News
Military Families Turn to Food Stamps
Monday, May 25, 2015 | Category: Finances - National
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) publishes an annual report about where Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food stamps are being spent. That list includes military commissaries. More than $84 million-worth of food stamp benefits were spent at military commissaries n 2014. USDA estimates between 2,000 to 22,000 (1-2%) military members and 1.5 million (7%) veterans (2012 data) use food stamp benefits
Percentage of Women Veterans Increases
Sunday, May 24, 2015 | Category: Department of Agriculture - National
According to the Economic Research Service, the percentage of rural veterans who are women has more than doubled since the First Gulf War. Most women veterans in rural America fall into younger age groups as the male veteran population continues to age.
Women Describe Their Struggles With Gender Roles in Military
Sunday, May 24, 2015 | Category: Department of Defense - National
More than 150 women with military service responded to The New York Times 2014 request to share their experiences in the military. A selection of their quotes are shared in this article.
The Medal of Honor's History
Friday, May 22, 2015 | Category: History/Heritage - National
More than 3,400 Army, Navy, Marine, Air Force and Coast Guard personnel have received the Medal of Honor for action during 20 separate periods of U.S. conflict. A total of 193 medals have recognized non-combat bravery through 1963, when this category was eliminated. Nineteen men received the Medal of Honor twice. One woman, Dr. Mary Walker an nurse during the Civil War, received the Medal of Honor. Nine Medals of Honor were awarded to recognize the unknown U.S. soldiers buried in Arlington National Cemetery, as well as the World War I foreign unknowns buried overseas in Romania, Italy, the United Kingdom, France, and Belgium.
Ex-combat Pilot: Military a Smart Choice for Women Leaders
Thursday, May 21, 2015 | Category: Combat - Connecticut
Sandra Ennor, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and helicopter pilot, flew combat missions during Operation Iraqi freedom. She reflects on her choice to serve, her time on active duty and why the military can be a smart choice for women who wish to lead.
Senator Shaheen: We Must Provide Better Contraceptive Access to Women in the Military
Thursday, May 21, 2015 | Category: Health Care - National
Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) wants to ensure military women are provided complete and current contraceptive information. More than 350,000 women currently serve on active duty today and 97% are of reproductive age. The rate of unintended pregnancy for servicewomen is 50% higher than the civilian population.
How We’re Failing Our Female Veterans
Thursday, May 21, 2015 | Category: Health Care - National
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is struggling to keep up with the influx of female patients. The number of women veterans almost doubled between 2003 and 2012, from 200,631 to 362,014. It’s expected to double again by 2020. Women veterans Ruth Moore, Katelyn Labbe, Stephanie Grant and Judy Atwood Bell share their past experiences within the Department of Defense (DOD) and the VHA to include sexual assault, lack of women-specific body armor as well as unavailability of female prosthetics and contraceptives. Today, these women veterans are active vet-to-vet peer advocates. Additionally, LaRhonda Harris, Maine VA Women Veterans (Health) Program Manager, shares her perspectives on the importance of VA women's clinics, gender-specific care, physician staffing, maternity care and psychological well being.
Military Women Deserve More Than an Afterthought
Thursday, May 21, 2015 | Category: History/Heritage - National
Deborah Simmons opinion article highlights the contributions of military women past and present in the context of Memorial Day remembrances nation wide. She tells the story of Mary Walker, a Civil War nurse and the only female Medal of Honor recipient in 150 years of documented history, and shares that Amelia Robinson Jones, a 95-year oldTuskegee Airwoman, was presented the Congressional Gold Medal in April 2015. Ms. Simmons salutes both those who died and the 5.5 million caregivers who, day after day, look after veterans' medical needs and their home, family and finances.
Congress Will Finally Help Military Women Get the Birth Control They Need
Wednesday, May 20, 2015 | Category: Health Care - National
The 2016 National Defense annual defense policy bill includes a provision mandating military clinics and hospitals to be able to fill prescriptions for any of the 18 Food and Drug Administration-approved methods of contraception for women in the military. If this bill passes, the pills, patches, rings, and more must be made available to military women. Overseas-deployed women service members have had difficulty getting their specific type of birth control dispensed.
Lawmakers Back Broader Access to Contraceptives for Women in the Military
Tuesday, May 19, 2015 | Category: Health Care - National
Congress moved to guarantee military women greater access to contraceptives. The legislation states that military clinics and hospitals must be able to dispense any Food and Drug Administration-approved method of contraception. Military women complained that they are sometimes unable to obtain physician-prescribed contraceptives, especially when they are deployed overseas.