rutstein retirement sends shock waves throughout the commissioned

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the fight for transferability: Looking Back and Looking Forward In December 2009, COA initiated a call to action requesting that all members write their elected representatives in the House and Senate, urging their support for extending the provision of transferability of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to PHS officers. Largely thanks to these efforts, there is a bill currently before the full Senate (S. 3447) that would allow the Secretary of DHHS to grant PHS officers the ability to transfer unused educational benefits to family members. While the next few months will determine our success, there is no doubt that we could not have made it this far without the legislative outreach of more than 250 officers and family members. This level of individual legislative outreach by COA membership is unprecedented. I read many of your letters, and I know many of you spent a great deal of time convincing fellow officers, family, and friends to write on our behalf about this issue. I certainly could not do justice to everybody who deserves praise, but I would like to mention by name several officers whose contributions have been noteworthy: CAPT Jose Belardo, LCDR Ben Brahim, LCDR Michelle Colledge, CAPT Alan Echt, CAPT Sandra Farley, LT Martin Guardia, CDR Dana Hall, CAPT Chuck Hayden, CAPT Chuck Kardous, LT Terry Lew, CAPT Angela Martinelli, RADM Patrick O’Carroll, CAPT Mark Papania, CAPT Steve Rosenthal, CDR Ann Vu, and CAPT Craig Wilkins. Bear in mind our work is not yet done. The status of legislation affecting the Post-9/11 GI Bill is changing rapidly. It is not too late to ask your elected Senators (in your home of record) to support the provision in S. 3447 that grants transferability of benefits to family members. You are also encouraged to ask your elected Representative to support an amendment to H.R. 5933 (the House companion bill to S. 3447) to extend transferability of GI Bill benefits to PHS and NOAA Corps officers. If you would like tips on contacting your elected representatives at this point, do not hesitate to contact me at kysatyr@ hotmail.com. Since the status of these bills is changing quickly, the information above may be out-of-date by the time this edition of Frontline is published. Feel free to check with me or Judy Rensberger before contacting your elected representatives. To the more than 200 of you who have actively participated in legislative outreach for GI Bill transferability over the last two years, I thank you for stepping up and helping the Corps. To the rest of you, the door is still open and the challenge awaits. By CDR Jonathan Rash 20 commissioned officers association
Senator Inouye Received PHS Flag from COA and COF On August 5, 2010, Senator Inouye was presented with the U.S. Public Heath Service Flag by representatives of the Commissioned Officers Association of the U.S. Public Health Service and the PHS Commissioned Officers Foundation for the Advancement of Public Health. In recognition of this, Senator Inouye commemorated the remarks into the Congressional Record (below). october 2010 | Frontline 21
Page 1 and 2: COMMISSIONED OFFICERS ASSOCIATION V
Page 3 and 4: COA BRANCH PHS Officers Volunteer a
Page 5 and 6: COA Member Helps fellow Commissione
Page 7 and 8: LEGISLATIVE UPDATE continued... And
Page 9 and 10: Chair’s Corner Be a Mentor! Fifty
Page 11 and 12: welcome NEW MEMBERS LTJG Oladeji A.
Page 13 and 14: JOIN Club 159 Club 159 is a means t
Page 15 and 16: Corps is frozen in place - the “p
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Page 19: Attention All COA Local Branches! T
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rutstein retirement sends shock waves throughout the commissioned

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