Specially Adaptive Housing Legislation Passes House, Ensures Access for Blinded Veterans (Alexandria, Virginia) The Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) today recognized the passage of H.R. 3504, the Ryan Kules and Paul Benne Specially Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019. The bill was passed under unanimous consent by members of Congress. READ MORE
Blinded Veterans Laud Bipartisan House Approval of Key Veterans Employment Legislation (Alexandria, Virginia) The Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) today praised the bipartisan effort to pass by unanimous consent H.R. 4920, “The VA Contracting Preference Consistency Act,” legislation that will significantly enhance the lives of America’s blinded veterans for years to come. The bill has already passed the full Senate and moves to the White House for Presidential signature. READ MORE
Giovinazzo Honored as WVG Member of Month for July BVA life member Sharon Giovinazzo served in the United States Army as a combat medic. She has said that it took losing her sight to gain a vision of what the next chapter of her life would be. Today she is President and CEO of World Services for the Blind in Little Rock, Arkansas, and is July’s Women’s Veteran Group Member of the Month. Women’s Veteran […]
District 3 Veteran of the Month: Gretchen Wilson BVA’s District 3 comprising much of the southeastern states, has selected loyal and longtime BVA member Gretchen Wilson of the South Carolina Regional Group as its July 2020 Member of the Month. Read more about Gretchen’s commitment to serving her fellow veterans. READ MORE
BVA Taps Jim Vale as New National Service Director Blinded Veterans Association has selected a National Service Director to oversee Veterans Benefits and Policy. Learn more about the appointment and background of blinded veteran Jim Vale, BVA’s newest staff member. READ MORE
BRS Program Office Wellness Check Article Ella Hart, VA Blind Rehabilitation Service National Program Consultant, describes an important VA initiative with a human touch designed to check on our veterans with vision loss during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Ella is both a Certified Low Vision Therapist and a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist. Read Ella’s article, which includes BVA Executive Director Donald Overton’s personal experience with the initiative. READ MORE
BVA Continues To Urge House Vote on H.R. 3504 Together with support from Representative Phil Roe, M.D. (R-Tenn.), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, and Representative Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.), and other Veterans Service Organizations, the Blinded Veterans Association again today expressed support for passage of critical legislation that would assist blinded veterans and other service-connected veterans in adapting their homes for greater independence in daily life. Read more, including a comment from […]
Important Adaptive Housing Grant Bill Stalled in House BVA has joined with other Veterans Service Organizations in calling on Congress to pass a bill that will expand grants available to blinded veterans and their families to modify their homes to better meet their needs . Read Executive Director Donald Overton’s quote and more in a July 1 Stars and Stripes article.
VA Rolls Out Simplified Travel Reimbursement System for Veterans, Beneficiaries The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is beginning a roll-out of an innovative new system beginning July 1 for veterans and eligible beneficiaries to submit and track transportation reimbursement claims. The process will use VA’s secure, web-based portal, Access VA. It will be accessible 24/7, 365 days a year. Implementation will run across Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) in phases from July until November. Read […]
BVA’s Resilient Wellness Project Blinded Veteran Brothers and Sisters: When I became legally blind about ten years ago, I began asking if the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) had anything written about coping skills that would help blinded veterans. When I received no answer for five years, I began to believe that if there were to be anything like that, maybe we should be the ones to create a guidebook. It took me several years […]
