Strike On Berlin
by Anthony Saunders
In the first daylight bombing of Berlin, de Havilland Mosquitos of 105 Squadron leave the target area after attacking the Haus des Rundfunks (Broadcasting House) on 30th January 1943, disrupting a major speech by Hermann Goering.
[Source: http://www.brooksart.com/Strikeonberlin.html Mar 2014 ++]
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USS Arizona Memorial Stamp ► Priority Mail Express $19.99 stamp
The U.S. Postal Service on 16 MAR honored the tranquil shrine that pays tribute to the 1,177 sailors aboard the USS Arizona who lost their lives Dec. 7, 1941, with the dedication of a Priority Mail Express $19.99 stamp. “Today, nearly 100 years to the day that the Navy laid the keel to begin construction of the Arizona, we gather to pay tribute to its final resting spot,” said U.S. Postal Service Information Technology Vice President John Edgar in dedicating the stamp. “Not everyone will have an opportunity to visit Hawaii and see this memorial in person. But with this stamp, they’ll be able to see what it looks like and be reminded of what it stands for. ”
 
The stamp artwork features an illustration of the white concrete memorial on the Hawaiian island of Oahu rising above the sunken ship in the shape of a bridge. Depicted under a sunny sky and bright clouds with an American flag fluttering overhead, the memorial is mirrored by its own reflection on the water below. Designed by art director Phil Jordan of Falls Church, VA, the stamp showcases the work of illustrator Dan Cosgrove of Chicago, IL. The USS Arizona Memorial Priority Mail Express stamp is available in sheets of 10 and also may be purchased individually.
Customers have 60 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at local Post Offices, at usps.com/stamps or by calling 800-STAMP-24. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes to themselves or others and place them in larger envelopes addressed to: USS Arizona Memorial Cancellations, Marketing Department, 3600 Aolele Street Honolulu, HI 96820-9661. After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark up to a quantity of 50. For more than 50, there is a 5-cent charge per postmark. All orders must be postmarked by May 13, 2014. The Postal Service also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog online at usps.com/shop or by calling 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-782-6724 or writing to: U.S. Postal Service, Catalog Request, PO Box 219014, Kansas City, MO 64121-9014
“Let this stamp serve as a small reminder of the sacrifices made by the brave sailors who gave their lives here,” added Edgar. “Let this stamp achieve the same goal as the memorial it depicts — to always remember the Arizona.”
Scheduled to join Edgar in dedicating the stamp were U.S. Sen. (ret.) Daniel K. Akaka; U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Richard Williams, USN; Hawaii State Rep. K. Mark Takai; World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument Superintendent Paul DePrey; and U.S. Postal Service Honolulu District Manager Greg Wolny. “The USS Arizona Memorial stamp will help Americans remember the toll of war, the sacrifice of our service members and the end of conflict,” said DePrey. “The memorial is an iconic structure symbolizing both loss and contemplation. By dedicating this stamp, we are continuing to bear witness to history.” [Source: http://about.usps.com/news/national-releases/2014/pr14_014.htm Mar 2014 ++ ]
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Selfridge Military Air Museum ► Overview
The Selfridge Military Museum and Air Park is located on Selfridge Air National Guard Base, accessible by vehicle only through the Main Gate at the intersection of M-59 and Jefferson Avenue. It contains over $7,000,000 worth of displays including a full-scale historically accurate replica of a World War I fighter plane, the SPAD XIII, a ¾-scale historically accurate replica of the Wright Brothers first aircraft, the Wright Flyer”, an interactive cutaway and motorized World War II aircraft engine, an interactive Air Traffic Control radar display, an extensive display of original aviation art produced by noted aviation artists, a Korean War era "Jeep", and four aircraft cockpit trainers: a modern F-16 "Fighting Falcon", a Vietnam-era A-7 “Corsair II”, a World War II LINK trainer that guests can actually sit inside, and a functional LINK trainer that can be operated only by appointment and by qualified individuals.
 
Museum displays show a wide variety of military memorabilia including weapons, aircraft engines, military uniforms, military aircraft models, and photographs spanning the almost 100 year history of the Base. The Air Park contains 33 full-size vintage military aircraft from World War I to the present day plus an assortment of military vehicles and missiles. Two new aircraft were brought into the Air Park recently: an F-89 “Scorpion” and a T-6 “Texan” scheduled to be displayed in the summer of 2014. The large C-130A "Hercules" and P-3 "Orion" aircraft in the Air Park can be opened up to visitors when weather and the availability of docents permit. Photographs of the interior and exterior displays are permitted for private non-commercial use only.
The Museum and Air Park are accessible by vehicle only through the Main Gate at the intersection of M-59 and Jefferson Avenue. It is a private non-profit organization located on a military installation that is staffed entirely by volunteers and receives no federal or state funding for the operation and maintenance of its facilities and displays. Admission is $4.00 per guest over the age of 12 and $3.00 for children between 4 and 12 years of age with a minimum donation of $25.00 for all by-appointment tours. General public hours of operation are1200 to 1630 on Saturdays, Sundays, Independence Day and Memorial Day, from April 5th through October 26th. They will be CLOSED during the 2014 Selfridge Air Show on September 6th and 7th due to traffic flow considerations. The Museum and Air Park can also be opened by appointment at other times throughout the year by calling 586-239-5035. Further information can be found at http://www.selfridgeairmuseum.org, by mail (Selfridge Military Air Museum, 27333 C St, Bldg 1011, Selfridge ANGB MI 48045), by phone (586-239-5035), or by e-mail (info@selfridgeairmuseum.org). [Source: Selfridge Military Air Museum News Release 16 Mar 2014 ++]
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Left to right: Sarah Emma Edmonds, Cathay Williams, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, Irene Kinne Englund, Eileen Collins
VA is celebrating Women’s History Month with a look at some fascinating women Veterans who were unwilling to accept the conventions of their day. Following are 5 and their remarkable achievements.
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Sarah Emma Edmonds joined the United States Army to “fight for her country” in the Civil War. She disguised her sex and used the name Frank Thompson. A nurse in the Second Volunteers of the United States Army, she was unique because she able to remain in the army for several years and was successful as a Union spy, while impersonating a man.
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Cathay Williams, born in Independence Mo., was the first African American female to enlist, serving in the United States Army as William Cathay. She was a Buffalo Soldier, passing herself off as a man. She survived smallpox and several other illnesses. She was one of the first women to enlist in the Army and was the first African American woman to do so.
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Dr. Mary Edwards Walker volunteered for the Union Army as a civilian nurse, as the Army had no female surgeons. She was finally awarded a commission as a “Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon,” becoming the first-ever female U.S Army surgeon. She often crossed battle lines to treat the injured civilians and was captured by Confederate troops and arrested as a spy. She was released and went on to supervise orphanages, become a writer and lecturer, advocating for women’s rights. Walker is the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor.
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Irene Kinne Englund was born in El Paso, Texas. She piloted military aircraft during World War II as a member of the Women Air Force Service Pilots. She transported medical patients, ferried military aircraft and towed aerial gunnery targets. Because she was such a skilled pilot, she was one of the few women to be awarded Veteran status by the military.
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Eileen Collins: an inspiration to many young women reaching for the stars. Irene Kinne Englund was born in El Paso, Texas. She piloted military aircraft during World War II as a member of the Women Air Force Service Pilots. She transported medical patients, ferried military aircraft and towed aerial gunnery targets. Because she was such a skilled pilot, she was one of the few women to be awarded Veteran status by the military. Eileen Collins grew up reading about famous pilots such as Amelia Earhart and other women pilots who inspired her to earn a pilot’s license. During Operation Grenada in 1983, she flew evacuated medical students and their families out of Grenada. In 1998, Eileen Collins became the first Woman Space Shuttle Commander. She is an inspiration to many young women who are also reaching for the stars.
[Source: VA News | Hans Petersen | 10 Mar 2014 ++]
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WWII Prewar Events ► Taking Shelter Madrid Dec 1936
Scores of families are seen taking refuge underground on a Madrid subway platform, on Dec. 9, 1936, as bombs are dropped by Franco's rebel aircraft overhead.
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Vietnam Veterans Memorial Update 13 ► 2014 Ceremonies
The 2014 schedule of ceremonies to be held by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation (VVMF) is as follows. These ceremonies are free and open to the public. More information on ceremonies and events can be found at
http:www.vvmf.org/events:
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Name Additions: Sunday, May 11, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. -- Ceremony is normally held on Mother’s Day each year. Names of veterans that have met the Department of Defense criteria of having sustained wounds in Vietnam from which they eventually perished, are unveiled on the black granite of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC
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Reading of the Names of Post 9/11 Heroes: Saturday, May 24, 2014 at 9:00 am -- Names are of each and every American service member who has made the ultimate sacrifice since the attack on Sept. 11, 2001. Americans from across the nation will join together to read the names of these heroes in the order they were taken from us.
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Memorial Day: Monday, May 26, 2014 at 1 p.m. at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
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In Memory Weekend: Friday, June 13, through Sunday June 15, 2014 - - The In Memory program honors those who died as a result of the Vietnam War, but whose deaths do not fit the Department of Defense criteria for inclusion upon the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. It is a ceremony to pay tribute to these men and women who sacrificed so much for their country. The ceremony is held on Flag Day.
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Father’s Day Rose Remembrance Ceremony: Sunday, June 15, 2014 at 8:00 a.m. -- Every year on Father's Day, volunteers join sons and daughters of those whose names are inscribed on The Wall and affix long-stemmed roses with messages of love and honor, sent from across the country to those lost in the war. Each message is read aloud and each rose is touched to the loved one's name on The Wall before finally being placed at the base of the Memorial.
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Veterans Day: Tuesday, November 11, 2014 at 1 p.m. at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
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Christmas Tree Ceremony at The Wall: Sunday, December 14, 2014 at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial -- Before Christmas each year, the Memorial Fund staff and volunteers decorate a tree at the apex of The Wall. The tree is decorated with thousands of holiday messages sent to the Memorial Fund to honor those who served with the U.S. Armed Forces in Vietnam and other military conflicts and their families.
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Vietnam Veterans Memorial Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon: Date to be determined -- Each year, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund honors the National Park Service volunteers at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. These volunteers dedicate their time to assisting more than four million annual visitors at The Wall.
[Source: https://us-mg204.mail.yahoo.com/neo/launch?.partner=sbc&.rand=6gdujq6a8e555 Mar 2014 ++]
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Military History Anniversaries ► 1-30 Apr
Significant events in U.S. Military History are listed in the attachment to this Bulletin titled, “Military History Anniversaries 1-30 Apr”.
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Spanish American War Image 36 ► Dinner (1898)
Company D Florida volunteers at dinner (1898)
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Faces of WAR (WWII) ► Washington DC Parade May 1942
 
Army Parade Washington DC, Memorial Day, May 1942 (it's quite evident in this series of photos just how stressed, concerned and worried the country was at this early stage of the war, you really don't see too many smiles from those in attendance. But at the same time you can also sense parity and patriotism.)
 
*Health Care*
   
TRICARE Region West Update 08 ► DocGPS App
DocGPS Mobile App Helps You Find Care on the Go Need to find a doctor? DocGPS, a new mobile app from UnitedHealthcare Military & Veterans, can help you find TRICARE network providers throughout the West Region. DocGPS enables beneficiaries in the TRICARE West Region to locate the nearest TRICARE network civilian health care providers and facilities (including urgent care facilities and hospitals) within a 100-mile radius of their current location. The app provides flexibility and convenience in locating care while on the go. With DocGPS, you can quickly and easily search by facility or provider name, provider specialty, city, state or ZIP code. With a single tap, you can also find the provider or facility office locations on a map, get detailed directions and call the facility to schedule an appointment. This innovative technology gives you easier access to health care. DocGPS is compatible with most smart phones including iPhones and select Android devices. Visit the Apple AppStore or Google Play Store to download these free apps. [Source: TRICARE Health Matters 2014 Issue 2 Mar 2014 ++]
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TRICARE Service Centers Update 01 ► Going Virtual 1 April
Walk-in service at TRICARE service centers in the United States is ending 1 APR. TRICARE officials said the change reflects "the always growing number of TRICARE beneficiaries who most often now turn to a laptop or cell phone when they have questions about their health care." TRICARE patients have a wide variety of secure, electronic customer service options available through the TRICARE website at http://www.tricare.mil, officials said. The "I want to ..." feature puts everything beneficiaries want to do online right on the website's front page, they added. "For many years now, TRICARE beneficiaries have been taking advantage of our convenient, 24/7 online customer service options," said Army Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Richard Thomas, director of the Defense Health Agency's health care operations directorate. "All of the services they received at their local [TRICARE service center] are available either online or through our toll-free call centers in the convenience of their own homes. We are committed to providing the highest level of support to all of our beneficiaries."
With the end of walk-in service on 1 APR, beneficiaries who want get personal assistance can call their regional health care contractor for enrollment and benefit help, officials said. All health care, pharmacy, dental and claims contact information is located at http://www.tricare.mil/contactus. Beneficiaries can get 24/7 TRICARE benefit information at the TRICARE website, and they can make enrollment, primary care manager and other changes at http://www.tricare.mil/enrollment. Rather than driving to an installation service center, TRICARE beneficiaries can even combine high-tech with low-tech by downloading health care forms online and sending them through the mail, officials noted. Pointing out that walk-in service is the most expensive customer-service option, officials said eliminating walk-in service at the centers will save the Defense Department an estimated $250 million over five years. The change does not affect TRICARE benefits or health care delivery, they emphasized. [Source: TRICARE News Release 24 Mar 2014 ++]
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Traumatic Brain Injury Update 34 ► Blast Gauge Potential
In 2011, Scott Featherman was in Kandahar, Afghanistan as a scout platoon leader with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 101st Airborne Division. He patrolled on foot, and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) filled the donkey paths that crisscrossed the wadis and hills. “I was hit several times when I was over,” he says, “and you have no clue if you’re hurt. You get back up, say “Am I good? Looks good.” And then you go back out.” Was Featherman really “good,” though? How can you tell? If he wasn’t bleeding out, had all of his fingers and toes, knew what day it was, and had no nausea or headache, was he good? A recently released report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) says maybe not. Surveying the current research, the IOM found large gaps in our knowledge of the medical impacts of explosive blasts. Experts continue studying the damage caused by these detonations, but the magnitude of their impact on American service members is enormous and beyond question—IEDs, small often remotely triggered bombs, have killed more troops serving overseas than any other kind of attack.
Explosive blasts have caused 75% of the injuries and deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan, and according to a 2008 RAND Corporation study (PDF), 20% of combat veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have come home with some level of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) from these events. In previous wars many of these soldiers would have died. Advancements in armor and medical care have saved their lives but left them struggling with these residual injuries. Just as many, however, are in Featherman’s category; their gut says the IED blast they walked away from must have cause some harm, but they have no way of knowing what hidden damage may have been done and no objective way to measure it. To help close this knowledge gap, the IOM report recommends that the military “should develop and deploy a system that measures essential components of blast and characteristics of the exposure environment.” But that’s easier said than done, so let’s begin with a deceptively simple question: How much blast can the average soldier withstand? To learn more on this and of a ‘Blast Guage’ that has been developed to help evaluate the degree of exposure, refer to the attachment to this Bulletin titled, “Revolutionizing TBI Diagnosis”. [Source: US. News | Brian Caster | 23 Mar 2014 ++]
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TRICARE Prime Update 28 ► Consolidated Tricare Plan
Tricare Prime, the military’s managed care option for 5.5 million beneficiaries who enroll for a modest fee to be guaranteed timely access to primary care, would cease to exist within a few years under the “Consolidated Tricare” plan proposed in the fiscal 2015 defense budget. Networks of care providers, built for Prime, would not go away and neither would their military patients, say architects of the plan. Instead, patients and providers would see Tricare transformed into a preferred provider network with higher fees and more choice. Patients could stay with current providers or exercise the freedom of a preferred provider system to choose their own physicians. Those who opt to find new physicians would receive discounts on fees if they select doctors who remain in the Tricare network.
Families whose care is managed by military providers under a “medical home” concept could stay empanelled there, but would not be “enrolled,” as under Prime where every referral to a specialist needs pre-authorization. The end of Prime, consolidation of Tricare as a preferred provider plan, plus charts of higher fees and co-pays, are highlights of the plan to transform the military health benefit, as delivered to Congress in March. Fee increases would be more broad than deep, with some surprising exceptions. For example, current Tricare for Life beneficiaries would be exempt from the first-ever TFL enrollment. Only retirees and family members who age into TFL after the fee takes effect would be impacted, protecting the generation most often promised free health care for life. By fiscal 2016, new TFL users would be charged one percent of gross retired pay but no more than $300 a year ($400 for flag officers). The fee would rise to two percent of retired pay by 2018, capped at $600 ($800 for flag officers). Caps thereafter would be raised yearly to match inflation. Also exempt from most fee increases would be medically retired service members and survivors of members who die while on active duty.
One controversial change would be an annual “participation fee” for most retirees under 65 to stay eligible for military health care. As of Jan. 1, 2016, when consolidated Tricare is to take effect, the participation fee would be set at $286 per individual, $572 for a family. Those amounts simply would match enrollment fees under Prime if had continued. The participation fee and size inspired one critic to describe consolidated Tricare as “Tricare Standard with an enrollment fee.” That description is off mark, said Army Maj. Gen. Richard W. Thomas, director of healthcare operations for the Defense Health Agency, because it ignores the “robust, high quality Tricare network of providers” that DHA vows to sustain, and wouldn’t have to do so under Tricare Standard. “Beneficiaries will have access to tools we have brought online over the last decade or so, to include Tricare Online which allows them to make appointments, email military providers over a secure system, and obtain prescription drugs. And importantly, beneficiaries who use military treatment facilities or network care will have no deductible and substantially lower costs than those who select the non-network, civilian only care [of] Tricare Standard today,” Thomas said.
With Consolidated Tricare, beneficiaries could keep their providers and see “slightly increased copayments for care, but these remain below Standard and below most private health insurance cost-sharing levels.” Over the past eight years, every Pentagon plan to corral health care costs focused exclusively on raising fees, co-pays and deductibles, with the biggest pops aimed at working-age military retirees. The Bush and Obama administrations even used the same arguments, telling Congress its refusal to lift a freeze beneficiary cost-shares from 1996 had made the triple option of Tricare Prime (managed care), Extra (preferred provider discounts) and Tricare Standard (traditional fee-for-service insurance) unsustainable. Despite such pleas, lawmakers still blocked substantial fee increases, allowing only modest enrollment fee hikes for retirees enrolled in Prime and higher co-pays on prescription drugs, particularly at retail outlets. This year Defense leaders adopted a new playbook for Tricare reform, desperate to find immediate health care savings because of budget sequestration and to support the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission. The Joint Chiefs have joined in backing fee increases that are less severe than DoD sought earlier, but are accompanied by profound changes to the Tricare benefit. Total projected savings are $9.3 billion over the first five years, with almost $4 billion of that from benefit consolidation rather than fee hikes.
Active duty members would continue to receive priority access to care at no cost. Other beneficiaries still would see their lowest costs on base, followed by preferred provider care, and then care from outside the network. A look at co-pays planned for outpatient visits touches on several controversies. Most retirees under age 65 and their dependents would face co-pays for the first time at base clinics or hospitals: $10 for a primary care visit; $20 for specialty care, $30 for urgent care and $50 for an emergency room visit, a move intended to curb abuse of ERs to receive routine care. The same working-age retirees and family members would face co-pays $10 to $25 higher using preferred providers. To use out-of-network providers, active duty family members would pay 20 percent of allowable costs and working-age retirees and families 25 percent, as under Standard. Working-age retirees would pay the annual Tricare participation fee even if they use employer health insurance as first payer. “But we may make exceptions to that,” said a senior DHA official. Higher prescription drug co-pays are the same as proposed by the Defense Department last year.
Advocates for active duty families worry about a disparity in out-of-pocket costs between those who would have access to military facilities at no charge and those assigned far from base, or who can’t gain access to military care, and would face higher co-pays or even pay Standard-like cost shares. A DHA official said some co-pay relief is planned, at least for members in remote assignments with families. They would have pay only network co-pays even if they had to use out-of-network providers. To do more for them, he said, would be unfair to other families also facing higher co-pays. [Source: Stars & Stripes | Tom Philpott | 13 Mar 2014 ++]
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