Veterans Affairs

PERRY POINT, Md. -- At a time when the federal government is squeezing many social programs, the veterans medical center here, on a serene 400-acre campus on the Chesapeake Bay, has opened a new refuge for people like Stanford Avant.After his discharge from the Marine Corps, with which he served in Vietnam, Mr. Avant spent 25 tortured years "drinking and drugging," as he puts it, on the streets of Wilmington, Del.Now he is 46, and he has been at Perry Point since a sanctuary for homeless veterans opened here in September.

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has ordered a nationwide review of medical research at 115 veterans' hospitals and has halted some studies after investigators found serious violations of federal rules, including some that may have contributed to the deaths of patients. The Department of Veterans Affairs said it was investigating the deaths of patients in research projects at hospitals in Detroit; Albany, N.Y.; and Fargo, N.D. The department also said it had found "serious noncompliance" with federal rules at its hospitals in Pittsburgh; Providence, R.I.; Martinez, Calif.

After reading your recent article on efforts to reduce errors on disability claims by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, I find it sad but also somewhat amusing that Sen. Barbara Mikulski is making such a fuss about bringing better care to veterans in Baltimore ("The battle for Baltimore," Feb. 20). Senator Mikulski has been a career politician for more than 40 years, and she is now one of the most powerful members of Congress because of her seniority. Where was she all the time the VA was experiencing its nightmarish performance problems?

Fort Howard should be a place for military veterans to heal — not the site of new residential and retail development, residents of nearby communities said Tuesday. About 200 people turned out for a community meeting at the North Point-Edgemere Volunteer Fire Hall, and most opposed Fort Howard Development LLC's plans to build a 1,473-unit development on the waterfront site. Many said they wanted the site to be used for a long-term medical facility and housing for veterans only.

WASHINGTON -- Moved by reports of shoddy outpatient conditions and tangled bureaucracy at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other facilities, House lawmakers lined up yesterday to unanimously support a bill that promises to improve medical care for the nation's service members and veterans. The bipartisan measure, known as the Wounded Warriors Assistance Act, rocketed through the House of Representatives after its introduction two weeks ago. Of the 435 House members, 426 were on hand to support the bill, with some scrambling at the last minute to be counted in support of the troops.

WASHINGTON -- From an Army base in Germany, Gregory Sowers moved straight to a Baltimore sidewalk. For four years, he slept on the city's street corners and heating grates."

Keith Church left the Navy in 1974 after a two-year stint, worked for years as a maintenance mechanic and never considered asking for veterans benefits. But in December, Church, 54, was jobless, coping with health problems and on the brink of homelessness - "couch surfing" with friends, he says - when he turned to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for help. Within a few months, he moved into an apartment, thanks to a VA program that started in Maryland this year to help homeless veterans.

January 28, 2013 The Honorable Eric K. Shinseki Secretary U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 810 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20420-0001 Dear Secretary Shinseki: We are writing to express our continued frustration about the on-going and unresolved backlog of disability claims at the Veteran's Benefits Administration's Baltimore Regional Office. We request that you promptly provide us with an action plan to address this serious issue and assign a senior level official at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

Elaine Karp-Gelernter, a retired Veterans Affairs psychologist who was also a textile artist, died of complications from pneumonia March 20 at Sinai Hospital. The Mount Washington resident was 78. She was the daughter of Polish immigrants who ran a custom-tailored bridal shop in New York City. She grew up in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn and earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Brooklyn College. In 1952, she married Steve Karp, a psychologist. She and her family moved to Mount Washington in 1964.

Jim Nicholson's resignation last week after 2 1/2 years as secretary of veterans affairs was described as abrupt, but the wonder is that he lasted so long. A former real estate developer, Republican Party chairman and ambassador to the Vatican, Mr. Nicholson was overwhelmed by a hidebound bureaucracy unable to cope with the sheer size and complexity of its rapidly expanding client load. And he was no match for White House political bosses trying to hide the true cost of the Iraq war by shorting veterans' care.