President Signs Veterans Emergency Care Fairness Act
To help veterans with limited health insurance

On Feb. 2, President Obama signed the Veterans Emergency Care Fairness Act of 2009 into law. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, introduced the bill to help veterans with limited health insurance afford emergency care.

“For veterans with limited insurance, a trip to the emergency room should not result in financial ruin. With this new law, VA will be positioned to help veterans who are enrolled in VA care whose insurance does not cover the full cost of emergency treatment.”

The new law will enable the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reimburse veterans enrolled in VA health care for the remaining cost of emergency treatment if the veteran has outside insurance that only covers part of the cost. Previously, VA could reimburse veterans or pay outside hospitals directly only if a veteran had no outside health insurance.

In addition to reimbursing veterans for emergency care in the future, the bill allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide retroactive reimbursements for care received prior to the passage of this bill.

NCHV Holds Second HVRP Teleconference on Feb. 25
Register now – only 30 spots left

NCHV is holding its second "HVRP Replicable Models" teleconference on Thursday, Feb. 25, at 2 p.m. EST. The call will feature current Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program (HVRP) grantees who will share their experiences, approaches to collaboration and best practices. Participants will learn how to capitalize on implementing HVRP funding, and how they can benefit from other grantees’ experiences.

For more information and to register for this call, click here.

VCU Offers Free Webcast on Substance Abuse and Employment
Monday, Feb. 22

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is offering a free webcast on substance abuse and employment of homeless veterans. The webcast will take place on Monday, Feb. 22, at 2 p.m. EST. The presenters will begin by discussing the prevalence of unemployed homeless veterans and the co-occurrence of mental health issues such as TBI, SUD and PTSD. Next, strategies and techniques to help homeless veterans find and retain employment will be provided. In closing, information about training and motivational techniques will be discussed.

To register for this webcast, click here.

2010 NCHV Annual Conference Just Four Months Away

The 2010 NCHV Annual Conference and Membership Meeting will be held June 21 - 23, 2010, at the Grand Hyatt Washington in Washington, D.C. This is a special opportunity for service providers to access knowledge, training and experience to increase the effectiveness of their organizations in assisting homeless veterans.

A limited number of rooms has been reserved for conference attendees at the discounted government rate. Click here to make your reservations now.

• Call for entries: Attendees will be able to partake in the Annual NCHV Awards Banquet, where peers in the homeless veterans assistance movement will receive recognition for their accomplishments. Submit your nominations now!
  
  
• Attention members: We need your photos! To celebrate our 20th year, we're putting together a slideshow of photographs from the past 20 years. In order to be included, please email photos that show your organization at work to photos@nchv.org.

For more information on the annual conference, click here.

Funding Opportunities

The DSF Charitable Foundation is the charitable-giving organization of the David Scaife family. The Foundation seeks to promote excellence in three program areas: health, human services and education. The grant program focuses on southwestern Pennsylvania, primarily Pittsburgh, where the Foundation is based. The Foundation has a particular interest in helping to create or sustain models of excellence that have potential to be replicated elsewhere and may, therefore, be more beneficial to the nation. Inquiries may be submitted at any time.

For more information, click here.

The Lincoln Financial Foundation welcomes grant applications from organizations that meet its geographic, strategic focus and eligibility guidelines. Local charitable contribution committees review grant applications. Human Services grant applications must be received by June 24, 2010; these grants address human service issues that focus on basic needs and building skills for self-sufficiency.

The Lincoln Financial Foundation funds programs in the following geographic areas: Chiciago, IL; Concord, NH; Fort Wayne, IN; Greensboro, NC; Hartford, CT; Omaha, NE; and Philadelphia, PA. For more information, click here.

Please do not respond directly to this e-newsletter. Instead, direct your responses to
rbrown@nchv.org.