Legal Help for Veterans blog.
News and Press
If you ask a service member what keeps them going on a morning without much sleep or a late guard shift, you might expect to get an answer like “Sense of Duty” or “Motivation.” The popular answer, however, is generally coffee. Coffee has been an integral part of the United States Military since before the […]
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News and Press
During a Senate confirmation hearing, Robert Wilkie, the nominee to head the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), testified he is against the privatization of VA care and pledged to better integrate outside health systems. Wilkie, who most recently served as the VA’s acting secretary, said if he is confirmed to lead the expansive federal […]
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News and Press
Suffering any level of traumatic brain injury – mild, moderate or severe – may make a person more susceptible to developing Parkinson’s disease, new research shows. According to the study, published in Neurology, the American Academy of Neurology’s medical journal, after a mild injury, often a concussion, the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease increased 56 […]
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News and Press
President Donald Trump selected Robert Wilkie, the acting secretary of veterans affairs, as his nominee to head the expansive federal agency. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has not had a permanent secretary since March when Trump fired David Shulkin, the VA’s previous leader. Trump then nominated Dr. Ronny Jackson, the White House doctor, […]
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News and Press
Based on surveys administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, two veteran homes, located in Grand Rapids and Marquette, managed by the state of Michigan met all 231 standards for nursing home and domiciliary care. The distinction, a first for the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, comes two years after an audit panned the […]
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News and Press
Implementation of a 2018 law that gave veterans who had an other-than-honorable discharge from the military mental health benefits has been largely mishandled by the Department of Veterans Affairs. An expansion of a VA program that granted certain veterans with other-than-honorable discharges acute healthcare benefits during a crisis gives them eligibility for ongoing mental health […]
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Medical Issues / Disability, News and Press
Jim Fausone, Esq. RAND Corporation conducted a study comparing 135 VA health facilities to other health systems with similar characteristics. The VA systems graded similarly or better in the majority of categories analyzed. While the VA facilities performed well, the results also indicated a high amount of variation between individual facilities. Some facilities care for […]
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News and Press
Jim Fausone, Esq. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs approved funding from the VA State Veterans Home Construction Grant Program to build two new veterans homes in Michigan. One home will be constructed on the existing 90 acre property in Grand Rapids, and another at a location to be determined in Southeast Michigan. The VA […]
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News and Press
A part of the Veterans Home of California, the Pathway Home in Yountville, California is closing for an unspecified amount of time after employees were taken hostage by a gunman and killed. The home provided academic and vocational care for post-911 veterans in preparation for returning to the civilian world. The Pathway Home’s board of […]
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Medical Issues / Disability, News and Press, Veterans Law
Kristina Derro, Esq. For 19 years, lower court precedent has prevented veterans from obtaining disability benefits based on pain alone. The Department of Veterans Affairs has, until this federal holding, required that pain be attributed to a specific medical diagnosis. Going forward, veterans should be able to obtain disability benefits for pain that is related […]
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