Senior Spotlight
Crowley Hosts Benefits Forum For Vets
By John Toscano

Congressmember Joseph Crowley says Veterans Administration figures show that up to $22 billion in available pension money goes unspent annually because veterans who may be eligible for the benefit do not apply for it or are unaware of it.

Trying to rectify the situation, Crowley

D-Queens/The Bronx) held a Town Hall meeting on veterans' benefits, including pensions, at St. Sebastian's Parish Center in Woodside on Monday.

Among the other topics discussed, Crowley said, was the recent revelation about the personal data of 26.5 million veterans which was stolen from the home of a VA analyst employed at the agency.

Additional topics included options in healthcare coverage and mental health issues affecting veterans.

But Crowley's primary message was: "Many veterans are unaware of the benefits available to them and unfortunately do not receive them. I am especially concerned about veterans who are eligible to receive a VA pension, but haven't enrolled and, as a result, are not collecting pensions.

"Every year, billions of dollars in the veterans' pension fund are not getting to the men and women who have served in our nation's armed forces, and that has to change."

He told those present that those who are unable to attend the benefits forum which he holds every year should contact his office to learn more about the benefits for which they are eligible.

Last year, Crowley the Chief Deputy Whip of Democrats in Congress, joined with his colleagues in the House and fought for and won $1.5 billion in VA healthcare funds. The congressmember, along with Democratic House members, is now pushing for an immediate increase of $630 million for VA health care in the supplemental spending bill to be voted on in Congress next week.

Summarizing his reasons for the meeting, Crowley said, "These benefits available to our veterans are part of the way we thank our citizens who have served in the military. I am working hard to ensure that these benefits reach our veterans, to whom so much is owed."

The panel of speakers who joined Crowley at the forum included Chris Podgis of the New York State Division of Veterans Affairs; Paul Weiss, New York Regional Office of the Veterans Benefits Administration, and John Mazzulla, of the New York Harbor Healthcare System.

MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY RULES TIGHTENED: The Bush presidential administration is getting ready to issue strict standards requiring millions of lowincome people and seniors on Medicaid to prove they are United States citizens.

The requirements, which are effective July 1, implement a law signed by President Bush last February 8. They call for Medicaid applicants and those renewing their membership to show passports or birth certificates and possibly other documents.

The new regulations will apply mainly to children, who account for about half of the Medicaid recipients, their parents or relatives and people 65 and over, who account for 10 percent of people on Medicaid.

Advocates for Medicaid recipients have expressed concern that the requirements could cause hardships for children, who ordinarily do not have these documents, and for older Americans and poor people born at home who never received a birth certificate.