At Your Service
For and about Hawaii's militaryBy Gregg K. Kakesako
Sunday, May 6, 2001
Question: I got a "certificate of eligibility" from the Veterans Administration to buy a home using my GI Bill benefits. Then the deal fell through. Do I have to get another certificate when I try to buy another home? Is there an expiration date? Loan certificate
valid until used[FOR YOUR BENEFIT]
Answer: The "certificate of eligibility" is the form that VA provides to show a veteran is eligible for the home loan benefit. Veterans can obtain the application for a certificate and information about where to send it by calling the VA at 1-800-827-1000.
Generally, the certificates are valid until used. However, a certificate issued to a person while on active duty is valid only while the person remains on active duty. For persons qualifying based on service in the Reserves or National Guard, eligibility expires Sept. 30, 2007.
Q: I plan to relocate overseas this summer and was wondering what the VA will pay for if I need medical treatment in a foreign country.
A: The VA will pay for medical services for the treatment of service-connected disabilities and related conditions for veterans abroad. VA does not authorize nursing-home care in foreign jurisdictions, except for the Philippines. Services in most foreign countries must be authorized by the Foreign Medical Program Office, PO Box 65021, Denver, CO 80206-9021.
The telephone number is (303) 331-7590. Services provided in Canada are under the jurisdiction of the VA Center in White River Junction, VT 05009-0001. The Philippines is under the USVA Office, Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City 1300, M.M., or VA Outpatient Clinic, Regional Office, FPO AP 96575.
Other VA monetary benefits, including compensation, pension, educational assistance and burial allowances, generally are payable overseas. Some programs in foreign jurisdictions are restricted.
Beneficiaries residing in foreign countries should contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate for information and claims assistance. In Canada, veterans should contact an office of Veterans Affairs Canada.
If you have questions about benefits as a veteran, call Fred W. Ballard, assistant public affairs officer, at 433-0049, or the Star-Bulletin at 529-4747.
[MILITARY BRIEFS]
The federal Environmental Protection Agency has given partial approval to the Army's plan to close the Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System. Johnston Atoll cleanup
will be hearings' topicThe Army still must treat the waste products that will be produced when the Army dismantles its incinerators.
On Nov. 29 the Army destroyed the last chemical weapons stockpiled on Johnston Atoll, located 800 miles southwest of Honolulu.
Later this month, the Defense Threat Reduction Agency will hold hearings here to discuss cleanup options.
Two aborted missile launches in 1962 resulted in radioactive contamination. Some of the coral material is located in a 24-acre fenced area on Johnston Island.
The hearings will be held on:
>> May 21 at 5 p.m. at the Lihue Public Library on Kauai.
>> May 22 at 5 p.m. at the Kahului Public Library on Maui.
>> May 23 at 4 p.m. at the Hilo Public Library on Hawaii.
>> May 24 at 6 p.m. at Washington Middle School on Oahu.
Since 1990 the Army has destroyed 4 million pounds of chemical agents and chemical weapons stored there.
The island is owned by the U.S. Interior Department and is managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service as a natural refuge.
Military personnel eligible for pet quarantine rebate
The state Animal Quarantine Station this week will implement a tiered reimbursement plan for military personnel who imported their pets to Hawaii during the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.Under a $500,000, one-year program funded by the Legislature last year, the rebates will range from $120 to $220 for each pet and take four to six weeks to process.
Military personnel who import their pets now through June 30 may have the quarantine fee automatically reduced by the station.
Rebate applications can be downloaded from the Agriculture Department's Web site at www.hawaiiag.org/hdoa/ai_aqs_info.htm.
Pearl Harbor shipyard wins national competition
Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility has been given the highest U.S. Department of Defense industrial environmental award. After winning a Navy competition, the shipyard beat other branches of the Defense Department for the Secretary of Defense Environmental Quality Award for an Industrial Installation.The award recognizes the shipyard's efforts to protect human health and the environment through sustained compliance with environmental requirements.
[DEPLOYMENTS]
U.S. NAVY (PACIFIC FLEET)
Western Pacific
USS Chicago (SSN 721)
USS Louisville (SSN 724)
USS Kamehameha (SSN 642)
USS Columbia (SSN 771)
USS Santa Fe (SSN 763)
USS Los Angeles (SSN 688)
USS Chosin (CG 65)
USS Frederick (LST 1184)
Hawaiian area
USS Asheville (SSN 758)
USS Charlotte (SSN 766)
USS Columbus (SSN 762)
USS Honolulu (SSN 718)
USS Russell (DDG 59)
U.S. ARMY
Sinai: 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment
Philippines, Australia: Tripler Army Medical Center, 25th Division
Alaska, Kosrae, E. Micronesia, Bangladesh: 84th Engineers
East Timor, Thailand: 25th Division, 9th Regional Support Command (U.S. Army Reserve)
Honduras, Kenya, New Zealand, Palau: Tripler Army Medical Center
Bosnia & Kosovo: 25th Division, 9th Regional Support Command
HAWAII NATIONAL GUARD
Germany: 291st Combat Communications Squadron, Hawaii Air National Guard
England: 203rd Air Refueling Squadron, Air National Guard
Italy: 292nd Combat Communications Squadron, Air National Guard
Persian Gulf, Germany, Turkey and Italy: 201st Combat Communications Group, Air National Guard
Philippines: 204th Airlift Squadron, Air National Guard
Honduras: Company D, 1-207th Aviation, Army National Guard
COAST GUARD
Guam: HH-65 helicopter
MARINE CORPS
Okinawa: 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment; C Battery, 1st Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment
Thailand: Combat Service Support Detachment 79
[CALENDAR]
May 11-15
25th Infantry Division and U.S. Army Hawaii's 2001 Armed Forces volleyball championship tournament. Fort Shafter physical fitness center.
Gregg K. Kakesako covers Hawaii's military
for the Star-Bulletin. Email him at gkakesako@starbulletin.com.
