S&S - On the new GI Bill, concurrent receipt and advance VA funding

From my archive of press clippings:

Stars and Stripes

On the new GI Bill, concurrent receipt and advance VA funding


By Tom Philpott, Special to Stars and Stripes

Mideast edition, Saturday, May 16, 2009


The Obama administration is taking steps to reconcile ambitious campaign promises with real world budget challenges on two key issues for veterans: advance funding for VA health care and expansion of concurrent receipt for disabled retirees.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"ON THE POST-9/11 GI BILL: Since May 1, VA has received more than 20,000 applications and the number climbs by roughly 3000 a day. New GI Bill benefits are to begin Aug. 1, in time for fall classes. Asked at a May 13 hearing of the House appropriations subcommittee if payment would be made on time, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki sounded hopeful, not certain.
Shinseki described “a very, very tight timeline and, I won’t say lots of risk, but there is some risk to the process.” "