00;00;00;12 - 00;01;24;29 Cary Hall And now America's health care advocate, Cary Hall. Hello, America. Welcome to America's Healthcare Advocate Show broadcasting coast to coast across the USA, from Alaska to Florida all the way to Hawaii. Producer name is Karen Carson. I'm your host, Cary Hall. This is your show America, thank you for joining us and making this one of the most listened to talk shows throughout the United States, 294 affiliates strong. Thanks to all of you in our listening audience. So our podcast platforms have become very popular. We're getting a lot of people going up and listening to these shows on the podcast platforms. You can also follow me on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at AHARadioShow, that's AHARadioShow to pick us up if you want to follow us on any of those platforms, Facebook, Instagram, etc., etc.. If you have any questions about health insurance. Any of you out there that are chronologically challenged, it's Medicare open enrollment season. You can talk to the lovely Joyce Thompson at RPS DBDI at 877-385-2224. And if you're looking for employer sponsored health care, Jim Lodge is your guy. Also at 877-385-2224. Today's show is going to be very interesting. I've worked a long time to get this show on the air and through the help of some folks at the VFW in Washington, DC, Robert Fortier and some other folks, we've been able to get this put together day. We're going to be talking with Patrick D Murray. He is a director, national legislative services for Veterans of Foreign Wars, the United States. 00;01;25;06 - 00;01;29;20 Cary Hall He is in Washington, D.C., joining us by phone. Thank you. How are you today, Patrick? 00;01;29;23 - 00;01;31;13 Patrick Murray I'm doing well. Glad to be here. 00;01;31;14 - 00;01;53;13 Cary Hall Well, we're happy to have you and look forward to doing this show today. So as many of you in the audience know, I am a VFW member. I'm a Vietnam veteran. And these topics, when I talk about the VFW and what they do in the VA, are near and dear to my heart. I've actually got a friend right now going through a very difficult time in the hospital who I've encouraged to join the VFW and had has not done that. 00;01;53;19 - 00;02;10;24 Cary Hall He is a Vietnam veteran as well, and probably if he had done it, things would be a little different right now. So the purpose of this show today is basically to to bring this information to you and the audience, whether it is a veteran listening to this show or whether it is a family of a veteran. Listen, show. 00;02;11;02 - 00;02;26;16 Cary Hall The VFW is an advocate. This is what they do and they do it really well. We're going to talk about all those things that they do and how they do them and how they can benefit. If you've got a veteran in your family or if you are that veteran, how they can benefit you. But let's talk a little bit about Patrick Murray first. 00;02;26;22 - 00;02;54;03 Cary Hall He is a director of national legislative services for the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. It is his responsibility to plan, coordinate and implement VFW, national legislative agenda with members of Congress, their staff, committees, and federal departments. Pat served five years in the United States Marine Corps Reserve as an infantry noncommissioned officer. In 2006, he deployed to Fallujah, Iraq, where his unit conducted hundreds of counterinsurgency operations in support of Iraqi freedom. 00;02;54;09 - 00;03;17;07 Cary Hall After rehabilitating from a one received in Iraq, he successfully transitioned back to work in the Washington, D.C. metro and joins us today as a member of the VFW. All right. So let's just start there, Patrick, and let's talk about the history of the VFW, the fact that they are an advocate for veterans. VA is a very it's kind of like CMS when you're dealing with Medicare. 00;03;17;12 - 00;03;37;05 Cary Hall It's a complicated government bureaucracy and trying to navigate it if you don't know how to do it can be frustrating, difficult and oftentimes if you go looking for benefits, you may not get them if you don't know how to navigate the system. So let's just talk about the VFW in that context and how you are the advocate for veterans out there. 00;03;37;18 - 00;03;38;07 Cary Hall Patrick Yeah. 00;03;38;07 - 00;04;13;29 Patrick Murray It can be. It can be something difficult. So the VFW was founded in 1899, a bunch of Spanish Spanish-American War veterans got together, formed organizations out of camaraderie. 20 years after that, in in in 1919, they started a legislative department and a service department. So here in Capitol Hill, we've been advocating and performing service officer work for over 100 years, longer than a lot of other organizations have even been around, because it can be a complicated system and we recognize that. 00;04;14;08 - 00;04;20;23 Patrick Murray And the VFW invest heavily in that to make sure that service members, veterans and their families are taking care of. 00;04;21;12 - 00;04;38;17 Cary Hall You know, and let's talk a little bit about the fact that you know, who who are you willing to help? Do you have to be a member of the VFW to get help? If you're a family member out there and like this gentleman that is is a friend of mine right now and is having all kinds of issues hospitalized. 00;04;38;17 - 00;04;59;16 Cary Hall He's a Vietnam veteran. And the agent, Agent Orange program, just like I am. And some of what he's dealing with is more than likely from that. But they're trying to navigate this thing by themselves. And I've urged him, look, you know, Ron, if you would just get involved with BMW, they could help you. But I think it's important here to explain to people you don't have to be a member to seek help. 00;04;59;16 - 00;05;00;13 Cary Hall Am I right or wrong? 00;05;01;06 - 00;05;37;10 Patrick Murray That's absolutely correct. So and actually, let me start by saying, you know, your friend, let's stick around afterwards, get some information. We can link him up with our service officers in his area, help him navigate that process. The VFW is a veteran service organization. Service is instrumental in our mission. We have a network of over 2000 accredited service officers around the country who are accredited representatives, who are trained, highly trained to help the men and women actually process their claims for veterans benefits. 00;05;37;22 - 00;05;45;11 Patrick Murray Our services are for service members, veterans and families free of charge, regardless of membership. 00;05;46;02 - 00;05;46;17 Cary Hall And then do. 00;05;46;17 - 00;05;55;06 Patrick Murray That every single day. That is our charge. So we want to push that message out to everybody, reach out. There are professionals. They're there to help you. 00;05;55;13 - 00;06;17;18 Cary Hall So let's let's go back to that for just a second. Talk about exactly what does a service officer do. So I'm a family member and I've got I've got a father who's a Vietnam veteran or I've got a brother who's an Iraqi Afghanistan veteran, and they're having problems with PTSD. They've got medical problems. They've got other problems, are trying to get help with the VA. 00;06;17;18 - 00;06;35;23 Cary Hall Maybe maybe they think they qualify for some disability benefits, maybe not 100% disability. Maybe it's 30 or 40 or 50%. But that money would help them in their day to day living structures. And maybe they need counseling and other things. You walk into the center of the service officer. What is the service officer do, Patrick? 00;06;36;11 - 00;07;02;26 Patrick Murray So the service officer is going to do is really is start asking, you know, who you are, right? Where did you serve? What what brought you here today? Sometimes, you know, it could be a bad knee, a bad back, maybe I was exposed to Agent Orange. Maybe I breathe in toxins from a burn pit. Maybe I have issues that I want to speak to a counselor about and they will start basically filling out your form, your claim listing out those issues and items. 00;07;02;26 - 00;07;27;18 Patrick Murray They will then send those to VA and VA orders exams for each one of those issues you outlined, a VA examiner will, you know, go to a physical exam, mental health care evaluation, whatever it might be. They'll go through check, you know. Yes. No, determine was this due to your time in service? Check. Yes, no, etc., etc.. And then send you back your decision. 00;07;27;18 - 00;07;57;07 Patrick Murray That decision will determine, you know, how much maybe monthly compensation, what category of health care you're eligible for if you have, you know, free, no co-pays, health care, where you can be seeing things like like then that will be your decision. That VA rating that you hear people talk about carries with a lot of other benefits. So we encourage everybody to at least talk to a service officer, ask what might be on the table, and then they can help you walk through how to get what you've earned. 00;07;57;14 - 00;08;17;02 Cary Hall You know, that's really important. And I want to go back to something you said, because as with all government programs, I don't care whether it's Medicare or it seems or the ACA, affordable Care Act, insurance or all the rest. The VA has forms. They have lots of forms. So I just want you to repeat what you just said. 00;08;17;11 - 00;08;28;28 Cary Hall You guys actually sit down and build those. They give you the information, the veteran, his family, whatever. But you fill the forms out and then get them to the proper channel at VA, is that correct? 00;08;29;13 - 00;08;57;07 Patrick Murray Yes. And that's what our service officer there to do is sit side by side with you now, making sure that that is being done correctly, doing it yourself is not the best path forward. Let the professionals who do it every day do it and don't pay for it unless he's exhausted. All other options. Our services, all veteran service officers from any other organization, county service officer, other VSOs free of charge. 00;08;57;25 - 00;09;18;27 Cary Hall And that is really important to understand. So, you know, again, folks, that's that's why we're doing this today. That's why I asked Patrick to take time out of his schedule in Washington, DC to get on the air with us so I could talk to you across all of our affiliates. And here's the thing. Okay, you're listening this. Maybe it is your father, maybe it's your grandfather, maybe it's your uncle, maybe it's your brother, maybe it's your husband. 00;09;18;27 - 00;09;35;28 Cary Hall Okay. And, you know, we're going to go through a lot of information here today. Go back up on the website. Okay. Or on the podcast platforms that I named at the beginning of the show. I'll go back to them again when we come back from the break and you can have them listen to this broadcast and then they can learn what the opportunities are and how they're going to work. 00;09;36;04 - 00;09;46;27 Cary Hall So we'll be right back after the break. You're listening to America's health care advocate broadcasting here on the HIA radio network coast to coast across the USA. Stay tuned. We've got more. We'll be right back. 00;09;47;06 - 00;10;00;18 Speaker 3 Want to help me down at my right? 00;10;01;23 - 00;10;26;26 Cary Hall Welcome back. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate Show broadcasting coast to coast across the U.S. here on the HIA Radio Network. You can find out more about us by going to the website. HealthRadio.us. HealthRadio.us. My producer is Karen Carson. I'm your host, Cary Hall. Once again, those podcasts platforms, I think we're on everyone out there, Google, Spotify, Spreaker, TuneIn iHeartRadio, Amazon Music. 00;10;27;01 - 00;10;43;29 Cary Hall Not sure how we got on there. Pandora, Stitcher, SoundCloud and YouTube. So we are on all of them. Okay. But and you can go to the website. So if you have a question, if there's something I can help you with, go to the website Health Radio dot us send me an email. I get the emails, I answer them, I answer every one that I get. 00;10;43;29 - 00;11;11;04 Cary Hall It may take me a day or two, but I will answer it. So you can also go to the website if you need to connect with me directly. Joining me, Patrick Murphy. He is the director of national legislative services for the VFW out of Washington, D.C. He is joining us by phone today. And again, the purpose of this show is to explain the benefits, the opportunities and how these professionals, these service officers and the people at VFW can help you, whether you are a member or not. 00;11;11;11 - 00;11;27;23 Cary Hall If you're a service member, they can help you. They will help you. All right. And Patrick made a point of that the last segment I want to reiterate that. So you're listening out there once again, you've got a relative, whoever it may be. You're a family member. Maybe you're the veteran. You really haven't thought about doing this? Oh, I don't want to bother that. 00;11;27;23 - 00;11;42;20 Cary Hall You really need to take a look at this. The website is VFW dot org slash assistance, VFW Mortgage Assistance. If you go up there and you put in your state and your zip code, they'll tell you a phone number and how to contact them. Is that right, Patrick? 00;11;43;14 - 00;12;00;23 Patrick Murray That is correct. In each different state, or as we call them, departments for the service officer purposes, they have the phone number, the email, the name and the address of the service officer. Your state, the main service officer, and they can direct you to where other resources are as well. 00;12;01;05 - 00;12;28;13 Cary Hall Yeah. And they can kind of walk you through the maze and it did. And I know this is something that happens, I don't know how frequently, but I do know it occurs because I've known people that have gone through this where they've tried to do this on their own. If you are turned down by the VA for a you know, for a benefit, for a disability benefit, can the VFW go back in and help you reapply for that and do it, you know, in a way that's going to make more sense and possibly change the outcome? 00;12;29;06 - 00;12;47;11 Patrick Murray Absolutely, yes. So our service officers, if you do decide to utilize a VFW service officer, they will ask you to sign what's called a limited power of attorney. Then that will allow us to represent you in that claims process up to and including if there's an appeal needed. 00;12;47;26 - 00;12;59;02 Cary Hall That's that's that's something I you know, I've done several of these shows, but that's something I did not know. So basically you guys go in and represent the veteran instead of the veteran having to go try to do that themselves. 00;13;00;04 - 00;13;22;08 Patrick Murray Yes. So we'll help, I guess, like I mentioned, will help file the initial claim track it, make sure that the results come through if there is something that needs to be appealed. Our service officers that's for the limited power of attorney comes in that we can be your advocate there. We can go all the way up to representing you at the Board of Veteran Appeals, actually here in Washington, DC. 00;13;22;14 - 00;13;26;16 Patrick Murray If it eventually get to that point of needing to go to a higher level review. 00;13;26;25 - 00;13;41;17 Cary Hall Wow, that is impressive. And it certainly makes a lot more sense as I sit here and listen to you explain this, to have somebody with that level of professionalism and that experience represents kind of like going to the court and trying to be your own attorney. I think you're you. 00;13;41;19 - 00;13;54;07 Patrick Murray Always hear it is not advised. And that's the same thing with with service officers. Ask someone to do it again free of charge costs you you know free 99. So make sure that we utilize that service. 00;13;54;10 - 00;14;15;14 Cary Hall Yeah it really is important. Let's talk a little bit about utilizing earned and earned care and benefits. You mentioned that, you know, I've got a VA card, I've had it, I've got full benefits, I don't use it other than the fact that I'm in the age arms program because I can afford private health insurance and I can take up space at a VA for somebody else that can't. 00;14;15;23 - 00;14;26;21 Cary Hall But talk about that. How do they determine because I've got full benefits, but how do they determine, you know, the level of benefit you're going to receive if you're and how do you guys help people advocate for that? 00;14;27;13 - 00;14;51;13 Patrick Murray So we help people sign up for for health care and benefits. VA health care is first class world class care. There been plenty of studies by the Journal of Medicine that have shown that V.A. care as sometimes as rough as it takes a beating in the media. Some days is actually one of the best in the country. Veterans have better outcomes who are utilizing V.A. health care. 00;14;51;23 - 00;15;27;16 Patrick Murray They like their providers. They like the community in which, you know, they're seen being seen with other veterans, being seen by doctors and nurses who know and are exposed and are culturally competent to work with veterans. Those are all positive things that we want to help push people in as the primary provider of care, of veterans care. As for benefits, there are some absolutely transformative benefits offered by the Department of Veteran Affairs, such as the VA home loan, the GI Bill, the Veteran Readiness Employment Program. 00;15;27;23 - 00;15;35;11 Patrick Murray There's a lot of other great ones that can really set people up for success and help them launch their careers post service now. 00;15;35;16 - 00;15;54;02 Cary Hall Okay, so that's a lot. And I want to go back to that. But first of all, I'm surprised to hear you say because you said they take a beating in the media. They most certainly do. I mean, we've had articles here in Kansas City. This is a number of years ago about our VA facility having all kinds of issues, including cleanliness and operation rooms, etc., etc.. 00;15;54;02 - 00;16;05;23 Cary Hall Now, it's my understanding a lot of that has been corrected, but coming from you as a source of authority, you're saying that the VA health care is world class health care now. And it's it is as good as it gets. 00;16;06;05 - 00;16;43;28 Patrick Murray It is. So I will never I will never say it's perfect. It could always use improvements. However, if you compare it to private health care, they're doing very well. The biggest case where we saw that VA really thrived was during COVID. A lot of private health care networks around the country were at their breaking limits, but VA actually had surge capacity to the point where they were actually helping out and taking some of that excess patient load in the communities because they could because they were an established network, an established system that had resources and could provide that additional care. 00;16;43;28 - 00;16;59;21 Cary Hall I'm impressed to hear that, because that is certainly not the impression you get in the media and you were absolutely correct about it. We're coming off the break here in about 2 minutes. But I want you to go back to a couple of things. A lot of young veterans out there, especially the Iraq and Afghanistan guys, do not take advantage of VFW and what the VA offers. 00;16;59;21 - 00;17;11;17 Cary Hall You mentioned home loans and you mentioned deployment. Before we go to break, quickly on home loans and about employment, how can the VFW help with that to get those VA programs in place for these young guys coming back? 00;17;11;20 - 00;17;44;03 Patrick Murray So our service officer there to make sure that you can enroll and be eligible for the VA home loan, hopefully to waive any funding fees if you have a disability rating, funding fees can mean thousands of dollars. That can be a barrier to homeownership. Get those get those waived. And the employment education programs, the GI Bill or the Veteran Readiness Employment Program can help train you, educate you, so you can get yourself a better job, get more money in your bank account, more food in your table, better homes, better situations for your families. 00;17;44;06 - 00;17;47;00 Patrick Murray Those are things we want to see all veterans take advantage. 00;17;47;01 - 00;18;06;22 Cary Hall You know, that's really important, folks. You're hearing a lot of information. You hear, like I said, it's kind of like drinking from a fire hose. But again, you go up almost podcast platforms, I'll repeat them. I come in off the break the website, if you want to, you know, find out how to get help in your area. VFW.org/assistance. VFW.org/assistance. 00;18;06;25 - 00;18;23;16 Cary Hall If you plug in your zip code, they'll give you a phone number if you want to talk to somebody or you can go online and make an appointment. But all of this all of this assistance is there. And I reiterate again, you don't have to be a VFW member. I would urge you to become a member. I'm a lifetime member, but you don't have to be to get assistance. 00;18;23;16 - 00;18;59;17 Cary Hall All right. We'll be right back after the break with Patrick Murphy, Director of National Legislative Services for the VFW. Stay tuned. We're listening to America's healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across the USA. We'll be right back. Welcome back. You're listening to America's health care advocate show broadcasting coast to coast across the U.S. Here on the HIA radio network. 00;18;59;17 - 00;19;20;26 Cary Hall You can find out more about us by going to the website. Health Radio dot U.S. Health Radio Dot US. My producer is Karen Carson. I'm your host, Carrie Hall. Once again, those podcasts platforms I think are on everyone out there. Google, Spotify, Spreaker, tune in iHeart Radio, Amazon Music. Not sure how we got on there. Pandora, Stitcher, SoundCloud and YouTube. 00;19;20;26 - 00;19;36;07 Cary Hall So we are on all of them. Okay. But and you can go to the website. So if you have a question, if there's something I can help you with, go to the website Health Radio, dot us send me an email. I get the emails, I answer them, I answer every one that I get. It may take me a day or two, but I will answer it. 00;19;36;08 - 00;20;01;04 Cary Hall So you can also go to the website if you need to connect with me directly. Joining me, Patrick Murphy. He is the director of national legislative services for the VFW out of Washington, D.C. He is joining us by phone today. And again, the purpose of this show is to explain the benefits, the opportunities and how these professionals, these service officers and the people at VFW can help you, whether you are a member or not. 00;20;01;12 - 00;20;16;19 Cary Hall If you're a service member, they can help you. They will help you. All right. And Patrick made a point of that in the last segment. I want to reiterate that. So you're listening out there once again, you've got a relative, whoever it may be. You're a family member. Maybe you're the veteran. You really haven't thought about doing this? 00;20;16;19 - 00;20;32;20 Cary Hall Oh, I don't want to bother that. You really need to take a look at this. The website is VFW dot org slash assistance, VFW Mortgage Assistance. If you go up there and you put it in your state and your zip code, they'll tell you a phone number and how to contact them. Is that right, Patrick? 00;20;33;15 - 00;20;50;22 Patrick Murray That is correct. In each different state, or as we call them, departments for the service officer purposes, they have the phone number, the email, the name and the address of the service officer. Your state, the main service officer, and they can direct you to where other resources are as well. 00;20;51;03 - 00;21;18;14 Cary Hall Yeah. And they can kind of walk you through the maze and it did. And I know this is something that happens, I don't know how frequently, but I do know it occurs because I've known people that have gone through this where they've tried to do this on their own. If you are turned down by the VA for a, you know, for a benefit, for a disability benefit, can the VFW go back in and help you reapply for that and do it in a way that's going to make more sense and possibly change the outcome? 00;21;19;06 - 00;21;37;12 Patrick Murray Absolutely, yes. So our service officers, if you do decide to utilize the VFW service officer, they will ask you to sign what's called a limited power of attorney. Then that will allow us to represent you in that claims process up to and including if there's an appeal needed. 00;21;37;26 - 00;21;49;02 Cary Hall That's that's that's something I you know, I've done several of these shows, but that's something I did not know. So basically you guys go in and represent the veteran instead of the veteran having to go try to do that themselves. 00;21;50;02 - 00;22;12;08 Patrick Murray Yes. So we'll help, I guess, like I mentioned, will help file the initial claim, track it, make sure that the results come through if there is something that needs to be appealed. Our service officers, that's where the limited power of attorney comes in that we can be your advocate. There. We can go all the way up to representing you at the Board of Veteran Appeals, actually here in Washington, DC. 00;22;12;15 - 00;22;16;15 Patrick Murray If it eventually get to that point of needing to go to a higher level review. 00;22;16;24 - 00;22;32;02 Cary Hall Wow, that is impressive. And it certainly makes a lot more sense as I sit here and listen to you explain this, to have somebody with that level of professional wisdom and that experience represents kind of like going into court and trying to be your own attorney. I think you're you always here. 00;22;32;02 - 00;22;44;08 Patrick Murray It is not advised. And that's the same thing with with with service officers. Ask someone to do it again free of charge costs you, you know, free 99. So make sure that we utilize that service. 00;22;44;11 - 00;23;06;28 Cary Hall Yeah, it really is important. Let's talk a little bit about utilizing earned and earned care and benefits. You mentioned that, you know, I've got a VA card. I've had it, I've got full benefits, I don't use it other than the fact that I'm in the age arms program because I can afford private health insurance and I'm not going to take up space at a VA for somebody else that can't but talk about that. 00;23;07;11 - 00;23;16;21 Cary Hall How do they determine because I've got full benefits, but how do they determine, you know, the level of benefit you're going to receive if you're and how do you guys help people advocate for that? 00;23;17;13 - 00;23;35;25 Patrick Murray So we help people sign up for for health care and benefits. VA health care is first class world class care. There have been plenty of studies by the Journal of Medicine that have shown that VA care as sometimes as rough as it takes a beating in the media some days is actually one of the best in the country. 00;23;36;26 - 00;24;04;17 Patrick Murray Veterans have better outcomes who are utilizing V.A. health care. They like their providers. They like the community in which, you know, they're seen being seen with other veterans, being seen by doctors and nurses who know and are experienced and are culturally competent to work with veterans. Those are all positive things that we want to help push people in as the primary provider of veterans care. 00;24;05;06 - 00;24;25;11 Patrick Murray As for benefits, there are some absolutely transformative benefits offered by the Department of Veteran Affairs, such as the VA home loan, the GI Bill, the Veteran Readiness Employment Program. There's a lot of other great ones that can really set people up for success and help them launch their careers post service now. 00;24;25;15 - 00;24;44;02 Cary Hall Okay, so that's a lot. And I want to go back to that. But first of all, I'm surprised to hear you say because you said they take a beating in the media, they most certainly do. I mean, we've had articles here in Kansas City. This is a number years ago about our VA facility having all kinds of issues, including cleanliness and operation rooms, etc., etc.. 00;24;44;02 - 00;24;55;22 Cary Hall Now, it's my understanding a lot of that has been corrected, but coming from you as a source of authority, you're saying that the VA health care is world class health care now. And it's it is as good as it gets. 00;24;56;03 - 00;25;33;28 Patrick Murray It is. So I will never I will never say it's perfect. It could always use improvements. However, if you compare it to private health care, they're doing very well. The biggest case where we saw that VA really thrived was during COVID. A lot of private health care networks around the country were at their breaking limits, but VA actually had surge capacity to the point where they were actually helping out and taking some of that excess patient load in the communities because they could because they were an established network, an established system that had resources and could provide that additional care. 00;25;33;28 - 00;25;49;21 Cary Hall I'm impressed to hear that, because that is certainly not the impression you get in the media and you are absolutely correct about it. We're coming off the break here in about 2 minutes. But I want you to go back to a couple of things. A lot of young veterans out there, especially the Iraq and Afghanistan guys, do not take advantage of VFW and what the VA offers. 00;25;49;21 - 00;26;01;18 Cary Hall You mentioned home loans and you mentioned deployment. Before we go to break, quickly on home loans and about employment, how can the VFW help with that to get those VA programs in place for these young guys coming back? 00;26;01;19 - 00;26;34;03 Patrick Murray So our service officer there to make sure that you can enroll and be eligible for the VA home loan, hopefully to waive any funding fees if you have a disability rating, funding fees can mean thousands of dollars. That can be a barrier to homeownership. Get those get those waived. And the employment education programs, the GI Bill or the Veteran Readiness Employment Program can help train you, educate you, so you can get yourself a better job, get more money in your bank account, more footing your table, better homes, better situations for your families. 00;26;34;06 - 00;26;37;00 Patrick Murray Those are things we want to see all veterans take advantage. 00;26;37;00 - 00;26;50;10 Cary Hall You know, that's really important, folks. You're hearing a lot of information. You hear, like I said, it's kind of like drinking from a fire hose. But again, you go up on those podcast platforms, I'll repeat them. I come in off the break the website, if you want to, you know, find out how to get help in your area. 00;26;50;15 - 00;27;08;25 Cary Hall VFW.org/assistance, VFW.org/assistance. If you plug in your zip code, they'll give you a phone number if you want to talk to somebody or you can go online and make an appointment. But all of this all of this assistance is there. And I'll reiterate again, you don't have to be a VFW member. 00;27;08;25 - 00;27;37;19 Cary Hall I would urge you to become a member. I'm a lifetime member, but you don't have to be to get assistance. All right. We'll be right back after the break with Patrick Murphy, director of national legislative services for the VFW. Stay tuned. We're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across the U.S. We'll be right back. 00;27;37;19 - 00;27;57;09 Cary Hall Welcome back. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate Show broadcasting coast to coast across USA here on the HIA Radio Network. You can find out more about us by going to the website Health Radio Dot U.S. My producer, Karen Carson. I'm your host, Cary Hall, joining me by phone from Washington, D.C., Patrick Murray, he is the director of National Legislative Services for the VFW, the website for them. 00;27;57;09 - 00;28;16;09 Cary Hall You've listened to a lot of information here today, the VFW dot org back slash assistance. They will help you or any family member you may have a veteran. The member needs help, not a member of the VFW, just a veteran. You don't have to be a member to get help from them. That's one of the fantastic things about these people, what they do. 00;28;16;14 - 00;28;36;07 Cary Hall I urge you to become a member because of the information they put out each month with. There's a magazine. There are emails that come out constantly updating us on what's going on, benefits and other things that are available to us. And it's just a great way to connect with other veterans and learn, you know, as you just heard Patrick say, what you've earned, the benefits you earned by serving this country. 00;28;36;12 - 00;28;49;22 Cary Hall So the website, once again, VFW Mortgage Assistance. All right, let's talk a little bit about what the future holds, Patrick, and then the grassroots advocacy that we see going on now, a lot of which is due to you guys. So let's start with that. 00;28;50;23 - 00;29;11;01 Patrick Murray So what we're looking for for the next Congress and what we're going to make kind of our next big mission now that pact act is kind of in our rearview mirror is transition. Transition is something that every single service member goes through. Everybody at some point has to get out of the military. About 200,000 people go through that process every year. 00;29;11;09 - 00;29;36;06 Patrick Murray We've learned that a smooth, positive transition can set people up for success and a bad one can have negative impacts for years to come. There's also an epidemic right now, a veteran suicide. One of the groups that is more heavily affected by that are troops. That transition 6 to 12 months out. So recently separated veterans are at a higher are more susceptible to veteran suicide. 00;29;36;06 - 00;29;50;12 Patrick Murray So that's why we're really focusing on transition, making sure that everybody at the point of transition has signed up for VA care if eligible and is utilizing VA benefits such as the home loan or GI Bill, things like that. 00;29;51;00 - 00;30;11;07 Cary Hall You know, and go back to that suicide thing for a minute because I've done some I've done some mental health shows, actually, quite a few of them. In fact, Ryan Lefever, who is the broadcaster for the Kansas City Royals, I've been doing it for over 20 years, did a fantastic show with us on mental health and the challenges that he had and a book that he wrote called Shame on Me. 00;30;11;07 - 00;30;22;08 Cary Hall And he talks about that. But one of the things that we talked about was the rate of suicides among veterans coming back out of Iraq. And Afghanistan was one of the highest we've ever seen. And it's still going on. Am I right or wrong about that? 00;30;23;02 - 00;30;46;09 Patrick Murray It is. We've put a lot of resources into veteran suicide and haven't seen substantive changes in the numbers over the years. What we're looking to do is get smarter about that, learn exactly who is being affected by which generations are they utilizing VA care, they utilizing VA benefits? What is their financial situation? What's their socioeconomic situation? What's their mental health situation? 00;30;46;09 - 00;30;50;19 Patrick Murray We want to learn as much as we possibly can so we can target our efforts a little bit better. 00;30;51;00 - 00;31;15;24 Cary Hall Yeah, and you know, that's interesting because, you know, you've got people out there listening to this, their family member, they've got a young veteran or a veteran transition back out of out of Iraq, Afghanistan. And they they recognize they're having trouble. This would be an area where it would be the smart thing to do would be to reach out to you guys from the Web site VFW dot org slash assistance, find a local service officer and have a conversation with them. 00;31;15;24 - 00;31;21;12 Cary Hall Right. And find out what can be done to prevent this from becoming more and more of a problem. 00;31;22;01 - 00;31;41;14 Patrick Murray Absolutely. And one of the things that we believe the VFW can do in that in that arena is provide the sense of purpose. A lot of folks who die by suicide have expressed that they've lost that sense of purpose. That's why the VFW exists, not only there to help get the care and benefits you've earned, but also provide that sense of purpose, that sense of camaraderie. 00;31;41;19 - 00;31;53;01 Patrick Murray Joining organizations like the VFW. If the VFW isn't in your town, find someone else to join, but continue to have that sense of purpose. Join the VFW and continue with a mission. 00;31;53;11 - 00;32;11;11 Cary Hall You know, it's interesting, you with us, you know, you know, we got an airplane. We flew for 13 hours and we were home, you know, one one day you're out, you know, humping a rice patty with with with ACR 14, a German Shepherd dog. And the next day you're home. You know what it was? It was different World War Two. 00;32;11;11 - 00;32;24;20 Cary Hall Those guys came back by ship. Most of them, you know, they had time to, you know, kind of wind down. It wasn't that way. And it's the same thing in Iraq and Afghanistan. These guys are out there running combat missions, doing all the things they're doing. And then they catch an airplane, they come home and they're back home. 00;32;24;21 - 00;32;27;16 Cary Hall It's like, What the hell am I doing here? 00;32;27;16 - 00;32;47;28 Patrick Murray Right? It could be it can be eye opening. It can be a jarring experience. And that's why there are the the VFW has service officers actually on bases, not just in the states that I told you about. We're on 24 major military installations that can help people sign up for the care and benefits while they're still wearing the uniform. 00;32;48;04 - 00;32;51;08 Patrick Murray We think that will help ease that transition burden. 00;32;51;19 - 00;32;59;26 Cary Hall Wow. That and see, that is a very important piece of information. So you actually have VFW service officers on 24 of the bases around the country. 00;33;00;13 - 00;33;12;11 Patrick Murray Yes. We are there to help the men and women. It we call it our pre discharge representatives to make sure there's a lot of things that they don't realize they can enroll for and some even begin utilizing while still in uniform. 00;33;12;17 - 00;33;27;07 Cary Hall So, you know, that's something I had no idea, you know, was available. And I'm and I'm willing to bet, you know, a lot of, you know, you've got a son or a daughter still in I've got a couple of friends that, you know, one of them has got. His son is still in the Navy and is a pilot. 00;33;28;10 - 00;33;47;27 Cary Hall So those those people would it would be very much to their advantage to sit down with the service officer and just say, hey, I'm getting out, I need help with this or I need help with this transition. You know what's available for me in terms of employment, you know, but, you know, if you're married, you want you know, you're thinking you've got a family, you're starting a family. 00;33;47;27 - 00;34;03;19 Cary Hall You want a house. You've got, you know, to learn about the you know, the loan programs, the other programs that are out there. You mentioned a couple of those education programs. Go back to those again because you talked about the two different kinds of loans or education programs that are out there for veterans. Patrick So. 00;34;03;28 - 00;34;29;11 Patrick Murray So the VA home loan is zero money down normally very good rates right now in the housing market. Everybody was struggling with, you know, how everything developed over the past two years with the world getting flipped upside down but being home loan zero money down. If you rate a waiver of those funding fees, that can be tens of thousands of dollars that men and women save by utilizing the VA home loan. 00;34;30;00 - 00;34;50;05 Patrick Murray That GI Bill is essentially paying for your whether it's school, whether it's, you know, four year institution, higher learning or a lot of training certificates and licensure. And they pay you a housing stipend to go to school. Those are two fantastic readjustment benefits that VA offers and we encourage everybody to utilize. 00;34;50;08 - 00;35;08;25 Cary Hall Patrick, thank you for joining us today. This has been a great show with a lot of information. I know it's going to help a lot of people it live on on the podcast platforms for all of you out there. Again, that is Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker, tune in, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Pandora, Stitcher, SoundCloud and YouTube. It's there for everybody if you want to tell somebody to go up and listen to it. 00;35;08;25 - 00;35;27;05 Cary Hall And now I leave you with this thought from Dr. Martin Luther King. Americans must learn to live together as brothers and sisters, or we will surely perish together as fools. Truer words were never spoken. Thank you for listening to America's health care advocate broadcasting here on the HIA Radio Network coast to coast across the USA. Goodbye, America.