 medical centers and outpatient centers are all 00:18:50.720 --> 00:18:56.299 open They're not not to be impacted at all Processing 00:18:56.299 --> 00:18:59.400 and delivery of claims benefits including compensation 00:18:59.400 --> 00:19:04.140 benefits. Yes Burials at the a national cemeteries. 00:19:04.380 --> 00:19:10.059 Yes Let's see, some that might be impacted might 00:19:10.059 --> 00:19:15.400 be slowing down or ceasing of providing transition 00:19:15.400 --> 00:19:18.279 program assistance and career counseling. Those 00:19:18.279 --> 00:19:23.279 offices will be slowed down probably. The VA 00:19:23.279 --> 00:19:25.440 benefits regional offices, it says, would be 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:27.759 closed, which doesn't make any sense to me, but 00:19:27.759 --> 00:19:31.490 that's what they said. Public affairs and outreach 00:19:31.490 --> 00:19:33.890 to veterans will cease, including social media 00:19:33.890 --> 00:19:40.089 and vet resources. Emails and responses to press 00:19:40.089 --> 00:19:43.470 inquiries may not get answers. That's nothing 00:19:43.470 --> 00:19:45.390 new. You're right. They're not going to respond 00:19:45.390 --> 00:19:48.130 to the press. Oh my goodness. Yeah. I think what 00:19:48.130 --> 00:19:50.549 you hear is a list of like nibbling around the 00:19:50.549 --> 00:19:54.910 edges and stuff, but the main services, because 00:19:54.910 --> 00:19:57.240 we haven't heard any. You know, we have a nationwide 00:19:57.240 --> 00:20:00.079 practice with a couple of thousand folks, uh, 00:20:00.180 --> 00:20:02.880 spread around and we've this week I was expecting 00:20:02.880 --> 00:20:05.180 get flooded with, Hey, I can't get in for this 00:20:05.180 --> 00:20:08.099 or that. Didn't hear any of that from our folks. 00:20:08.559 --> 00:20:13.619 Nope. Nope. Not at all. No, it's not the, uh, 00:20:13.619 --> 00:20:17.859 the national organization of vet VA attorneys. 00:20:18.519 --> 00:20:21.500 Um, said they haven't seen anything unusual. 00:20:22.660 --> 00:20:26.519 Um, as long as you've been, you know, It says 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:28.680 I said what to do in the government shutdown. 00:20:28.680 --> 00:20:31.480 Don't panic. Yeah, I think that's good advice 00:20:31.480 --> 00:20:36.259 that that organization known as Nova organization 00:20:36.259 --> 00:20:41.339 of veteran advocates Nova is sort of the Controlling 00:20:41.339 --> 00:20:45.720 Bar Association for veteran advocates. So I'm 00:20:45.720 --> 00:20:49.460 a member of Nova is our other attorneys that 00:20:49.460 --> 00:20:53.150 has requirements for continuing legal education, 00:20:53.410 --> 00:20:57.750 specifically in the veterans field. It has a 00:20:57.750 --> 00:21:00.829 couple of major conventions and educational things 00:21:00.829 --> 00:21:04.150 each year. And this lets me get into another 00:21:04.150 --> 00:21:07.569 topic, if I might, Dale, and that is, if you're 00:21:07.569 --> 00:21:10.430 lining up somebody who's not a county counselor 00:21:10.430 --> 00:21:16.170 or not a state employee or a designated national 00:21:16.170 --> 00:21:21.079 VSO, Veterans Service Officer from say DAV or 00:21:21.079 --> 00:21:25.140 VFW, be very careful. There's a lot of scams 00:21:25.140 --> 00:21:28.339 going out there, a lot of claim shark companies 00:21:28.339 --> 00:21:31.720 who don't use attorneys who are not members of 00:21:31.720 --> 00:21:34.380 NOPA. Ask them, hey, do you have attorneys? Are 00:21:34.380 --> 00:21:39.779 you members of NOPA? And run in the opposite 00:21:39.779 --> 00:21:41.859 direction if they won't answer those questions. 00:21:42.680 --> 00:21:48.039 We have seen an increase in struggling social 00:21:48.039 --> 00:21:52.640 media posts, Facebook ads from organizations 00:21:52.640 --> 00:21:56.680 that don't participate in NOVA and the requirements 00:21:56.680 --> 00:22:00.279 of licensure and whatnot, and who promise, oh, 00:22:00.279 --> 00:22:03.099 we're going to get your claim done in 14 days. 00:22:03.579 --> 00:22:05.880 And then they let slip that, well, if we don't, 00:22:05.900 --> 00:22:08.380 we're going to give you your money back. Maybe 00:22:08.380 --> 00:22:11.299 we're going to give you $500 more as soon as 00:22:11.299 --> 00:22:13.240 somebody wants to charge you for this upfront 00:22:13.240 --> 00:22:16.220 run in the opposite direction. Carol Ann's had 00:22:16.220 --> 00:22:19.519 to battle this with some folks that she knows 00:22:19.519 --> 00:22:23.279 recently who have been solicited, even folks 00:22:23.279 --> 00:22:27.339 even coming to your house to pick up a check 00:22:27.339 --> 00:22:30.460 and get claim forms signed. That's ridiculous. 00:22:32.859 --> 00:22:37.579 So NOBA is the gold standard organization that 00:22:37.579 --> 00:22:40.980 veteran advocates, claims agents, attorneys should 00:22:40.980 --> 00:22:44.109 participate in. and and watch out for scams that 00:22:44.109 --> 00:22:46.890 somebody's asking you to pay them money to help 00:22:46.890 --> 00:22:49.410 you get your benefits pay your pay money up front 00:22:49.410 --> 00:22:53.970 i mean uh that that's not the appropriate practice 00:22:53.970 --> 00:22:56.670 that's a no no there should be no cost to file 00:22:56.670 --> 00:23:00.750 a claim right no and there should be and the 00:23:00.750 --> 00:23:03.609 other issue that we're seeing on a rise is and 00:23:03.609 --> 00:23:06.990 we've talked about it here nobody should charge 00:23:07.369 --> 00:23:11.089 for aid in attendance and I ran into somebody 00:23:11.089 --> 00:23:16.210 the other day who we might assist and we might 00:23:16.210 --> 00:23:20.589 not but they were really put off because they 00:23:20.589 --> 00:23:25.309 paid $1500 upfront to get aid in attendance and 00:23:25.309 --> 00:23:29.269 they are still waiting for an answer and my heart 00:23:29.269 --> 00:23:33.400 breaks when I hear those things because You know, 00:23:34.079 --> 00:23:36.440 nothing should be charged. And that's the beautiful 00:23:36.440 --> 00:23:41.539 thing about, I would say, us, VSOs, county counselors. 00:23:42.279 --> 00:23:45.940 They don't ask for any money until you get a 00:23:45.940 --> 00:23:51.519 claim. And if it's a new claim, there's no paying 00:23:51.519 --> 00:23:57.519 an attorney or anybody. please call in, ask the 00:23:57.519 --> 00:24:01.140 questions, say to them, show me your certification, 00:24:01.400 --> 00:24:05.160 and are you in NOVA? And ask the critical questions. 00:24:05.819 --> 00:24:07.740 And a lot of times these come to light, Dale, 00:24:07.799 --> 00:24:11.240 because the daughter or the son reaches out and 00:24:11.240 --> 00:24:14.799 says, mom or dad did X. Something just doesn't 00:24:14.799 --> 00:24:18.079 sound right. And those are even worse because 00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:26.220 now mom or dad are embarrassed. having to explain 00:24:26.220 --> 00:24:28.220 to their son or their daughter that, yeah, I 00:24:28.220 --> 00:24:32.140 shelled out X dollars and these people have ghosted 00:24:32.140 --> 00:24:35.619 me or the promises they made have this done in 00:24:35.619 --> 00:24:38.279 14 days. If it's not, what's that old slogan? 00:24:38.319 --> 00:24:41.440 If it sounds too good to be true, it is. That's 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:43.720 what I'm talking about. So I started to go on 00:24:43.720 --> 00:24:47.720 that rant, but. Well, no, I think that's kind 00:24:47.720 --> 00:24:50.200 of an important rant because, you know, you, 00:24:50.400 --> 00:24:53.559 whatever. platform that you utilize for your 00:24:53.559 --> 00:24:56.140 social media. I mean even if you look on Facebook 00:24:56.140 --> 00:25:00.539 if you look at one ad for even life insurance 00:25:00.539 --> 00:25:02.579 you know the next thing you know everything is 00:25:02.579 --> 00:25:04.960 filled up and you know they're offering you twenty 00:25:04.960 --> 00:25:07.380 thousand dollars they'll erase your credit card 00:25:07.380 --> 00:25:10.180 debt this is and it's free and blah blah blah 00:25:10.180 --> 00:25:12.460 just tap your age and you know as soon as you 00:25:12.460 --> 00:25:16.259 tap your age they got you and you know that the 00:25:16.259 --> 00:25:18.579 life insurance what were the other ones that 00:25:18.579 --> 00:25:22.079 i've been hearing about lately Most of them are 00:25:22.079 --> 00:25:29.200 debt relief, erasing debt, and all kinds of things 00:25:29.200 --> 00:25:33.240 like that. And if anybody calls you, soliciting 00:25:33.240 --> 00:25:36.240 your claim just because you're a veteran, hang 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:39.039 up. Okay, that moves me to my next thing I want 00:25:39.039 --> 00:25:42.640 to talk about. We've talked about this before 00:25:42.640 --> 00:25:45.400 on Veterans Radio, and we've had programs on 00:25:45.400 --> 00:25:48.119 it. We have podcasts on it. I think we talked 00:25:48.119 --> 00:25:51.730 to AARP on it. we're getting to that point of 00:25:51.730 --> 00:25:56.589 the year where veteran scams increase, right? 00:25:56.690 --> 00:25:58.950 End of the year, people are thinking, well, I'm 00:25:58.950 --> 00:26:03.630 in a charitable mood. Let me do something here. 00:26:04.349 --> 00:26:06.549 And you're going to start to get phone and email 00:26:06.549 --> 00:26:10.869 solicitations on veteran scams. VA benefits just 00:26:10.869 --> 00:26:16.170 put out a broadcast on this September 16th, so 00:26:16.170 --> 00:26:20.160 it's fresh from them. there's a number of new 00:26:20.160 --> 00:26:24.180 scams which this is I wanted to bring up one 00:26:24.180 --> 00:26:26.700 one is the overpayment scam where they reach 00:26:26.700 --> 00:26:29.940 out to you and say oh you've been receiving benefits 00:26:29.940 --> 00:26:33.000 you've been overpaid you need to send us a check 00:26:33.000 --> 00:26:37.079 because you know you've been overpaid $2 ,000 00:26:37.079 --> 00:26:40.299 or $5 ,000 and if you don't do it we're going 00:26:40.299 --> 00:26:44.730 to take the money from your account VA has said 00:26:44.730 --> 00:26:48.190 these suspicious communications alleging to be 00:26:48.190 --> 00:26:51.789 VA have increased and you can verify the authenticity 00:26:51.789 --> 00:26:59.450 with VA at 1 -800 -827 -1000 or contact the VA 00:26:59.450 --> 00:27:03.049 Department, I'm sorry, VA Debt Management Center 00:27:03.049 --> 00:27:09.289 at 1 -800 -827 -0648. And obviously the scammers 00:27:09.289 --> 00:27:13.289 are focusing on the most vulnerable people. They're 00:27:13.289 --> 00:27:15.690 focusing on that person who doesn't hang the 00:27:15.690 --> 00:27:19.309 phone up on them right away, right? So don't 00:27:19.309 --> 00:27:22.269 walk into the these scams apparently there are 00:27:22.269 --> 00:27:27.670 now Scams VA's this is from the VA notice on 00:27:27.670 --> 00:27:32.650 bereavement scams Falling to exploit vulnerability 00:27:32.650 --> 00:27:35.630 of grieving family members contacting them for 00:27:35.630 --> 00:27:38.289 personal information that will later be used 00:27:38.289 --> 00:27:42.640 to create fake debts or uh inflated funeral expenses 00:27:42.640 --> 00:27:47.920 uh mail scams involving text messages uh alleging 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:51.000 to be shipping from companies or the post office 00:27:51.000 --> 00:27:53.740 attempting to make a delivery demanding delivery 00:27:53.740 --> 00:27:56.940 fee payment or a gift i think many of us saw 00:27:56.940 --> 00:28:01.779 the the uh unpaid toll tech scam that ran earlier 00:28:01.779 --> 00:28:04.200 earlier this year va's again pointing out hey 00:28:04.200 --> 00:28:07.720 that's going on don't Don't fall for those. Because 00:28:07.720 --> 00:28:11.539 we don't have any tolls in Michigan. Right. We 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:13.859 have no toll roads. You know, you drive through 00:28:13.859 --> 00:28:16.160 Ohio, you drive to different states, you go, 00:28:16.720 --> 00:28:19.420 well, did I miss a toll? Could that have been, 00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:23.079 you know? So again, VA is very worried about 00:28:23.079 --> 00:28:27.220 this. And I think it's good of the benefits administration 00:28:27.220 --> 00:28:31.099 to remind us. So that time of year again, be 00:28:31.099 --> 00:28:35.940 careful on these kind of scams. And also, just 00:28:35.940 --> 00:28:40.680 to piggyback, Jim, we're hearing to, oh, social 00:28:40.680 --> 00:28:44.519 security. So put social security in that. same 00:28:44.519 --> 00:28:48.559 vein with our veterans world. You know, the other 00:28:48.559 --> 00:28:52.720 sad thing that happens is when these organizations 00:28:52.720 --> 00:28:55.740 come up and they stick a piece of paper in front 00:28:55.740 --> 00:28:58.740 of you and you sign, they're sending it into 00:28:58.740 --> 00:29:04.279 the VA. And whoever was your POA, the sad thing 00:29:04.279 --> 00:29:09.549 is, then the VA stops that, and it might delay 00:29:09.549 --> 00:29:12.009 a claim that you have, and then we have to go 00:29:12.009 --> 00:29:17.710 behind. If we say something, oh, you didn't want 00:29:17.710 --> 00:29:20.210 us anymore? And it's like, what are you talking 00:29:20.210 --> 00:29:22.369 about? And so then we have to go through the 00:29:22.369 --> 00:29:26.369 process of putting you back in and having the 00:29:26.369 --> 00:29:31.849 POA reestablished. So yeah, there's a whole bunch 00:29:31.849 --> 00:29:35.799 of issues. So just be careful. Right. POA was 00:29:35.799 --> 00:29:47.460 power of attorney. When you file a claim, if 00:29:47.460 --> 00:29:49.920 you don't do it on your own, you normally give 00:29:49.920 --> 00:29:54.619 a limited power of attorney to the service office 00:29:54.619 --> 00:29:57.460 or somebody to file your claim for you and take 00:29:57.460 --> 00:30:03.680 care of all that stuff. So be very careful. Since 00:30:03.680 --> 00:30:05.940 we're talking scams and charities, I'm going 00:30:05.940 --> 00:30:10.660 to plug a podcast we did earlier, Dale. OK. So 00:30:10.660 --> 00:30:16.119 so we did a podcast back in August, August 19th, 00:30:16.119 --> 00:30:18.319 that was posted. And you can find this on any 00:30:18.319 --> 00:30:22.579 of your podcast platforms. Go to look for veterans 00:30:22.579 --> 00:30:25.339 radio with that in quote to help pull it up. 00:30:25.559 --> 00:30:30.420 But it's a veterans for charity. We talked to 00:30:30.420 --> 00:30:32.619 Rick Berman, who was the founder of it, and what 00:30:32.619 --> 00:30:36.980 Vets for Charity does is it takes for the top 00:30:36.980 --> 00:30:43.619 200, 250 national veteran -centric charities, 00:30:44.160 --> 00:30:47.380 goes through all of their IRS data that's publicly 00:30:47.380 --> 00:30:51.700 available, and tells you they actually rate every 00:30:51.700 --> 00:30:55.539 company of these charities if it's recommended, 00:30:55.839 --> 00:30:58.619 highly recommended, or not recommended. I mean, 00:30:58.720 --> 00:31:00.900 the black and white, they just tell you not recommended 00:31:00.900 --> 00:31:03.740 too much of this money goes to the wrong things. 00:31:04.079 --> 00:31:07.359 So it's kind of an interesting approach. Now, 00:31:08.119 --> 00:31:11.640 this is only the larger ones and talking to the 00:31:11.640 --> 00:31:13.759 chairman, Rick Berman, he was sort of saying, 00:31:14.059 --> 00:31:16.220 you can't believe how many times somebody's called 00:31:16.220 --> 00:31:18.910 me up and wanted me to change the ratings. I'm 00:31:18.910 --> 00:31:21.750 not changing the rating. These are statistics 00:31:21.750 --> 00:31:24.509 generated right from your filings. If you want 00:31:24.509 --> 00:31:26.809 your rating changed, do a better job. Cut your 00:31:26.809 --> 00:31:30.170 administrative costs out. So if you're curious 00:31:30.170 --> 00:31:34.089 about whether or not you're giving to a good 00:31:34.089 --> 00:31:36.230 charity, a recommended or a highly recommended 00:31:36.230 --> 00:31:39.309 charity, you might go to vetsforcharity .org 00:31:39.309 --> 00:31:43.349 or go listen to this Veterans Radio podcast that 00:31:43.349 --> 00:31:47.650 we published in August of 2025. I think that's 00:31:47.650 --> 00:31:53.210 really important. I got a question about that 00:31:53.210 --> 00:31:55.470 last week. Somebody asked, what's a good veterans 00:31:55.470 --> 00:31:59.569 charity to donate to? And I'm going, I don't 00:31:59.569 --> 00:32:05.069 know, Veterans Radio? Fisher House, one of the 00:32:05.069 --> 00:32:11.430 local ones around here. probably thousands of 00:32:11.430 --> 00:32:14.950 them out there nowadays that people have set 00:32:14.950 --> 00:32:18.190 up. And I think it's so important. We need to 00:32:18.190 --> 00:32:20.029 do a little background checks on all of these 00:32:20.029 --> 00:32:23.430 folks. And that's what this Veterans for Charities 00:32:23.430 --> 00:32:25.690 does. And he said, hey, anybody could do this. 00:32:25.789 --> 00:32:28.130 I said, whoa, wait a minute. Most of us aren't 00:32:28.130 --> 00:32:32.650 CPAs. Most of us can't find the IRS form 990s 00:32:32.650 --> 00:32:35.539 and then. do the division and figure out all 00:32:35.539 --> 00:32:37.579 the percentages that said no you're doing a great 00:32:37.579 --> 00:32:39.799 service here so yeah I think that's a good place 00:32:39.799 --> 00:32:42.759 to refer people to if they're looking for hey 00:32:42.759 --> 00:32:45.980 who's highly recommended yeah no it sounds like 00:32:45.980 --> 00:32:49.220 a plan to me you know some there were a couple 00:32:49.220 --> 00:32:51.599 of charities a number of years ago they got in 00:32:51.599 --> 00:32:53.900 trouble because of their high administrative 00:32:53.900 --> 00:32:57.240 costs you know you figure you're working for 00:32:57.240 --> 00:32:59.180 a charity you're not in to get rich but some 00:32:59.180 --> 00:33:05.359 people were Yeah well then let's take a quick 00:33:05.359 --> 00:33:07.220 break here and do our Medal of Honor segment 00:33:07.220 --> 00:33:11.079 and when we come back we'll just continue talking 00:33:11.079 --> 00:33:13.079 about what's going on in the world right now 00:33:13.079 --> 00:33:16.160 and you know in the idea of veterans health care 00:33:16.160 --> 00:33:18.559 and veterans benefits and if there's anything 00:33:18.559 --> 00:33:20.619 that we if you have a question please give us 00:33:20.619 --> 00:33:24.819 a call 734 -822 -1600 you're listening to Veterans 00:33:24.819 --> 00:33:28.660 Radio we will be right back. The Medal of Honor 00:33:28.660 --> 00:33:30.759 is the highest award for valor in combat given 00:33:30.759 --> 00:33:32.880 a member of the Armed Forces of the United States. 00:33:33.299 --> 00:33:35.799 There have been over 3 ,400 recipients of the 00:33:35.799 --> 00:33:38.980 nation's highest award. This is one of them. 00:33:39.220 --> 00:33:41.900 Second Lieutenant Darwin Kyle charged an enemy 00:33:41.900 --> 00:33:44.079 in placement single -handedly killing the three 00:33:44.079 --> 00:33:49.440 enemy soldiers. Details after this. If you have 00:33:49.440 --> 00:33:51.940 a VA claim denied by the Board of Veterans' Appeals, 00:33:52.059 --> 00:33:55.019 contact Legal Help for Veterans at 1 -800 -693 00:33:55.019 --> 00:33:58.750 -4800. They're experts in handling cases before 00:33:58.750 --> 00:34:01.049 the U .S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. 00:34:01.170 --> 00:34:05.430 Their number again, 1 -800 -693 -4800. When his 00:34:05.430 --> 00:34:08.110 platoon had been pinned down by intense fire, 00:34:08.610 --> 00:34:11.010 Kyle completely exposed himself to move among 00:34:11.010 --> 00:34:13.750 and encourage his men to continue the advance 00:34:13.750 --> 00:34:16.510 against North Korean forces strongly entrenched 00:34:16.510 --> 00:34:21.050 on Hill 185. Inspired by his courageous leadership, 00:34:21.530 --> 00:34:24.260 the platoon resumed the advance. but was again 00:34:24.260 --> 00:34:26.400 pinned down when an enemy machine gun opened 00:34:26.400 --> 00:34:29.960 fire, wounding six of the men. Kyle immediately 00:34:29.960 --> 00:34:32.760 charged the hostile emplacement alone, engaged 00:34:32.760 --> 00:34:34.980 the crew in hand -to -hand combat, killing all 00:34:34.980 --> 00:34:38.860 three. Continuing on toward the objective, his 00:34:38.860 --> 00:34:41.539 platoon suddenly received an intense automatic 00:34:41.539 --> 00:34:44.559 weapons fire from a well -concealed hostile position 00:34:44.559 --> 00:34:47.380 on its right flank, again leading his men in 00:34:47.380 --> 00:34:49.739 a daring bayonet charge against this position, 00:34:50.139 --> 00:34:53.710 firing his carbine and throwing grenades. Kyle 00:34:53.710 --> 00:34:56.190 personally destroyed four of the enemy before 00:34:56.190 --> 00:34:58.789 he was killed by a burst from an enemy submachine 00:34:58.789 --> 00:35:01.610 gun. The Medal of Honor series is a production 00:35:01.610 --> 00:35:05.550 of Veterans Radio. Military veterans touch everyone's 00:35:05.550 --> 00:35:07.530 life. I'm guessing right now you're thinking 00:35:07.530 --> 00:35:11.349 of a veteran, a close friend, relative. Maybe 00:35:11.349 --> 00:35:14.090 it's you. Even the toughest of us sometimes need 00:35:14.090 --> 00:35:16.550 help but don't know where to turn for support. 00:35:17.110 --> 00:35:18.829 You don't need special training to help a veteran 00:35:18.829 --> 00:35:21.210 in your life. We can all help someone going through 00:35:21.210 --> 00:35:23.849 a difficult time. Learn how you can be there 00:35:23.849 --> 00:35:27.170 for veterans. Visit veteranscrisisline .net. 00:35:27.929 --> 00:35:30.610 Veteranscrisisline .net. A message from the U 00:35:30.610 --> 00:35:34.630 .S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Every warrior 00:35:34.630 --> 00:35:38.250 needs support. I did. After my time in the military, 00:35:38.550 --> 00:35:41.210 I struggled with mental health and some substance 00:35:41.210 --> 00:35:45.570 abuse. That's when James called the Veteran Navigator 00:35:45.570 --> 00:35:48.530 Program and was matched with me. Our navigators 00:35:48.530 --> 00:35:50.849 help any veteran who served in the military, 00:35:51.190 --> 00:35:53.630 Coast Guard, or National Guard, regardless of 00:35:53.630 --> 00:35:55.610 discharge status or how long they've served. 00:35:56.250 --> 00:35:58.329 James and I talked on the phone and set up face 00:35:58.329 --> 00:36:01.610 -to -face meetings. He shared his story and struggles. 00:36:02.030 --> 00:36:04.550 And because all navigators are veterans or family 00:36:04.550 --> 00:36:07.530 members of veterans, I could relate. From the 00:36:07.530 --> 00:36:10.849 first call, James knew I was there for him anytime. 00:36:11.309 --> 00:36:13.550 We helped connect him to the mental health and 00:36:13.550 --> 00:36:16.210 substance abuse care he needed. I'm proud to 00:36:16.210 --> 00:36:18.809 be a United States veteran. And I'm proud to 00:36:18.809 --> 00:36:21.289 serve veterans like James and their families 00:36:21.289 --> 00:36:24.650 with compassion and care. Get connected to a 00:36:24.650 --> 00:36:28.070 veteran navigator at michigan .gov slash walking 00:36:28.070 --> 00:36:31.090 with warriors. A message from the Michigan Department 00:36:31.090 --> 00:36:37.130 of Health and Human Services. We're back here 00:36:37.130 --> 00:36:39.210 on Veterans Radio and we're talking with Jim 00:36:39.210 --> 00:36:41.650 and Carol Anne Faustone from Legal Help for Veterans 00:36:41.650 --> 00:36:45.210 trying to Figure out what's going on out there 00:36:45.210 --> 00:36:47.889 in the veteran community regarding health care 00:36:47.889 --> 00:36:50.250 and benefits with the especially with the shutdown 00:36:50.250 --> 00:36:52.789 that's going on and Jimmy you had a question 00:36:52.789 --> 00:36:55.469 that you if you wanted to mention yeah, I wanted 00:36:55.469 --> 00:37:01.409 to bring up a recent survey or finding About 00:37:01.409 --> 00:37:04.989 the Michigan veteran veteran homes at Chesterfield 00:37:04.989 --> 00:37:08.349 Township now the state has three I think it's 00:37:08.349 --> 00:37:11.570 three veteran homes most states have veterans 00:37:11.570 --> 00:37:15.230 homes these Many of these date back to the starting 00:37:15.230 --> 00:37:18.610 of the Civil War time. But the American Health 00:37:18.610 --> 00:37:20.949 Care Association and National Center of Assisted 00:37:20.949 --> 00:37:26.250 Living just ranked this new home for veterans 00:37:26.250 --> 00:37:29.949 in Chesterfield Township, Michigan as the number 00:37:29.949 --> 00:37:33.050 one nursing home in the state of Michigan out 00:37:33.050 --> 00:37:38.360 of 422 such rated homes. The Grand Rapids veterans 00:37:38.360 --> 00:37:41.559 home was number 11 and the Jacob Betty veteran 00:37:41.559 --> 00:37:45.539 home up in the UP was number 19. They also all 00:37:45.539 --> 00:37:48.920 got five -star quality ratings from the federal 00:37:48.920 --> 00:37:52.000 CMS, which is something Medicare, I don't know, 00:37:52.099 --> 00:37:53.980 I can't even tell you what it is, but Carolina 00:37:53.980 --> 00:37:57.199 knows a lot about this. So I think it's a benefit 00:37:57.199 --> 00:38:00.889 that people don't realize exists. You know almost 00:38:00.889 --> 00:38:02.849 if not every state I know you've written an e 00:38:02.849 --> 00:38:04.750 -book on this Carolina think it's every state 00:38:04.750 --> 00:38:07.289 But maybe maybe you can comment about what veteran 00:38:07.289 --> 00:38:11.320 homes are and what this benefit is Well, this 00:38:11.320 --> 00:38:14.739 is a phenomenal benefit and a lot of people don't 00:38:14.739 --> 00:38:19.179 even know for placement so you're in the hospital 00:38:19.179 --> 00:38:23.760 whether it's chronic or acute and you need to 00:38:23.760 --> 00:38:28.460 go let's say to a rehab place the veterans home 00:38:28.460 --> 00:38:31.780 will accept you you have a disability benefit 00:38:31.780 --> 00:38:36.940 or or not and they will evaluate you and you 00:38:37.000 --> 00:38:40.099 That's one of your options is the state veterans 00:38:40.099 --> 00:38:43.460 home. So the interesting thing about this, and 00:38:43.460 --> 00:38:45.579 Jim is right, we brought up Grand Rapids and 00:38:45.579 --> 00:38:48.719 Marquette. Those were the only two. And when 00:38:48.719 --> 00:38:52.039 I was at the state, we had so many people from 00:38:52.039 --> 00:38:55.219 the East Side driving seven to 10 hours to get 00:38:55.219 --> 00:38:58.440 to Grand Rapids to see their loved one. Well, 00:38:58.699 --> 00:39:01.039 you could only stay there for a certain amount 00:39:01.039 --> 00:39:04.860 of time because you need to get a whole. and 00:39:04.860 --> 00:39:07.920 so now with the placement of these veteran homes 00:39:07.920 --> 00:39:12.739 in different parts of the state, and Jim is right, 00:39:12.739 --> 00:39:15.019 this is the third one, hopefully there'll be 00:39:15.019 --> 00:39:19.280 more. They are excellent facilities, think of 00:39:19.280 --> 00:39:23.179 a hospital, and then you stay there. This is 00:39:23.179 --> 00:39:25.920 your room, this is your bed, and it might be 00:39:25.920 --> 00:39:29.980 your last home, but it's a great opportunity. 00:39:30.380 --> 00:39:35.730 And with that, It's been the last two weeks and 00:39:35.730 --> 00:39:39.070 it became very apparent at the Veterans Summit 00:39:39.070 --> 00:39:44.510 that people, individuals who are 70 % or greater 00:39:44.510 --> 00:39:49.889 have a disability. You are eligible now for long 00:39:49.889 --> 00:39:54.269 term care from the VA, which means you don't 00:39:54.269 --> 00:39:58.239 pay for a placement. The VA will approve where 00:39:58.239 --> 00:40:01.440 you're going and you're not going to have to 00:40:01.440 --> 00:40:05.139 pay for long term care. Another situation came 00:40:05.139 --> 00:40:08.619 up. It broke my heart. This family for two years 00:40:08.619 --> 00:40:14.039 put out $7 ,000 because they were unaware that 00:40:14.039 --> 00:40:18.239 their dad was a hundred percent and didn't say 00:40:18.239 --> 00:40:21.059 anything. The VA is not going to tell you, Hey, 00:40:21.559 --> 00:40:26.480 this is $7 ,000 a month. Right. Yes. Yes, correct. 00:40:27.559 --> 00:40:31.380 And this family, they attended the Veterans Summit. 00:40:31.760 --> 00:40:35.019 You should have seen their face when I told them, 00:40:35.460 --> 00:40:38.760 oh my God, I wish you would have asked. So this 00:40:38.760 --> 00:40:42.099 is a plug out there and we've helped just recently 00:40:42.099 --> 00:40:46.300 several other families get placed all over. You 00:40:46.300 --> 00:40:48.820 might have the opportunity to go back to a VA 00:40:48.820 --> 00:40:52.500 medical center like Saginaw or Battle Creek if 00:40:52.500 --> 00:40:56.739 they have a long -term bed. But if not, the nursing 00:40:56.739 --> 00:41:00.280 homes around you. And please remember the state 00:41:00.280 --> 00:41:04.739 veteran homes. We only have three, but like Florida, 00:41:05.199 --> 00:41:09.340 Florida is up to 11. They are, you know, all 00:41:09.340 --> 00:41:12.340 over the place. And I hope once again, Michigan 00:41:12.340 --> 00:41:16.500 adds a few more of these veteran homes. Obviously 00:41:16.500 --> 00:41:20.900 it's, Dale, it's about capacity, right? Yeah. 00:41:21.860 --> 00:41:24.679 There are only so many beds at each of these 00:41:24.679 --> 00:41:27.219 veteran homes, whatever state they're involved 00:41:27.219 --> 00:41:31.920 in. So it's a capacity issue. But you also may 00:41:31.920 --> 00:41:34.320 have to just get on the waiting list. Correct. 00:41:34.940 --> 00:41:40.039 So it's easy to overlook this. And I want to 00:41:40.039 --> 00:41:43.119 highlight something Carol Ann said, which is 00:41:43.119 --> 00:41:46.920 you have to ask. VA's not going to say, oh, I 00:41:46.920 --> 00:41:48.739 hear you're struggling. How can I help? It doesn't 00:41:48.739 --> 00:41:52.190 work that way. You have to ask them about, hey, 00:41:52.269 --> 00:41:54.309 can I get this covered? Or can I get that covered? 00:41:54.630 --> 00:41:58.269 Or can you place me in long -term care because 00:41:58.269 --> 00:42:02.369 of my rating? We've talked about this on benefit 00:42:02.369 --> 00:42:07.789 issues in other areas. If you don't ask, you'll 00:42:07.789 --> 00:42:11.030 never find out. They're not going to call you 00:42:11.030 --> 00:42:13.550 up and say, oh, you're entitled to these six 00:42:13.550 --> 00:42:15.630 additional benefits you don't know about. It 00:42:15.630 --> 00:42:18.280 doesn't work that way. No, and that's one of 00:42:18.280 --> 00:42:20.400 the reasons that we're here, is hopefully to 00:42:20.400 --> 00:42:23.300 bring these items up to let people be more aware. 00:42:23.780 --> 00:42:26.539 So does this long -term care, if there are no 00:42:26.539 --> 00:42:30.019 beds available in veterans homes and stuff, do 00:42:30.019 --> 00:42:36.119 they have authorized other nursing homes that 00:42:36.119 --> 00:42:40.570 you can go to? Sure and dale the VA has certified 00:42:40.570 --> 00:42:43.090 other places it might be the place right down 00:42:43.090 --> 00:42:47.610 the road that you love so you bring up and your 00:42:47.610 --> 00:42:50.610 social worker on the team would say okay you 00:42:50.610 --> 00:42:53.469 want to go to this new chesterfield they only 00:42:53.469 --> 00:42:56.050 have a hundred or hundred and fifty beds they 00:42:56.050 --> 00:43:00.050 have redesigned these homes because when i was 00:43:00.050 --> 00:43:04.130 in grand rapids at the state with. Grand Rapids. 00:43:04.210 --> 00:43:06.969 Grand Rapids was one of the largest veteran homes 00:43:06.969 --> 00:43:12.050 in the country. It had 609 beds. Now it is reduced 00:43:12.050 --> 00:43:16.489 to, I think, less than 200. But, so what will 00:43:16.489 --> 00:43:19.929 happen is, I just helped a family. They wanted 00:43:19.929 --> 00:43:23.869 to go to the Saginaw VA and be there permanently. 00:43:24.250 --> 00:43:27.429 There were no long -term beds. So the social 00:43:27.429 --> 00:43:31.340 worker said, Where is closest to your home and 00:43:31.340 --> 00:43:34.539 so they turned out to give them three nursing 00:43:34.539 --> 00:43:38.960 homes and two of them were veteran approved and 00:43:38.960 --> 00:43:42.300 so they were admitted. There's a bed and it was 00:43:42.300 --> 00:43:46.059 a rehab long term care facility and it worked 00:43:46.059 --> 00:43:50.159 out perfect for this family. Obviously working 00:43:50.159 --> 00:43:55.059 with the VA. They have not gotten any bills and 00:43:55.059 --> 00:43:58.550 they've been there now. a couple months after 00:43:58.550 --> 00:44:02.110 having a serious accident while they were on 00:44:02.110 --> 00:44:06.610 a trip. So they're back at home where their family 00:44:06.610 --> 00:44:09.550 could visit because the poor wife was traveling, 00:44:09.550 --> 00:44:12.789 you know, five, six hours only able to stay with 00:44:12.789 --> 00:44:15.610 her husband for like four days. And then she 00:44:15.610 --> 00:44:19.130 went home. And that's traumatic on everybody. 00:44:20.130 --> 00:44:22.550 Well, this is obviously an important benefit 00:44:22.550 --> 00:44:24.889 to know. So who would help me with this if I 00:44:24.889 --> 00:44:27.389 were in this situation? Who do I contact? Do 00:44:27.389 --> 00:44:31.030 I contact you? Do I contact the VA itself? Well, 00:44:31.030 --> 00:44:34.130 hopefully you belong to a team and you've been 00:44:34.130 --> 00:44:37.329 getting care through the VA. So you talk to your 00:44:37.329 --> 00:44:42.190 team, the social worker, you know, ask your provider. 00:44:42.650 --> 00:44:45.769 Your provider will fill out the form, the simple 00:44:45.769 --> 00:44:49.960 form that says admit this person. to find them 00:44:49.960 --> 00:44:53.940 a bed in a long -term care. So, yes. And if you 00:44:53.940 --> 00:44:57.059 don't get anywhere, I guess, Jim, cover your 00:44:57.059 --> 00:45:02.380 ears, call me and I will help you get in. And 00:45:02.380 --> 00:45:06.320 we do, we're around the country and I've received 00:45:06.320 --> 00:45:09.179 phone calls. Okay, okay, stop, stop. This is 00:45:09.179 --> 00:45:11.559 how you get yourself into all these calls. What 00:45:11.559 --> 00:45:16.139 I would also do is direct them to our legalhelpforveterans 00:45:16.139 --> 00:45:20.900 .com website. go to the ebooks electronic short 00:45:20.900 --> 00:45:24.239 electronic books there's an ebook on veteran 00:45:24.239 --> 00:45:27.679 homes and that ebook explains it a little bit 00:45:27.679 --> 00:45:31.659 carolyn wrote it but more importantly it lists 00:45:31.659 --> 00:45:35.280 the the contact information for all 50 states 00:45:35.280 --> 00:45:38.280 so if you're listening in kentucky and you're 00:45:38.280 --> 00:45:40.980 looking for hey what do we have in kentucky you 00:45:40.980 --> 00:45:43.940 can find the website in the in the phone number 00:45:43.940 --> 00:45:46.909 and start your dialogue there with hey this is 00:45:46.909 --> 00:45:49.409 my veteran this is a situation are we entitled 00:45:49.409 --> 00:45:51.909 and do you have beds available if you don't have 00:45:51.909 --> 00:45:55.690 beds available how do i get the va to to cover 00:45:55.690 --> 00:45:58.190 this so that that certainly would be a place 00:45:58.190 --> 00:46:01.130 but your your health care team at the hospital 00:46:01.130 --> 00:46:04.769 or the outpatient clinic will have a social worker 00:46:04.769 --> 00:46:09.789 affiliated in that that person is also the resource 00:46:09.789 --> 00:46:12.909 starting point they kind of start with your primary 00:46:12.909 --> 00:46:17.489 care yes yes yes Okay. Well, I think that's very 00:46:17.489 --> 00:46:19.369 useful. I'm going to bring this up at my next, 00:46:19.530 --> 00:46:24.730 at our next meeting. Yeah. Most people don't 00:46:24.730 --> 00:46:26.570 understand, you know, haven't heard of it, don't 00:46:26.570 --> 00:46:29.210 understand it. And, and, and particularly in 00:46:29.210 --> 00:46:32.690 a time of crisis, right. The veteran might know 00:46:32.690 --> 00:46:35.989 it, but maybe the spouse doesn't. Well, the veteran 00:46:35.989 --> 00:46:39.250 might be unconscious. That's the problem about 00:46:39.250 --> 00:46:42.150 waiting till a time of crisis to say, Hey, if 00:46:42.150 --> 00:46:43.849 something happens, I ought to think through these 00:46:43.849 --> 00:46:49.170 steps. So, just a little seg seems like we've 00:46:49.170 --> 00:46:51.809 been doing that, but I want to get a plug in 00:46:51.809 --> 00:46:55.409 there was an article that came out within the 00:46:55.409 --> 00:46:58.750 last week that we've talked on this on veterans 00:46:58.750 --> 00:47:05.210 radio benefits week. Dale, what a great. research 00:47:05.210 --> 00:47:08.349 center and all the research is being done in 00:47:08.349 --> 00:47:11.610 the VA is probably the best in the world will 00:47:11.610 --> 00:47:15.110 they just launched a new area and this is one 00:47:15.110 --> 00:47:17.730 thing you would want to ask your provider to 00:47:17.730 --> 00:47:22.840 and it is regarding veterans with chronic. pain, 00:47:23.519 --> 00:47:27.039 pain anywhere. They're looking at, you should 00:47:27.039 --> 00:47:30.079 ask your provider, could you be included in this 00:47:30.079 --> 00:47:34.539 research? They will analyze where your pain is, 00:47:34.559 --> 00:47:36.820 what medications you've been taking care of, 00:47:37.019 --> 00:47:41.440 the therapy. So this is going to be really interesting 00:47:41.440 --> 00:47:46.579 for the country because I swear all of us have 00:47:46.579 --> 00:47:51.980 pain, whether it's back, whatever. Pick a body 00:47:51.980 --> 00:47:54.119 part, it's in pain, believe me. The older they 00:47:54.119 --> 00:47:58.360 get, right, Dale? Absolutely. So mention that 00:47:58.360 --> 00:48:01.980 to your provider also to see if you could get 00:48:01.980 --> 00:48:05.019 into this national research with the VA. Yeah, 00:48:05.019 --> 00:48:09.659 this jumps out of the VA Million Veteran Program, 00:48:09.900 --> 00:48:13.119 MVP, Million Veteran Program, where they're, 00:48:14.019 --> 00:48:16.639 and VA does this great research, but they recognize, 00:48:16.780 --> 00:48:22.160 hey, we have this big, huge pool of data. about 00:48:22.160 --> 00:48:26.199 various conditions, what can we learn from it? 00:48:26.199 --> 00:48:29.739 And that's where the research scientists and 00:48:29.739 --> 00:48:33.159 doctors are working. And I found that particularly 00:48:33.159 --> 00:48:38.920 interesting in that they identified some, this 00:48:38.920 --> 00:48:43.179 is way beyond my science knowledge, 125 genetic 00:48:43.179 --> 00:48:46.559 regions linked to pain intensity, including 66 00:48:46.559 --> 00:48:50.250 that were previously unknown. This insight helps 00:48:50.250 --> 00:48:52.090 scientists better understand why some people 00:48:52.090 --> 00:48:56.710 experience more severe pain than others. Okay, 00:48:57.010 --> 00:49:00.070 maybe I have a genetic predisposition to certain 00:49:00.070 --> 00:49:02.889 types of pain, but then they're also saying, 00:49:03.250 --> 00:49:08.389 hey, this information, there are existing medicines 00:49:08.389 --> 00:49:13.309 that could potentially be repurposed to treat 00:49:13.309 --> 00:49:15.710 chronic pain more effectively in the future, 00:49:15.949 --> 00:49:18.449 now that we know these genetic markers are there. 00:49:18.599 --> 00:49:23.840 real interesting stuff. And again, when you think 00:49:23.840 --> 00:49:27.159 about the VA healthcare or VA benefits, you don't 00:49:27.159 --> 00:49:31.039 necessarily think about all the research that's 00:49:31.039 --> 00:49:33.300 being done to help veterans and how important 00:49:33.300 --> 00:49:35.360 that is. And it's not just veterans. Ultimately, 00:49:35.519 --> 00:49:41.039 this information will support the whole community, 00:49:41.340 --> 00:49:44.199 the whole country, if they can find some better 00:49:44.199 --> 00:49:48.070 ways to deal with pain. And I think it was In 00:49:48.070 --> 00:49:52.909 September, we did a program with the National 00:49:52.909 --> 00:49:56.730 Association of Veterans Research Education Foundation, 00:49:57.170 --> 00:50:03.849 NAVREF, talking about this, and this came out 00:50:03.849 --> 00:50:08.409 of a longer podcast from August 5th of 2025. 00:50:10.630 --> 00:50:13.409 But when people, you hear people running down 00:50:13.409 --> 00:50:17.710 the VA, veterans or friends of veterans, when 00:50:17.710 --> 00:50:19.650 you hear them running down the VA for whatever 00:50:19.650 --> 00:50:21.449 reason, you ought to remind them about how, about 00:50:21.449 --> 00:50:24.610 how important this VA research is. And I think 00:50:24.610 --> 00:50:27.909 this, the potential for pain management here 00:50:27.909 --> 00:50:31.369 is just huge. I mean, as older, I'd get more 00:50:31.369 --> 00:50:33.949 pain I got. So maybe, maybe that's why I think 00:50:33.949 --> 00:50:36.889 it's so important. So I think one of the things 00:50:36.889 --> 00:50:40.550 we have to continually remind people of, especially, 00:50:40.869 --> 00:50:44.230 you know, and veterans who do not use the VA 00:50:44.230 --> 00:50:46.769 facilities is that, you know, they're at the 00:50:46.769 --> 00:50:49.989 top of the game with, you know, the different 00:50:49.989 --> 00:50:52.389 types of treatment that they're utilizing. You 00:50:52.389 --> 00:50:55.130 know, it's not just to go see your doctor. You 00:50:55.130 --> 00:50:58.510 may, there's some holistic. treatments going 00:50:58.510 --> 00:51:01.590 on there, there's acupuncture, there's chiropractors, 00:51:01.889 --> 00:51:03.929 there's all kinds of things that are available 00:51:03.929 --> 00:51:07.130 to you, and if you meet the criteria, it doesn't 00:51:07.130 --> 00:51:11.030 cost you any money. That's kind of a really big 00:51:11.030 --> 00:51:15.190 deal, I think, to be aware of. Not everybody 00:51:15.190 --> 00:51:18.289 is going to be 70 % or higher as far as their 00:51:18.289 --> 00:51:21.510 disability percentage is concerned, but there's 00:51:21.510 --> 00:51:26.019 an awful lot of benefits out there for you. Almost 00:51:26.019 --> 00:51:29.179 anything really you can't hear guess what free 00:51:29.179 --> 00:51:32.920 hearing aids You can't do this guess what free 00:51:32.920 --> 00:51:37.519 this so I think it's just Again, it's incredibly 00:51:37.519 --> 00:51:40.139 important, you know, and I know we're probably 00:51:40.139 --> 00:51:42.599 talking to our audiences It's kind of like talking 00:51:42.599 --> 00:51:45.820 to the choir here, but maybe you know somebody 00:51:45.820 --> 00:51:49.860 Who hasn't bothered to sign up? for their VA 00:51:49.860 --> 00:51:51.760 benefits yet because they've got, you know, they've 00:51:51.760 --> 00:51:53.860 got that same old thing. Well, I don't want to 00:51:53.860 --> 00:51:56.940 take the benefit from somebody else. Well, it's 00:51:56.940 --> 00:52:00.400 for everybody. And one of the things that I noticed 00:52:00.400 --> 00:52:03.000 about this shutdown as far as the government 00:52:03.000 --> 00:52:05.739 is concerned is that most of the VA stuff is 00:52:05.739 --> 00:52:08.500 pre -funded and they've actually got their money 00:52:08.500 --> 00:52:12.190 already. And so they're not going to come and 00:52:12.190 --> 00:52:14.869 get that and take it away from you. Right. Right. 00:52:15.130 --> 00:52:17.949 One of the things they've done well is I think 00:52:17.949 --> 00:52:21.130 it's a two year funding budget now so that you 00:52:21.130 --> 00:52:23.690 don't run into these kind of annual price use 00:52:23.690 --> 00:52:27.510 at the FDA. Yeah, I can remember back when we 00:52:27.510 --> 00:52:29.590 started this program, it was an annual fight 00:52:29.590 --> 00:52:32.190 to figure out how much money we're going to get. 00:52:32.230 --> 00:52:35.489 What can we do? We got about three minutes to 00:52:35.489 --> 00:52:37.989 go. Are there any other things that you wanted 00:52:37.989 --> 00:52:42.139 to bring up? So Dale this one thing just to clarify 00:52:42.139 --> 00:52:46.059 the long term and the coverage starts at 70 % 00:52:46.059 --> 00:52:49.280 or greater but how many veterans know that once 00:52:49.280 --> 00:52:53.750 you hit 50 % you get all of your health care 00:52:53.750 --> 00:52:57.989 through the VA. So I think that's huge. And hopefully 00:52:57.989 --> 00:53:01.469 you have a great communication with your provider 00:53:01.469 --> 00:53:05.730 and your team, nurses, social work. Just ask 00:53:05.730 --> 00:53:09.090 the questions. If you don't know, please just 00:53:09.090 --> 00:53:12.289 ask. Yeah, I'd echo that. I think the biggest 00:53:12.289 --> 00:53:16.989 problem is it's such a big bureaucracy and there's 00:53:16.989 --> 00:53:20.670 so many benefits available to you that you may 00:53:20.670 --> 00:53:25.619 not know about. ask if you have a particular 00:53:25.619 --> 00:53:29.000 problem. And I would also encourage people to 00:53:29.000 --> 00:53:31.840 take their spouse or their significant other 00:53:31.840 --> 00:53:35.400 to these things so that again, if the veteran's 00:53:35.400 --> 00:53:38.780 in crisis, that person who's on your emergency 00:53:38.780 --> 00:53:43.500 contact form, they know what to ask or who to 00:53:43.500 --> 00:53:46.159 ask. So the day after the heart attack and you're 00:53:46.159 --> 00:53:48.840 in that private hospital, they know who to call 00:53:48.840 --> 00:53:53.079 on your primary team. Make sure information gets 00:53:53.079 --> 00:53:58.639 across so don't do it all alone We all need help 00:53:58.639 --> 00:54:00.739 and you know, there's there's plenty of help 00:54:00.739 --> 00:54:02.679 available I think that that's the main thing 00:54:02.679 --> 00:54:04.519 to point out to everybody that's listening to 00:54:04.519 --> 00:54:06.579 our program today It there's a lot of help out 00:54:06.579 --> 00:54:09.639 there for you whether it's you know, your local 00:54:09.639 --> 00:54:13.460 veteran service office It's it's a organization 00:54:13.460 --> 00:54:15.820 like legal help for veterans There are plenty 00:54:15.820 --> 00:54:18.099 of places out there that you can get to help 00:54:18.099 --> 00:54:20.860 just reach out and they'll do it and you know 00:54:21.000 --> 00:54:23.280 They're not going to give you a hard time, but 00:54:23.280 --> 00:54:26.300 again, don't fall for the scams that are out 00:54:26.300 --> 00:54:28.739 there. Nobody's going to call you and say, Hey, 00:54:28.760 --> 00:54:33.119 guess what? No, we just $1 ,000. I can help you 00:54:33.119 --> 00:54:35.800 get your blah, blah, blah benefits. That's right. 00:54:35.940 --> 00:54:37.699 And we're not going to give you any more blah, 00:54:37.780 --> 00:54:40.820 blah benefits with any of this stuff that goes 00:54:40.820 --> 00:54:43.909 on. So we're coming up to the end of our program 00:54:43.909 --> 00:54:46.789 today. I wanna thank Jim and Carol Ann Faustone 00:54:46.789 --> 00:54:49.530 for joining us during our benefits program. Another 00:54:49.530 --> 00:54:52.829 reminder to you is if you wanna be, have a question 00:54:52.829 --> 00:54:56.489 asked on the first Sunday of every month, tune 00:54:56.489 --> 00:54:59.889 in or send me an email, daleatveteransradio .org 00:54:59.889 --> 00:55:02.309 and we'll do everything we can to answer your 00:55:02.309 --> 00:55:04.250 question or find out what it is that's going 00:55:04.250 --> 00:55:07.289 on. I did wanna make a quick announcement that 00:55:07.289 --> 00:55:13.750 we are now being carried. on the Big 740. It's 00:55:13.750 --> 00:55:18.570 WTJBFM. It's on the border of North and South 00:55:18.570 --> 00:55:24.809 Carolina. It's the Big 704 .com. So until next 00:55:24.809 --> 00:55:26.849 week, this is Dale Thromery for all of us here 00:55:26.849 --> 00:55:29.010 at Veterans Radio. Thank you so much for listening. 00:55:29.469 --> 00:55:46.989 Until then, you are dismissed. God bless America 00:55:46.989 --> 00:55:59.230 Land that I love Stand beside her and guide her 00:55:59.230 --> 00:56:06.190 Through the night with the light from above From 00:56:06.190 --> 00:56:15.400 the mountain to the prairie To the oceans white 00:56:15.400 --> 00:56:30.159 with foam God bless America, my home sweet Home 00:56:30.159 --> 00:56:38.400 God bless America, my home sweet