As part of his fiscal 2011 budget request, President Obama again is asking to expand the number of disabled military retirees who are eligible for concurrent receipt of full veterans disability benefits and military retired pay.The proposal, outlined in an Office of Management and Budget document, would make all “medically retired” service members eligible for concurrent receipt by 2015.At issue is an ongoing effort launched by Congress in 2004 to gradually repeal a law dating to the late 19th century that required disabled military retirees to forfeit a dollar of military retired pay for every dollar received in veterans disability compensation.The OMB budget document does not provide further detail on the new proposal. But it appears to be a scaled-down reprise of a plan to expand concurrent receipt that the White House floated last year and that Congress did not approve.The first three years of that plan would have applied to service members who were given medical retirement short of the 20 years of service normally required to qualify for military retirement benefits. That group had not been included in previous concurrent receipt expansions.The last two years would have covered all veterans with disability ratings of less than 50 percent, no matter how many years they had served. Under current law, retirees with service-connected disabilities must have disability ratings of 50 percent or more to be eligible for concurrent receipt.The new proposal in the 2011 budget makes no specific mention of expanding concurrent receipt to veterans with disability ratings of less than 50 percent.
Visit link: Obama floats new concurrent receipt plan
Response to:
Budget plan has money for Concurrent Receipt
While it is good to see Chapter 61 retirees getting concurrent receipt, the proposal is largely bogus.
The proposal by the Obama administration, largely ignores the issue of concurrent receipt.
Here the administration is proposing concurrent receipt for Chapter 61 retirees, and saying that when the year 2015 comes all Chapter 61 retirees will get their “retirement pay”, and their “disability pay”.
Hot digity dog! Great headlines in the news for ignoring the true essence of the issue of concurrent receipt.
Last year the Obama administration dropped their original proposal to include “all” veterans left out of concurrent receipt. They did this by stating a bogus amount of over 40 billion dollars to cover all categories of veterans who are denied concurrent receipt. The actual cost to cover “all” veterans in every category is closer to the 20 billion dollar amount over a ten year period. The administration used the reasoning that they would cover the Chapter 61 retiree, because the cost to cover all retired disabled veterans was to great. That merits another hot digity dog!
For the real truth to be known, there are currently over 450,000 retired disabled veterans. under 50% disabled, who each month have their disability payment from the VA, deducted dollar for dollar, related to the percentage of disability from their retirement pay.
This is the group that was originally left out of the concurrent receipt legislation in 2004, when the Chapter 61 folks were not even in consideration.
The Veterans Disability commission recommended in their recommendations to the President and Congress, that concurrent receipt be enacted for the remaining veterans who do not receive the benefit. Their top priority was the retired disabled veteran who has served twenty or more years, having their disability deducted from their retirement pay on a monthly basis. The second priority was concurrent receipt for Chapter 61 retirees.
The current administration has twisted the logic of the commission, and placed Chapter 61 retirees before veterans who have served twenty or more years. It is good for the Chapter 61 veteran, but it is simply used as a ruse to ignore the validity of the true issue of concurrent receipt.
A real news flash needs to be sent to the new administration. Obama made a promise to support concurrent receipt, and end the veterans disability tax, for all retired disabled veterans. He made this promise in the AMVETS magazine. during an interview for the winter issue in 2009.
The president and his administration should be congratulated for their support of the issue of concurrent receipt, but their proposal does not go far enough to end the injustice of this issue.
A last point of interest would be the Presidents statement that he supports the military family, and veterans. He states: “Now they will be receiving both their military retirement, and their disability payment”. A very interesting subtitle to this would be: “Over 450,000 retired disabled veterans, who are under 50% disabled, have each served at least twenty years in the military, HAVE NEVER RECEIVED THEIR FULL RETIREMENT, as their disability is deducted from their retirement pay on a monthly basis.
What about the retired disabled veteran, under 50% disabled, who has served over twenty years, who is paying for his own disability, Mr. President?
In reviewing President Obama’s presentation of the retired disabled veterans, it seems that we are back on first base. The seperation of retired pay and disability pay have been an issue from the beganing and continue to make of fool out of all of us Retired Disabled Veterans.
I am assumming that Legislaters as well as the President feel that they are addressing a class of Kindergardeners. Well gentilmen I have a surprise for you, you are addressing a large group of veterans that have followed you from the beginning of your political careers and we will remember this on election day.
I hope that those of you with sons and daughters in the military never have to experience the thought of your childred having served their country and suffer a disabilitative stage during their service because by the time Mom or Dad act on it they will have to ask for assistance from some one else.
Have a good day and at the risk of being redundent “Freedom is not Free”.
We the Chapter # 61 Veterans were the Combat Veterans that did not quite get our names added to the Marble Wall of Honor. We took the Oath and put our lives on the line willing to make the Ultimate Sacrafice but did not quite make it.
We survived and many of Us are still Prisoners of the Vietnam War. Virtual Prisoners in our own homes as we are not functional and must depend on others to do what we can not do. It would be Fantastic to Receive what I know that I have earned but if He can not see fit to do that at least give us a Special Monthly Compensation so that We can Hire someone to take care of the essentials; Cooking Cleaning, Laundry and the Maintenance and upkeep of our Home and Grounds.
Sincearly and Respectfully
SSG Jewell Douglas Rowland
1500 Two lane Road
Bolton, Mississippi 39041
RA-14-709-029
Army Service 09/09/1960 to April 1972
Service with 1St, Cav, 1St. Infintary, 1St. 2Nd. and 3Rd. Armored and the 19Th. Combat Engineers.