SENATE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS NEWS from Larry Scott at VA Watchdog dot Org -- 07-29-2005

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PRESS RELEASE

IDAHO FIELD HEARING MONDAY TO LOOK AT THE "RETURN READINESS" FOR NATIONAL GUARD AND RESERVISTS

July 29, 2005

(Washington, DC) On Monday Senator Larry Craig will conduct a field hearing in Boise, Idaho, to examine how well the United States is prepared for the return of National Guard and Reserve troops.

"Unlike active duty personnel, the men and women of the National Guard and Reserve do not return to a military base where they have a network of people and services. Instead, we send them back from Iraq to their old jobs, to their families and friends. I want to make sure that we are ready, so that when our Guard and Reserve come back, they receive the help they need," said Craig (R-Idaho), who serves as chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.

The public is invited and encouraged to attend the Committee’s field hearing, but unlike a town meeting, the hearing will be a structured event. Witnesses will present testimony and the Chairman will ask questions of witnesses. Joining Sen. Craig at the head table will be Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne, who served in the United States Senate from January of 1993 through January of 1999. Testimony gathered at the event could impact future legislation.

This past May Sen. Craig traveled to Iraq with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson, and Idaho Congressmen Butch Otter and Mike Simpson. There they met with members of the Idaho National Guard and visited medical facilities in Iraq and, later, Germany. A major purpose of the trip to was to examine the transition from battlefield hospitals to the VA care when they return to the United States.

When: Monday, August 1, 2005

Time: 2 p.m.

Where: Gowen Field, Building 440, Boise, Idaho

Title: "The 116th Armor Cavalry Brigade and Idaho Reservists: Are We Ready for the Return of Idaho’s Soldiers?"

PANEL I:

• The Honorable Dr. Jonathan Perlin, Under Secretary for Health, U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs– Accompanied by Dennis "Max" Lewis from Seattle, Acting Director, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), and Wayne Tippets, Director, Boise VA Medical Center

• Diana Rubens, Director, Western Area Office, Veterans Benefits Administration – Accompanied by Jim Vance, Director of the Boise VA Office

PANEL II:

• Major General Larry LaFrenz, Idaho Adjutant General

• David McIntyre, President and CEO of TriWest

• Scott Reese, Mayor of Blackfoot and Chairman, Idaho State Committee, Employer of Guard and Reserve

Larry Scott