Huge slate of veteran suicide prevention measures set for debate next month

Lawmakers will make a return to Capitol Hill in September and veteran suicide prevention will be the topic of discussion.

To read more, click here.

Amid coronavirus pandemic, students' first day at DODEA's overseas schools looked different

U.S. military base schools overseas have begun to open their doors. Schools on a handful of bases with a substantial risk of the coronavirus spreading,are holding class remotely under a policy set by the Department of Defense Education Activity for the new school year.

To read more, click here.

More than 5 million military family members, retirees are getting new ID cards

The the Next Generation Uniformed Services Identification Card is expected to be completed in January, 2026. In the meantime, the old cards will continue to work.

To read more, click here.

AFSA on the Hill

AFSA Hosts First Ever Virtual Professional Airmen's Conference and Virtual Education and Development Symposium!

Today at 10:00am, AFSA was proud to host the first ever Virtual Professional Airmen's Conference to support and educate participants on the issues affecting the active duty, veteran, and retired military members and their families. During the Virtual Conference, important focus is placed on governance, military education, quality-of-life support, national security, and to improving and increasing individual capabilities through access to education, training, networking and motivational opportunities.

Here, we have the unique pleasure to introduce you to past and present military leadership as part of our professional development forum, and prestigious awards ceremony. Each Professional Development Speaker and Honored Guest provides a rich insight to the Air Force's past, present and future.

Moreover, these forums continue to build on the strong, solid foundation of activism, education and support for our Total Enlisted Corps and their families. CMSAF Kaleth O. Wright said it best, "I would venture to say that this is the premier professional development opportunity in our Air Force for any enlisted Airman... continue to attend events like the (AFSA PAC) and continue to make yourself a better Airman."

In 2019, over 1,800 AFSA members, Military Educational Centers, supporting Military Branches and Joint Services Trainers, as well as Enlisted Leadership groups and their families came together to learn, motivate, network, honor and celebrate their success. And this year, we're planning to take the unlimited possibilities even further -- virtually! #AFSAPAC2020 #AFSAvPAC2020.

The best part? Attendance is open to all and there is no cost! To view the agenda, speakers/bios, mission partners, and to submit questions for the speakers in advance, please click here.

The schedule for tomorrow, Wednesday, August 25, (as currently set) is as follows:

10:30 am to 11:15 am (EST)
Professional Development Forum: Senior Leadership Perspective with
General Charles Q "CQ" Brown, Chief of Staff, United States Air Force

11:30 am to 2:00 pm (EST)
Virtual AFSA & AFSA International and CMSAF Awards Ceremony
with Special Guest Speaker CMSAF#5 Robert D. "Bob" Gaylor

2:00 pm to 3:00 pm (EST)
Professional Development Forum: Financial Readiness with
CMSgt (Ret) Gerardo Tapia, USAA Air Force Relationship Director
and LTC (Ret) Joseph "JJ" Montanaro, USAA Military Advocacy Director

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm (EST)
Professional Development Forum: Senior Leadership Perspective with
CMSgt Roger Towberman, Senior Enlisted Advisor

To view the Conference and be a part of this LIVE experience, please click the link located in the Membership Information section of the M&G-B.

	Legislative Action Center

	On Friday, our team unveiled three brand new advocacy campaigns in our Legislative Action Center! To help our legislative team resist TRICARE Select Enrollment Fees and Co-pays, Support H.R.5610, the Fair Care for Vietnam Veterans Act, or Share How the United States Postal Service Impacts You, please read below. *Focus from the Field: TRICARE Select Enrollment Fees, NEW ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED! Write Your Elected Officials Today.* In the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Congress approved a measure opposed by the Air Force Sergeants Association (AFSA) that would force Group A military retirees and their families to pay a monthly TRICARE Select enrollment fee to maintain their TRICARE Select coverage. Tentatively, come January 1, 2021, retirees using TRICARE Select will pay an enrollment fee equating to $150 per year for an individual and $300 for a family. Additionally, retirees will also be forced to pay a $30 copay for a primary care visit or urgent care visit at a network physician, or 25% of the cost for non-network care, as well as $45 or 25% at a network or non-network specialty care provider. Joining hand in hand with our nation's service members past and present and their families, over the past four years, Congress has worked with AFSA and other MSO's/VSO's to reject alternative proposals that called for an even higher beneficiary cost share than that currently scheduled for January 1, 2020; including enrollment fees of up to $900 and a proposed TRICARE for Life enrollment fee that would have charged Medicare-eligible retirees an annual enrollment fee equal to 2% of their gross retired pay. AFSA remains committed to our legislative platform's goal to resist TRICARE fee increases and pharmacy co-pays. We've asked you to share your story to better understand the wide-range of implications this policy can have on beneficiaries! Now, we're asking you to write your elected officials asking for their support in resisting the TRICARE Select Enrollment Fee. While our legislative team remains laser-focused on rejecting the enrollment fee in absolute terms, it is important to reiterate that the TRICARE Select enrollment fee has been codified in law since the FY2017 NDAA. As a result, parallel to our efforts to eliminate the fee outright, our team has also prepared an alternative advocacy campaign dedicated to mitigating damages that may follow under the uninterrupted collection of this fee. To write your elected officials and help our legislative team resist TRICARE Select Enrollment Fees and Co-Pays, please click here! Support H.R.5610, the "Fair Care for Vietnam Veterans Act"! Currently, Vietnam Veterans receive "presumptive" access to several health care benefits at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from their exposure to Agent Orange during their time of service. However, it is important to stipulate that tens of thousands of Veterans who have incurred health problems or defects scientifically linked to Agent Orange are not eligible to access these VA benefits. It is currently estimated that approximately 83,000 Vietnam Veterans struggling with bladder cancer, Parkinsonism, hypothyroidism, or hypertension struggle without receiving benefits from the VA. However, the VA has claimed there "is not a sufficient amount of evidence" to justify adding the conditions to the list. To the contrary, in 2016, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concluded that there is a link between the first three of these conditions and exposure to Agent Orange. Earlier this year, California Representative Josh Harder introduced H.R.5610, the Fair Care for Vietnam Veterans Act, to the legislative docket. This bill provides a presumption of service-connection for Parkinsonism, bladder cancer, hypertension, and hypothyroidism for veterans exposed to certain herbicide agents while serving in Vietnam. H.R.5610 passed as an amendment to the Senate's version of the FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). To become law, the amendment must now be included in the final version of the legislation. Our legislative team is asking for no more than 5 minutes of your time to support our advocacy efforts by urging your elected officials to support the inclusion of this pivotal quality of life provision in the final version of the FY2021 NDAA. To write your elected official in support of H.R.5610, please click here. In fact, AFSA's efforts on this issue have just been highlighted in a recently published Congressional Press Release which can be viewed here. Share How the United States Postal Service Impacts You! The United States Postal Service (USPS) not only plays a role in DOD's readiness mission, but it also serves as a lifeline to military healthcare beneficiaries who receive their prescriptions and life-saving medications through the mail. Amidst a global pandemic, the USPS has created, redacted, and proposed major changes to its business structure and service execution plans. These changes not only have the potential to impact the 97,000 veterans who are USPS employees, but also the more than 330,000 veterans who receive a package of prescriptions in the mail. Veterans experiencing delays in receiving their medications has made national coverage and is garnering attention from the Congressional Committees on Veterans Affairs. To better understand how these changes to the USPS could impact you, our legislative team is asking for no more than 4 minutes of your time to complete our 4-question survey. To share how the USPS impacts you today, please click here.

AFSA Membership Information

AFSA is proud to host the FIRST-EVER VIRTUAL PROFESSIONAL AIRMEN'S CONFERENCE to support and educate participants on the issues affecting the active duty, veteran and retired military members and their families.

During the Virtual Conference, important focus is placed on governance, military education, quality-of-life support, national security, and to improving and increasing individual capabilities through access to education, training, networking and motivational opportunities.

Here, we have the unique pleasure to introduce you to past and present military leadership as part of our professional development forum, and prestigious awards ceremony.

Each Professional Development Speaker and Honored Guest provides a rich insight to the Air Force's past, present and future. Moreover, these forums continue to build on the strong, solid foundation of activism, education and support for our Total Enlisted Corps and their families.

To view the 2020 Virtual Professional Airmen's Conference and Virtual Professional Education & Development Symposium, please click here.

Renew your AFSA Membership Today!

Founded in 1961, the Air Force Sergeants Association (AFSA) legislates, advocates and educates America's elected, military and community leaders in support of the quality of life for our 100,000 military members and their families.

AFSA continues to work long and hard to ensure the many benefit reductions being proposed are minimized or nullified. And, your membership will continue to pay dividends in terms of fair and equitable pay increases, retirement programs, educational benefits, and affordable and available health care.

For more information on the value that lies in an AFSA membership, please click here.

If your membership is up for renewal, please click on the "EZ-Renew" button at the bottom of this newsletter.

	And that's the way it is...

	In sum, our team is proud to announce that this week, the AFSA International Headquarters is proud to host the FIRST EVER VIRTUAL PROFESSIONAL AIRMEN'S CONFERENCE. Thank you to all of the advocates who participated in our Share Your Story Campaign where we asked you to share your experiences on how TRICARE Select Enrollment fees would potentially impact your quality of life. If you haven't Shared Your TRICARE Select Enrollment Fee story, please visit our legislative action center NOW! On the action center you will also find three BRAND NEW advocacy campaigns; including a follow up to the Share Your Story TRICARE Select Enrollment Fee campaign launched just two weeks ago! If you have any additional questions, please reach out to our military and government team at milgov3@hqafsa.org. And that's the way it is for Tuesday, August 25th, 2020. Stay tuned for our next M&G-B, where we will continue to keep you in the loop on all things pertinent to the coronavirus, veterans, active-duty members, guard and reservists, and military family members. Stay happy, and stay healthy!