Thursday, December 1, 2016

Vietnam Veterans of America Applauds Inclusion of Fairness for Veterans Provision in the NDAA

READ THE PRESS RELEASE
(Washington, D.C.)– “We are heartened to learn that the ‘Fairness for Veterans’ provision was included in the conferenced version of the NDAA,” said John Rowan, National President of Vietnam Veterans of America. “This is one small step towards the much-needed reforms of the Department of Defense’s Discharge Review Boards.”
 
The Fairness for Veterans Act (S.1567/HR.4683) has the support of a bipartisan coalition, including many veterans elected to Congress. This bill, if enacted, would codify into law the 2014 “Hagel Memo,” issued by former Secretary of Defense and Vietnam veteran Chuck Hagel. The Hagel Memo calls for the Boards for Corrections of Military Records to apply “liberal consideration” in favor of Vietnam veterans, contending that PTSD was a contributing factor in circumstances surrounding other-than-honorable discharges. While the Hagel Memo was interpreted narrowly by the military’s review board agencies, it did impact a handful of Vietnam veterans with PTSD. The Fairness for Veterans Act clarifies and strengthens the spirit of the Hagel Memo by applying it more broadly to Post-9/11 veterans with less-than-honorable discharges.
Contact:
Mokie Porter
301-996-0901

No comments:

Post a Comment