DoD against Medical Care for Military Retirees

Since 01-10-06

From: Waspscpo@aol.com [mailto:Waspscpo@aol.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 10, 2006 6:42 AM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: Fw: Floyd Sears http://mrgrg-ms.org/history14.html

My Groups | MRGRG-MS Main Page


Ladies and Gentlemen of the Military Retiree Grass Roots Group:

I strongly encourage you to review this exchange of e-mails between Paul Balaich and Jim Lokovic. Then I strongly encourage you to get geared up for another educate the Congress campaign using the Brown Bag tools that are already on the Internet.

DoD is getting ready to eat our lunch in reference to medical care, and anything else they can take away . It's an over used term, but it still applies. WE TAKE PART OR WE GET TAKEN APART.

As a side note... a short time ago I had back surgery which requires follow up physical therapy. Today, on my first visit, I was told that starting in January 2006 Medicare will pay a fixed amount for my physical therapy and if more care is needed I'll have to pay the rest of the cost out of my own pocket.

These people that I'm dealing with don't know, and probably couldn't care less, that I'm a military retiree and that I was told that if I served for 20 years in the military and retired, I would receive free medical care for myself and my eligible dependents, at military treatment facilities, for as long as I and my eligible dependents live.

And, in spite of all the information we have fed to the Congress I don't think they fully understand. We gotta tell them again and again. At 75 I'm very tired and I want to quit, but I know that nobody is going to do this job for me so I must continue.

May God have mercy on those folks that are serving in the military today and will become military retirees later on down the road. History will repeat itself.

Floyd Sears
Brown Project Manager -
http://mrgrg-ms.org/history14.html


-------- Original Message --------

Subject: JCS Endorse Draconian Tricare Fees
Date: Mon, 9 Jan 2006 19:18:56 -0700
From: Paul Balaich
To: Col Dan


GRASS ROOTERS: I would like to share with you a message that I got from Jim Lokovic, CMSgt (Retired), Deputy Executive Directror & Director Military & Government Relations, Air Force Sergeants Association, concerning the indorsement of Increased Tricare Fees by the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The message that was sent was also sent to TREA, NAUS & MOAA and to Grass Rooters in New Mexico.

Chief Lokovic's message was prompt which was appreciated. However, the central question regarding AFSA involvement in a leadership role was not answered. This is understandable as I believe he doesn't have the authority to make a committment regarding a direction AFSA would take on this issue. I have no idea if my recommendations would go any further. I have not had a response from TREA, NAUS or MOAA.

As previously stated, this issue is of critical importance and EVERYONE needs to step forward in any effort to derail the onerous tax DoD wants to place on the backs of former career military veterans. Paul (Alamogordo).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Original Message -----
From: Jim Lokovic
To: Paul Balaich
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2006 12:10 PM
Subject: RE: JCS Endorse Draconian Tricare Fees


Paul, The effort must continue. However, the fact that the matter hasn’t moved despite the level of “cosponsorship” says something about the sincerity of those who sign on as co-sponsors.

We ran into a similar situation on Concurrent Receipt; they were happy to gain political capital by signing onto the legislation; but when it came down to it, the cosponsors did what the party told them to do, they bailed. In this case, the Administration, through DoD, is adamantly opposed to improving any retiree programs and, as I indicated in the earlier e-mail, they are directly targeting the funding of current military health care programs.

This is another example of the need to simply make it a sincere voting ultimatum for this fall. That is our best chance of moving the issue.

Jim Lokovic

From: Paul Balaich [mailto:alamogeezer@charter.net]
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2006 1:51 PM
To: Jim Lokovic
Cc: Gil Isley
Subject: Re: JCS Endorse Draconian Tricare Fees
Dear Chief Lakovic: Thank you for your reply. For the past five (5) years, the Retired Military Grass Roots Group have bombarded the Executive and Congress with letters, e-mail, telephone calls. letters to the editor and direct personal contact with members of Congress.

Currently the MRGRG has a letter campaign (Brown Bag Letters), ongoing to the Executive and Congress. I believe the count now exceeds over 50,000 letters. Yet, the Executive and Congress continues to ignore the issue of healthcare for former career military veterans and their families.

As an example, H. R. 602 and S. 407 with sufficient co-sponsors to pass the bill if brought to the floor of the House for a vote, the legislation is held hostage at the request of the Speaker of The House. Chief Lakovic, I am sure you are completely familiar with TFL/TFLRx.

Not until a highway billboard program and The 2002 White Paper (The founding purpose and top 2002 priority of the MRGRG to restore healthcare) was instituted by members of MRGRG, the healthcare issue was laying dead in the water. The outcome of these efforts was the passage of TFL/TFLRx. As previously stated:

"ALL former career military veterans need to mobilize and fight this issue head on NOW! Tomorrow is too late. Maybe NAUS, TREA, AFSA, MOAA or other similar veterans coalition organizations will step forward and volunteer as a clearing house organization to organize and spearhead a drive to stop DoD from adding another veterans TAX on the retired military veteran community."

Legislative bulletins to AFSA members and protest letters to members of Congress have proven not to work as has been shown by the lack of interest to bring legislation to the floor of the House and Senate for a up or down vote.

The MRGRG demonstrated to the Congress through the Billboard and White Paper program that their was sufficient numbers of voters that could and would affect their continued jobs in congress. In the political world, politicians react seriously to two things (1) Money, and (2) Voters.

As a member of AFSA for 37 years, I am thoroughly aware that our organization does become involved in partisan polititics. However, I also know that we can involve ourselves with issues that affect former career military veterans and active duty personnel.

Again, thank you for your response. Sincerely & In Comradeship:

Paul L. Balaich, MSgt USA/USAF 3/46 - 8/68 (Retired), 1528 Serrano, Alamogordo, NM 88310-3900.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

----- Original Message -----

From: Jim Lokovic

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