MRGRG-MS - PMOAANET Legislative and Retiree Affairs Advisory 07-06
Since 03-04-06
From:
MRGRG-MS@yahoogroups.com [mailto:MRGRG-MS@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of Floyd Sears
Sent: Wednesday, March 01, 2006 8:22
PM
To: !MRGRG e-mail network
Cc: onenglander@cox.net
Subject: [MRGRG-MS] [Fwd: PMOAANET
Legislative & Retiree Affairs Advisory 07-06]
A pass-along from "CAPT
Owen Englander, USN, Ret."
Please respond to "onenglander@cox.net".
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PMOAANET Legislative & Retiree Affairs Advisory 07-06 |
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Date: |
Wed, 1 Mar 2006 16:24:20 -0600 |
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From: |
Owen Englander <onenglander@cox.net> |
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This is PMOAANET Legislative & Retiree Affairs Advisory 07-06 for Pensacola Chapter MOAA members, friends, and interested parties. This message has multiple protected addressees. Recipients are encouraged to pass this advisory along to anyone who might benefit from the contents whether or not they qualify for MOAA membership.
PMOAANET is an official function of the Pensacola Chapter, MOAA.
Among MOAA's top goals are elimination of the SBP-DIC Offset, reform of inequity in paid-up SBP status, and maintaining of the health care programs the military community was promised. The first two goals are long standing and have been the objects of Congressional activity. Other than some matters specific to VA programs the health care issues now brewing have come to a head only in the past year or so and are, thus far, White House/DoD driven. Congressional help will be needed.
To remind: S.185 dealt with both the SBP-DIC Offset and the adjustment of the SBP premium paid-up date to 01 October 2005; because of the way they were written it took two bills in the House (H.R. 808 and H.R. 968). As subscribers are aware, the Senate passed Sen. Bill Nelson's (D-FL) 11th hour amendment to enable the provisions of S.185, for consideration by the House-Senate Committee deliberating the FY2006 Defense Authorization Bill. Not only did the House not pass its own H.R. 808 and 968 but the Committee rejected Nelson's amendment. Comes now an opportunity to get things moving again.
ACTION: To get off top-dead-center budgetary "headroom" is needed. Sen. Nelson is now writing to the Senate Budget Committee requesting budgetary authority for the Senate Armed Service Committee to take action to end the SBP-DIC Offset (which impacts both retiree and ACDU death survivors). The authority sought would include enough budgetary discretion to permit moving up the date of paid-up SBP premiums for WW II/Korean War retirees. You support is needed: contact your Senators and ask them to sign-on to Sen. Nelson's letter. See below for a reminder on how to do that.
The House of Representatives is still a problem here. Of 253 House members cosponsoring the House bills that would have eliminated the Offset, when the bills hung up in Committee last year only 146 Representatives would vote for Rep. Chet Edwards’(D-TX) Discharge Petition. Now Edwards is again floating a Discharge Petition to get Rep. Henry Brown's (R-SC) H.R. 808 out of committee for a floor vote.
Rep. Jo Bonner (R-AL-01) didn't support H.R. 808 so, not surprisingly, he did not vote for Discharge. We are aware that Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL01), usually a great supporter of the military community, found reasons not vote for Discharge. Hopefully Rep. Bonner will come our way and Rep. Miller will vote for Discharge this time.
ACTION: We are uncertain what happens next in the House with regard to establishing equity in paid-up SBP premiums. But it is clear that grass-roots support is needed for Rep. Edward's action at this time.
Finally, PMOAANET subscribers must be well aware that DoD is pushing for a smorgasbord of increases in health care expenses which cut across age group and duty status lines. Some quotes from MOAA sum it up:
"The Department of Defense is proposing large hikes in health care fees for military retirees - increases of more than $1,000 per year in some cases.... Retail pharmacy copays would be increased by 67% for all beneficiaries, including active duty/Guard/Reserve families. Currently serving members who will spend a career in the military stand to lose the most on this issue, because they would pay more years of increased fees than any other group.... The Joint Chiefs of Staff are endorsing these fee increases, saying the budget savings are needed to help fund weapons and other needs." [Though it is probably fair to add that the Chiefs have been pushed to this position by an Administration that will not seek additional funding.]
ACTION: The military community needs to let its Congressional delegation know what they think of these big hits on the pocket-books of all hands.
How to do it:
You can phone your Senators' Washington offices by using MOAA's toll-free hot line to Capitol Hill (1-866-272-6622). Just ask the Capitol operator to connect you to your senators' offices.
You can write letters: Your Sen., United States Senate, Washington DC, 20510 or Your Rep., United States House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515, as appropriate.
You can go to http://capwiz.com/moaa/home/ which will get you to MOAA's Legislative Action Center/Action Alert. Follow the cues to send a MOAA-crafted communication on each of the action items discussed above.
Or go at it yourself: You can e-mail Sen. Martinez by going to his web site at http://Martinez.senate.gov and then click on “Contact Information” and then “E-mail Senator Martinez. A place will be provided for your message.
Using http://billnelson.senate.gov and a similar procedure you can reach Sen. Nelson. For our Alabama members, a similar procedure should get you to Sen. Sessions (http://sessions.senate.gov).
Sen. Shelby seems still seems to have an accessible e-mail address (senator@shelby.gov).
CAPT Owen Englander, USN, Ret. Chairman, Legislative & National Affairs, Pensacola Chapter MOAA