The Department of Veterans Affairs is moving forward toward its goal of ensuring that Native American veterans receive the benefits they should be getting. Two weeks ago it was reduced mortgage interest rates for Native Americans, native Hawaiians, Alaska Natives and Pacific Islanders. Now, per the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, it’s a waiver on having to pay a copay for VA health care ser-vices and urgent medical care.

Besides taking affect now, it’s retroactive: Starting last year, on Jan. 5, 2022, any eligible American Indi-an and Alaska Native Veteran who’s received care and paid a copay can go back and be reimbursed.

There are details, of course. To be eligible for exemption you need to be an American Indian or Alaska Native Veteran, provide a copy of an official tribal document showing that you meet the eligibility requirements of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act and submit a Tribal Documentation Form (VA Form 10-334). That form is also known as Documentation of Indian or Urban Indian Status for Veteran Copayment Exemption.

Pay special attention to the gov-ernment’s definition of “Indian.” It involves being a first- or second- degree descendant of certain groups, and you must live in an urban center, which includes the department of Health and Human Services’ definition of an Indian population with unmet health needs. 

If you’re not yet signed up for VA health care, this might be the time to do it and have that, plus the question of your copays, out of the way. In a medical emergency, you don’t want to have to think about what you’re going to do or where you’re going to go. And if you’ve paid out several copays since Jan. 5 of last year, you stand to be reimbursed if you’re eligible for the American Indian exemption.
Confused yet? There’s help at 800-698-2411, the MyVA number that’s answered 24/7 with assistance on a dozen different topics, from benefits to cemeteries to a crisis line. 
© 2023 King Features Synd., Inc.

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SOCIAL SECURITY HONORS OUR MILITARY HEROES
On Memorial Day, our nation honors military service members who have given their lives for our country.  Families, friends, and communities pause to remember the many great sacrifices of our military and ensure their legacy lives on in the freedoms we all enjoy.  We recognize these heroes who, in President Lincoln’s words, “gave the last full measure of devotion.”  
The benefits we provide can help the families of deceased military service members.  For example, surviving spouses and their dependent children may be eligible for Social Security survivors benefits.  You can learn more about those benefits at www.ssa.gov/survivors.  
We also offer support to our wounded warriors.  Social Security benefits protect veterans when an injury prevents them from returning to active duty or performing other work.  Wounded military service members can receive expedited processing of their Social Security disability claims.  Are you a veteran with a 100% Permanent & Total compensation rating from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs?  We will expedite your disability claim.  Both the Department of Veteran Affairs and the Social Security Administration have disability programs.  You may qualify for disability benefits under one program but not the other, or you may qualify for both.  Depending on your situation, some of your family members, including your dependent children or spouse, may be eligible to receive Social Security benefits.  

By Freddy Groves 
 Masks at VA Facilities not Gone
The Department of Veterans Affairs recently announced that they were relaxing the requirement for masks to be worn at all VA medical facilities. But if you heard on the news that the mask requirement is gone, it's not necessarily so.
There is now a three-tier safety system whereby each facility is rated as high, medium or low for Covid transmission problems, and each facility will be monitored weekly for any updates or changes.
So what does it mean if your facility ranks as high for Covid risk? I checked a half dozen VA facilities in my state, and all were ranked high. That means everyone has to wear a mask, they might screen for Covid at the door, only approved visitors can come in, physical distancing is required, and you should ask your care team about options for phone or video appointments instead of going in.
Sounds like nothing's changed over the past few years.
So I picked another state. Most were at a high level, but I did see a few rated medium. For those, the facility itself will decide based on what's going on in the area. Care partners will be welcome, but no other visitors.
Then there's the Off-stage and On-stage middle-of-the-pack medium mask category. For Off, it's any area where patient care is not being performed, like hallways and admin areas. For On areas, masks are required in patient rooms and anywhere patients are being provided care. 
After much looking, I finally found a VA facility rated as low. The rule is simple: You must wear a mask if veterans are present. Read the signs when you go in so you'll know.
Bottom line: A mask might be required no matter what level facility you enter. Tuck one into your pocket just to be sure you have it handy.
To check the Covid safety level at any VA medical facility you visit, look at their website for their rating. See www.va.gov/find-locations for the list of locations.
(c) 2023 King Features Synd., Inc.

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By Arthur C. Brooks
February 23, 2023

It could be possible to spot signs of dementia up to nine years before diagnosis, a new study has found.
The findings, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, mean that future at-risk patients could be screened to help  identify those who might benefit from early interventions to reduce their risk of developing dementia-related diseases.
They could also help select those suitable for clinical trials for new treatments.
“When we looked back at patients’ histories, it became clear that they were showing some cognitive impairment several years before their symptoms became obvious enough to prompt a diagnosis,” study author Nol Swaddiwudhipong, a junior doctor at the University of Cambridge, said.
“The impairments were often subtle, but across a number of aspects of cognition. This is a step towards us being able to screen people who are at greatest risk - for example, people over 50 or those who have high blood pressure or do not do enough exercise - and intervene at an earlier stage to help them reduce their risk.”
For the study, researchers analysed data from the UK Biobank database and pinpointed problem solving and number recall as two of the early signs patients could develop dementia.
Senior author Dr Tim Rittman, also from the University of Cambridge, said: “People should not be unduly worried if, for example, they are not good at recalling numbers.
“Even some healthy individuals will naturally score better or worse than their peers. But we would encourage anyone who has any concerns or notices that their memory or recall is getting worse to speak to their GP.”
People from the UK Biobank data who went on to develop Alzheimer’s scored more poorly compared with healthy individuals when it came to problem solving tasks, reaction times, remembering lists of numbers, prospective memory (our ability to remember to do something later on) and pair matching.
This was also the case for people who developed a rarer form of dementia known as frontotemporal dementia, the researchers found.

Not remembering numbers could be an early sign of dementia (Getty Images/iStockphoto)According to the study, people who went on to develop Alzheimer’s were more likely than healthy adults to have had a fall in the previous 12 months.
David Thomas, head of policy at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “It is increasingly clear that the best chance to affect the course of the diseases which cause dementia lies in intervening at their earliest stages.
“Health services don’t routinely offer the tests needed to detect changes in brain function that happen before symptoms are noticeable, like those alluded to in this study.
“In fact, the NHS is currently unable to guarantee early and accurate diagnosis for people living with dementia - more than a third of people over 65 living with dementia go undiagnosed.
He added: “It’s now more important than ever that NHS services reflect our growing understanding of the importance of detection and early diagnosis.
“We must ensure that people with dementia don’t fall through the cracks at a time when treatment or risk-reduction interventions are most likely to be effective.”
Additional reporting by PA

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