2018 Legislative Workshop and Storm the Hill Event
The EANGUS National Office is excited to host its annual Legislative Workshop and Storm the Hill Event on February 5-7, 2018 in Washington, D.C. This year, we will host a wide variety of new speakers and panel guests. A working agenda will be posted on the EANGUS website imminently. The website will also host numerous point papers to guide EANGUS members’ conversations on Capitol Hill. For those of you making appointments with your delegation, you can tell the Congressional Offices that you plan to discuss TRICARE Reserve Select expansion to eligible Federal Employees; 12304b; Rare Cancers; and H.R. 4508, the Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform (PROSPER) Act.
For scheduling purposes, please note that our Congressional Reception will take place on Tuesday, February 6th 1700-1900.
The PROSPER Act
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs, 730,000 veterans used the Post-9/11 GI Bill in Fiscal Year 2016. These student Veterans are an essential part of the country’s higher education system. Through sacrifice, each one of them earned the right to attend an accredited college or recognized program that effectively prepares them to achieve their goals in a chosen career. Too often student veterans are not provided the right information and become targets of low-performing institutions. This systemic problem is being addressed by EANGUS. This bill takes a comprehensive and fresh look at the accountability structure across higher education with a new, enhanced accountability structure which features an institutional risk-sharing component that will force institutions to focus on student completion and require them to share in the financial risk of non-completion on both students and taxpayers by shifting the burden of repaying a meaningful amount of federal loans when a student withdraws before graduation. BLUF: Schools will be on the hook!
Who’s your Doctor?
The new guidelines at the Veterans Affairs allow Advanced Nurse Practitioners (ANPs) to practice without supervision from a Doctor. Right now top VA officials think that is acceptable and solves the shortage of physicians at the primary care level at the VA. But is it safe? Is it what our veterans deserve? Studies show that ANPs order more labs to Doctors because they are unable to appropriately treat the patients. Studies also show that ANPs prescribe more opioids than physicians. BLUF: A Nurse Practitioner is not a Doctor, make sure you ask when booking your appointment.
Coalition Building in the National Guard Memorial Building
During the fall of 2017, EANGUS staff met in coordination with the staffs of the Association of the United States Army, the Association of the United States Air Force, the National Governor’s Association, the Adjutants General Association of the U.S., and the National Guard Association of the U.S. to coordinate on issue areas of interest to all organizations. The productive meetings resulted in synergy on three issue areas: resolving the remaining inequities with 12304b duty status, providing TRICARE Reserve Select access to eligible federal employees, and weighing-in on duty status reform efforts taking shape in the Department of Defense and on Capitol Hill. As we head into the second session of the 115th Congress, it is important that our coalition speak the same language on these important issues. The meetings also provided transparency on other hot button items like Military Construction (MILCON) funding, Full-time support, improving defense funding process (i.e. educating non-defense Congressional offices why Continuing Resolutions are killing DOD) and educating about the problems of defense sequestration, and crediting all Post-9/11 active duty service toward National Guard early retirement.
EANGUS members should be prepared to see an uptick in Legislative Calls to Action distributed by the National Office as Congressional offices begin coordinating with the Congressional Defense Committees in crafting second session legislation. Please check the EANGUS website periodically this winter and spring, and do not hesitate to contact the National Office staff with questions. We look forward to another successful year advocating on your behalf.
