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IOWA DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS NEWSLETTER

The American Veteran
A video news magazine designed to inform veterans, their families and their communities about the services and benefits they have earned through their service to America.

General Allison A. Hickey Sworn In as Under Secretary for Benefits

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Headlines

DAV Newsbriefs

Enhanced Warrior Care System

Today, the Army Warrior Transition Command (WTC) released a 10-minute educational video to highlight new aspects of the Army’s warrior care system.

Locations for Veteran Directed Home and Community-Based Services Programp

A list of operating locations for Veteran Directed Home and Community-Based Services program featured in the May / June issue of the DAV Magazine.

View Photos of DAV's Outreach to Tornado-Torn Areas

DAV National Commander Wallace E. "Wally" Tyson accompanied DAV's disaster relief teams in Joplin, Mo., distributing vouchers to disabled veterans and their families who have sustained losses from recent, historic tornadoes.

Special Notice: If you are a veteran in emotional crisis and need help RIGHT NOW, call this toll-free number 1-800-273-8255, available 24/7, and tell them you are a veteran. All calls are confidential.

Free Couples PTSD Retreat

The National Veterans Wellness and Healing Center in Angel Fire, N.M., will offer free, week-long retreats this summer for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and their spouses.

The retreats, which started on a pilot basis last year, are sponsored by the wellness center and the State of New Mexico Department of Veterans Affairs, but are open to veterans nationwide. Lodging, meals and therapy are provided at no cost in a truly awesome setting, nestled in the Sangre de Cristos Mountains.

The retreat includes individual and couples counseling as well as non-traditional therapies including acupuncture, yoga and massage therapy.

To qualify, veterans must be diagnosed with PTSD, must be in or have been in counseling, and must have been referred by a VA vets center.

For more info you can contact Hoot Gibson, vice president of the wellness center, at (575) 377-1082. You can download an application from the center's website, which also lists retreat dates from this weekend through Sept. 23.

This is the only PTSD treatment center that I know of that includes spouses, something sorely needed. I have an ex-wife who says from her experience wives are the unacknowledged veterans, survivors and victims of -- in her case -- the Vietnam War.

The Vet Center now has Barnstormer Tickets for July 1st @ 7:05pm. Tickets are free

VA Caregiver Program News
A month after the Veterans Affairs Department began processing applications for primary family caregivers of eligible post-9/11 veterans, officials reported steady progress toward delivering the new services and benefits. The new law provides eligible family caregivers who care for severely disabled veterans a monthly stipend, mental-health services and access to health-care insurance if they are not already entitled to care, or services under a health plan. Caregivers also qualify for travel expenses, including lodging and per diem when accompanying their family member for care, comprehensive caregiver training, medical support and respite care. For more information, visit the (http://www.caregiver.va.gov/) VA's Caregiver Support website or call the VA's Caregiver Support Line at 1-855-260-3274.

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