Volunteer Opportunity: Spokane Veterans Home

For volunteer opportunities, contact:

Spokane Veterans Home Spokane, WA

Activity Director: Jeanette Sauer-Smith 509-344-5788 JeanetteS@dva.wa.gov

Suggested Donated Items:

Art:

- Art Easels

Holiday:

- Decorations for different holidays

Furnishings:

- Folding chairs for our residents' rooms with cushions

- Clocks for residents rooms

- Aroma therapy oils and small machines to use with them

- Tablecloths 48 inch tables and longer

- Chairs for our dining rooms – cushion, arm rest, nice chairs

- Standing reading lights

Cooking & Baking:

- Coffee cups with lids and handles

- Bread mixes

- Cake mixes

- Cookie mixes

- Chocolate chips

Communications & Stationary:

- Stamps for residents to mail letters

- Envelopes

- Phone cards

- Flash Drives

Entertainment:

- Gift cards to Wal-Mart, Apple store & ITunes gift cards for Music and Memory program

- TV’s for resident rooms with wall mounts

- Headphones

- Bird feeders

Clothing

- Clothes from Big and Tall stores i.e.: need sizes 2x-5x that are the tall sizes,

- Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine, Coast Guard baseball caps (ie: all branches)

- Diabetic shoes with traction that can be washed

- 4, 5 and 6 power reading glasses

- Eye shades for sleeping

Toiletries:

- Electric razors

- Disposable razors

- Body wash

Long-Term Care Veterans Choice Act

Representative Clay Higgins introduced H.R. 1527. This would provide veterans who can no longer live independently an alternative to nursing home care. The veteran would continue to receive the care that they need in an intimate home-like environment through VA's Home-Based Primary Care program, and the Medical Foster Home (MFH) attendant program.

Started in 2000, VA Medical Foster Homes provide veterans who need nursing home level of care an alternative to being placed in a nursing home. VA Medical Foster Homes merge traditional adult foster care with comprehensive longitudinal care provided in the home by a VA interdisciplinary team that includes a physician, nurse, social worker, rehabilitation therapist, mental health provider, dietitian and pharmacist. Since its inception, over 4,000 veterans have resided in Medical Foster Homes.

However, many service-connected veterans who wish to reside in a VA Medical Foster Home are unable to do so because of substantial out-ofpocket costs of approximately $1,500 to $3,000 per month. Because VA does not have the authority to cover these costs, veterans are placed in nursing homes which VA pays for but cost more than twice as much.

As the veteran population continues to age, the need for long-term care services will continue to grow. Home-based community programs like MFHs will enable VA to meet the needs of aging veterans in a manner closer to independent living than institutionalized care. With the passage of this bill, veterans would have the option of care that more closely aligns with their independence while maintaining their quality of life.

(This bill is in accordance with Disabled American Veterans Resolution No. 085, which calls for legislation to improve the comprehensive program of long-term services and supports for service-connected disabled veterans regardless of their disability ratings).

Supreme Court: Retirees Can Be Court-Martialed for Crimes Committed After Service

The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the Defense Department's authority to prosecute retired service members for crimes they commit, even after retirement. The court chose not to hear the case of a retired Marine who was court-martialed for a sexual assault he committed three months after leaving the service in August 2015. By not accepting the case, Larrabee v. the United States, the court upheld the status quo: that military retirees are subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The law stipulates that "retired members of a regular component of the armed forces who are entitled to pay" and "members of the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve" are subject to court-martial jurisdiction. The reasoning, the government argues, is that retirement is simply a change of military status and retired personnel are subject to recall should the need arise.