Latest news with #PromisetoAddressComprehensiveToxins
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Veteran enrollment fair to take place in DuBois
CLEARFIELD COUNTY, Pa. (WTAJ) — An enrollment fair to help veterans sign up for healthcare, file claims and provide any assistance is set to take place in DuBois. The veteran enrollment fair will occur on Saturday, May 10, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the DuBois Outpatient Clinic (5690 Shaffer Road, DuBois). The event is being held by the James E. Van Zandt VA Medical Center. U.S. Army Veteran in Centre County receives free roof replacement Veterans are encouraged to bring their DD214 and insurance information to the fair. Specialists, officers and representatives will be at the fair to help veterans enroll in VA healthcare and file service-connected disability claims. Representatives from services like women's health, mental health and telehealth will also be there. Veterans who may fall under the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxins (PACT) Act of 2022 are also strongly encouraged to come and apply. This act allows millions of eligible veterans to apply directly for VA care, without needing to apply for VA benefits first. The PACT Act covers veterans from Vietnam, the Gulf War, the Iraq War and the Afghanistan War. It also covers those who were deployed for support operations for the Global War on Terror. The medical center will be hosting other events throughout the year, including more enrollment fairs, and you can keep up to date with them on the James E. Van Zandt VA Medical Center Facebook page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State and national labor leaders highlight outsized impact federal cuts have on veterans
Maine AFL-CIO President Cynthia Phinney (center) and National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler held a listening session with Maine workers on April 30, 2025. (Photo courtesy of Andy O'Brien/ Maine AFL-CIO) When Scott Surette left the U.S. Marine Corps after serving in the Gulf War, with tours in Iraq and Kuwait, he took a job at the U.S. Postal Service. Like millions of other veterans, he was drawn to the stability of federal employment and benefits, including the military buy back program that allows veteran workers to count military service as a credit towards their retirement. Now, he says, 'the contract we make as a country with veterans is currently being broken.' During a news conference in Augusta on Tuesday, Surette, who serves as president of Branch 122 of the National Postal Mailhandlers Union Local 301, spoke alongside state and national union leaders who highlighted the disproportionate impact that federal cuts will have on veterans. National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said she's travelled the country to hear from workers impacted by federal cuts. Asked about what she's heard from union members who supported President Donald Trump, she said that his recent executive order that ended collective bargaining rights for federal unions was a wake up call for many. 'And so whether you're in the federal sector, public sector, the private sector, this injury to one is an injury to all is really starting to take hold within our labor movement,' Shuler said. 'And I think working people broadly see what's on the horizon.' Cynthia Phinney, president of the Maine AFL-CIO, pointed out that with an estimated 106,000 veterans, Maine has the highest concentration of any state in the nation. And nationally, roughly one in three federal workers is a veteran. She said widespread federal worker layoffs, including the Trump administration's reduction in force plan to return staffing at the Department of Veterans Affairs to 2019 levels, which could cut more than 80,000 jobs, is a 'betrayal of the promise we made to men and women in uniform.' Pointing out those layoffs would amount to 15% of the total staff of the VA, Surette said, 'We know what that will mean. It'll mean delays in veterans seeking care. It will mean delays in receiving benefits. It'll mean harm to veterans. It'll mean a decline in the quality of care veterans receive. It will mean a promise broken. And as a veteran, that is just plain wrong.' Liz Harkins, who works in the Veterans Benefits Administration and serves as tri-state president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2604, representing more than 1,600 employees across New England, said VA employees are 'essential workers' who deliver critical health care, essential benefits and other services to 'ensure that every veteran receives what they have rightfully earned.' She said since the 2022 signing of the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxins (or PACT) Act, which expanded health care coverage and benefits for veterans exposed to toxic substances like Agent Orange and open-air burn pits, the agency has seen an 'unprecedented surge' in the number of veterans being served. Noting that VA staff are 'already operating under staffing constraints,' Harkins said the proposed layoffs 'will have devastating consequences,' causing further delays in both health care and processing services. The event Wednesday came on the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. It also marked the conclusion of a two-week long listening session organized by the national AFL-CIO. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
