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Don't Forget

Don't forget, at the bottom of this page and at the bottom of our Legislative Affairs page are links enabling you to contact your elected officials and give your views on actions they maybe taking or contemplating. Try it and let your voice be heard.

February at the Mustard Seed

We know the Greater Charleston Area is in an earthquake zone! But…are we at risk for The Big One?? Exactly what is our earthquake risk in the Low Country? And, do we know where within the region an earthquake is likely to hit?

Join us 17 February at the Mustard Seed, James Island, to hear Dr. Erin Beutel, Assistant Professor of Geology at College of Charleston, answer these questions and more as she speaks to the geologic conditions of the area we call home…! NOTE THE ADJUSTMENT TO THE SCHEDULE TO ACCOMMODATE DR. BEUTEL’S ARRIVAL!

Place: Mustard Seed, 1970 Maybank Highway, James Island. #762-0072

Date: Friday, February 17th, 2012

Time: Social Hour 1130AM (Cash bar)

Lunch: 1230

Menu: Choose from the following selections:

(1) Black and Blue Steak Salad. Thin sliced steak served over grilled scallions, mixed greens, tomato and wine vinaigrette

(2) Grilled Lemon-Oregano. Marinated Chicken served with fresh vegetables and Tomato Feta Relish

(3) Southwestern Torte. Tortilla with chicken, vegetables, black beans, salsa and Monterey Jack Cheese

(4) Turkey and Vegetable Meatloaf. Served With tomato balsamic glaze, garlic mashed Potatoes and mixed vegetables.

All prices Include a non-alcoholic beverage.

Dress: Casual

RSVP: Check to arrive NLT Tuesday, February 14th.

Mail To: Dave Farley, CDR, USN (ret), 126 Cainhoy Landing Road, Wando, SC 29492

Need additional information: Call 881-9452 (home); 708-8110 (cell); or email defarley@bellsouth.net

Serve Longer - Pay More

On Thursday DoD began to unveil details of their proposed budget cuts. TRICARE fee increases, force cuts, pay cutbacks, and retirement changes were all included in the initial report.

More details and a suggested message to your member of congress can be found on our News of Interest page.

"Doc Fix" Talks Begin - Slowly

A Congressional panel tasked with working out a long term deal to avoid a 27% cut in the Medicare/TRICARE physician reimbursement rate met for the first time this week.

Full details and a suggested message to your member of congress can be found on our News of Interest page.

Hiring Our Heroes Veterans Event

Please join us for a one of a kind FREE hiring fair, for job seekers and employers, at the MG Robert B. Solomon Center, 6510 Strom Thurmond Blvd, Fort Jackson, SC on March 6, 2012 9:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

This hiring fair is for veteran job seekers, active duty military members, Guard and Reserve members, and eligible spouses. Employers and job seekers must pre-register for this FREE event by going to hoh.greatjob.net. Job seekers, be sure to upload your resume. They will be distributed to employers within a week after the hiring event.

This hiring event is being conducted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Department of Labor Veterans’ Employment & Training Service (DOL VETS), Fort Jackson, The Army Career and Alumni Program (ACAP), South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce Veterans Services (DEW), South Carolina National Guard, U.S. Army Reserve, South Carolina Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), the Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces, Army Community Services and the State Media Company.

For more information contact Mr. Ike McLeese, President & CEO-Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce at imcleese@columbiachamber.com.

If you need assistance registering, please contact us at hiringourheroes@uschamber.com.

New Labor Regs to Help Spouses

A series of new labor department regulations announced by the White House and Labor Department this morning should go a long way towards giving spouses the time off they need to take care of their families during deployment or injured service members up to five years after leaving active duty.

The latest info on this subject can be found on our News of Interest page.

Important Dates for 2012

Some key dates are coming up as Congress and the Administration face an important year. Full details can be found on our News of Interest page.

AMC passenger travel to be more predictable

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) -- Select passenger terminals across Air Mobility Command are establishing pages on Facebook to provide passengers more predictability when it comes to space-available and space-required passengers.

The latest hot info on Space A Travel can be found on our News of Interest page.

Fact or Fiction: Congressional Benefits

MOAA sees plenty of claims about Congressional compensation and benefits. We try to sort out the facts from the fiction. Full details can be found on our News of Interest page.

COLA Chill Continues

Inflation continued its slow but steady decline in December. For the month the Consumer Price Index dipped nearly 0.3%, marking the third consecutive month of negative inflation. Since the start of the fiscal year, inflation is down nearly 0.5%. Keep tabs on month-to-month inflation trends on MOAA’s COLA Watch webpage.

The VA and Planning for Your Final Days

Are you a person who planned ahead and prepared legal documents such as a durable power of attorney for health care, a living will, and a power of attorney for your other personal/financial affairs? Well, if you have contact with any VA services, you would probably be well served by filling out the VA’s specific legal documents to make things really official. Are you a person who planned ahead and prepared legal documents such as a durable power of attorney for health care, a living will, and a power of attorney for your other personal/financial affairs? Well, if you have contact with any VA services, you would probably be well served by filling out the VA’s specific legal documents to make things really official. Go to our Important VET Information Page for more details.

TRICARE Home Delivery Pharmacy

The TRICARE pharmacy home delivery program already fills over 1 million prescriptions a month, and a recent reduction on copays for generic prescriptions gives many beneficiaries an even greater incentive to receive their regular medications by mail. TRICARE beneficiaries can now get generic prescriptions without a copay. Ideal candidates for the pharmacy home delivery program include those with several regular maintenance medications for conditions such as hypertension and diabetes who already fill their 90-day generic prescriptions at a local pharmacy. For more information, visit the TRICARE website.

South Carolina State Veteran's Benefits

Each state has its own benefit programs and South Carolina provides many benefits to veterans. Be sure to take advantage of the benefits you have earned by going to our News of Interest page and learn what is available to you.

2011 Tax Documents Coming

Retirees will be receiving some extra documents in their end of year mailing from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS). Including in the mailing will be two Retiree Account Statements, Internal Revenue Service Form 1099-R, and the DFAS retiree newsletter. For people with online myPay accounts, the statements were posted Dec. 4, and the 1099-Rs will be posted Dec. 15. If a retiree or annuitant does not have their correct address on file with DFAS by Dec. 5, they will experience a significant delay in receiving their end of year document. For more information, visit the DFAS website, or myPay. People without an online account can contact DFAS at 800-321-1080.

Spouse Scholarship Applications Open

Each year, the National Military Family Association (NMFA) awards many scholarships to military spouses through its Joanne Holbrook Patton Scholarship program. The application period for 2012 scholarship goes through 31 January 2012. This scholarship awards may be worth up to $1,000 and available to military spouse who hold a valid military ID as of 1 April 2012. Active duty, reserve, retiree, National Guard and survivor spouses may apply.

Young Adult TRICARE Option Available January 1

The TRICARE Young Adult (TYA) Prime option is available for purchase, with coverage beginning Jan. 1, 2012. TYA Prime will offer young adult beneficiaries TRICARE Prime coverage for monthly premiums of $201. To purchase TYA Prime, dependents must be under age 26, unmarried and not eligible for their own employer-sponsored health care coverage. Young adult dependents may also be eligible for TYA Standard whose monthly premium is dropping to $176 on Jan. 1, 2012. Complete information and application forms are available at the TRICARE Young Adult webpage at www.tricare.mil/tya.

Photocopying of Military Identification Cards

IMPORTANT

Recent  incidents  regarding  the  photocopying  of  military  identification  cards  and  common  access  cards  (CAC),  by  commercial  establishments  to  verify  military  affiliation  or  provide  government  rates for service, have been reported.

Go to our News of Interest page for all the information on this important topic.

Websites for Overseas Voters

Stars and Stripes reports that the Pentagon's Federal Voting Assistance Program website offers a range of resources and easily guides voters through the absentee ballot process.

The Military Postal Service Agency and the U.S. Postal Service will again offer free express mail for completed absentee ballots in 2012. Troops serving overseas can express mail their ballots from any military post office, U.S. Consulate or embassy by asking for Express Mail Label 11-DOD, and can then track their ballot via usps.com.

The website of the Overseas Vote Foundation (OFV), a nonprofit advocacy group for Americans voting overseas, offers easy-to-use tools, and also has a OVF website for the military.

The dos and don'ts of the political season

12/16/2011 - With the excitement of the presidential primaries lurking around the corner, there are a few things Airmen must remember during this upcoming political season.

When you joined the military or became a federal employee, you did so with the knowledge that this decision came with some sacrifice.

Everyone is encouraged to register to vote, research candidates and vote for the candidates. However, in order for this representative democracy to function properly, civil servants and military professionals cannot be seen as partisans.

Both military members and federal employees work for the government and in doing so they must support elected officials regardless of whether or not they voted for, or against, particular candidates. For this reason, among others, getting a paycheck directly from the federal government necessarily limits a person's ability to participate in some aspects of the political process.

Department of Defense Directive 1344.10, "Political Activities by Members of the Armed Forces on Active Duty," and Air Force Instruction 51-902, "Political Activities by Members of the U.S. Air Force," outline permitted and restricted political actions for active military members.

Military members who violate these rules may face punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Go to our News of Interest page for all the information on this important topic.

Spouse Info

Lots of good info for the military spouse. Go to our News of Interest page and scroll down for lots of good information and ideas to help you.

Are You Deploying?

If you are deploying, here are several great services you can use to help your kids through that difficult separation time. Go to our News of Interest page for full details.

New Features Allow Users Access To Expanded Personal Health Data At TRICARE Online

Complete details are on our Health Care page.

New TRICARE Formulary Search Tool

Want to see if a certain drug is carried in the TRICARE Formulary? Go to our Health Care page.

Retirees Asked to Volunteer

Volunteers are needed at more than 100 offices at active-duty, Reserve and Guard bases worldwide. Volunteers for retired military and their family members are needed in several areas, depending on the base. Retiree activities office volunteers help with several actions including: serving as an information center for space-available travel, TRICARE and base services, offering referrals for financial assistance and pay matters, counseling active-duty Airmen nearing retirement,and providing literature on retirement issues. For more retiree activities office locations near you, visit the Retiree Activities Offices webpage.

Right here in Charleston, you can volunteer at the Air Force and Navy clinics. Help is needed in many areas, especially in the pharmacies. Take that step forward and ask how you can help. Personnel in the clinics will really appreciate your help.

Spiritual Fitness

According to the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness (CSF) spiritual fitness module, spirituality is the human spirit -- the essential core of a person. CSF, an Armywide program launched last year, offers assessment tools to help soldiers and families become resilient. The Army CSF spiritual fitness module aims to help strengthen an individual's set of beliefs, principles, or values to sustain beyond family, institutional, and societal sources of strength, ultimately resulting in becoming more spiritually fit and resilient during times of greatest challenge. The CSF Global Assessment Tool featuring the spiritual fitness module is available on the CSF website. The assessment is totally confidential and provides instant feedback to help build personal spiritual resiliency.

Have You Got Something to Say to Your Elected Officials? Here's the Easy Way

Here is an easy way to contact your elected officials and give your views on actions they maybe taking or contemplating. Just go to this MOAA web site and then follow the instructions and you can compose an email or letter to send to your elected officials.

INFORMATION ON OUR CHARLESTON CHAPTER FUTURE MILITARY OFFICERS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM is under the INTEREST Tab above..