The Military Retirement Services Office of the Watervliet Arsenal publishes the Retired Military Bulletin. Statements/opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Arsenal or Department of the Army. Written correspondence can be sent to: Watervliet Arsenal, Department of the Army, 1 Buffington Street, ATTN: AMSTA-WV-RSO, Watervliet, New York 12189-4000..

Email should be addressed to: wvarso@gmail.com. Periodic updates can be found on the web at: www.wvarso.com. Telephone is 518-266-5810, fax number is 518-266-5811. Editor: MSG Kenneth Hunter, USA (Ret): MSGT Edmund Shepard, USAF (RET)

RAD 2012 - The Military Retiree Office plans to conduct a Retiree Appreciation Day (RAD) in 2012 for the more than 7500 military retirees residing in our 11-county Capital District. The RAD will provide information on military retiree benefits and issues. We expect to have a confirmed date before the end of this calendar year, and we strongly recommend that you periodically check our website, www.wvarso.com, to obtain the date and mark it on your calendar. If you don’t own a computer we suggest that you visit your local library and make use of their computers to obtain this information. As always, we seek your input for the kinds of things you would like to be included in that upcoming event. Please forward your comments by writing to the postal address or email address listed at the top of this page.

DoD DROPPING SS NUMBERS FROM MILITARY ID CARDS – To protect service members and other DoD ID card holders from identity theft, Social Security Number removal is in full swing. At the present time, the Social Security number is printed on the back of common access cards, and on the front of cards issued to dependents and retirees. The current cards will be replaced with new cards having a DoD identification number. DoD’s identification number is a unique 10-digit number that is assigned to every person with a direct relationship with the department. An 11-digit DoD benefits number will also appear on the cards of those people eligible for DoD benefits. The first nine digits are common to a sponsor and the last two digits will identify a specific person within the sponsor’s family. Social Security numbers embedded in the bar codes on the back of ID cards will remain there for the time being and will be phased out beginning in 2012. Here’s the status to date: The change began in 2009 and will continue through 2013 and become standard operating procedure from then on. DoD advises you not to rush to your closest ID card office to replace your cards. All ID cards will be replaced over the normal course of updating cards as they expire. Those with indefinite expiration dates (INDEF) may get a new card by making an appointment at your ID card office. To locate your nearest ID card office by zip code go to: http://www.dmdc.osd.mil/rsl/. The program is underway in three separate phases: Phase 1 started in 2009 with the removal of dependents’ printed SSN’s from their ID cards. The sponsors’ SSNs remain for now. Phase 2 starts in June 2011. This time all printed SSNs will be removed from the cards. The SSNs will be replaced by DoD ID numbers. Phase 3 is expected to begin in late 2012. This is the final phase. SSNs will be removed from the barcodes on the back of ID cards. At this point, no SSN will be on ID cards in any format. Make sure you bring two forms of ID when you visit the ID card office. Visit this site for the types of ID: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-9.pdf, and scroll to page five. For those nearing age 65, note your expiration date is just prior to your 65th birthday.

DFAS WEBSITE UPDATED – The Defense Finance and Accounting Service website, www.dfas.mil, has a new look, new navigation and better content. The website was redesigned to focus on the information needs of more than six million military members, federal civilian employees, military retirees and annuitants, and DoD vendors and contractors DFAS serves on a daily basis. The website features sections devoted to pay topics for the agency’s diverse payroll customers. Navigation has been designed to get users to the most popular pages easier and faster.

GETTING YOUR AFFAIRS IN ORDER – Very often when a retiree dies, the surviving spouse or children are at a loss as to what they should do in regard to the military retiree’s pay and benefits. There is no better time than now to create a list of names and phone numbers that will need to be contacted when he/she dies and inform the spouse and family as to its location. That list should include these items: (1) DFAS, Retired and Annuity Pay Center, phone 1-800-321-1080 to stop retired pay, apply for Survivor Benefits, and obtain information about insurance and other allotments; (2) Veterans Administration, phone 1-800-827-1000 for Disability Pay and burial assistance and/or applying for Dependency Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for the surviving spouse; (3) Social Security Administration, phone 1-800-772-1213, to discuss Social Security Survivor benefits; (4) Office of Personnel Management, phone 1-888-767-6738, for retirees who are receiving civil service pensions in addition to military retired pay; (5) the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS), phone 1-800-538-9552; (6) National Service Life Insurance (NSLI) or Servicemember’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI), phone 1-800-669-8477. Also, your list should include all information regarding your bank account(s), investments, and other like items. No one likes to think of the inevitable. Hopefully, you have your will and health care proxy in order. Your will covers things like your home and financial assets. But it might not contain information about your personal belongings. Personal belongings often cause conflicts when someone dies. Why? They often have memories or family history attached to them. To assist you in these matters go to: http://yellowpieplate.umn.edu. It will provide you with valuable insight and help you to put things into perspective.

ARMED FORCES VACATION CLUB (AFVC) – AFVC, a “space available” program for Department of Defense affiliated personnel, provides affordable visits to vacation resorts for $369 per unit per week. You can earn a discount when you book online. You are responsible for your travel expenses to the site, taxes, security deposits, telephone calls and fees charged by the resort for services such as jet ski rental, lift tickets, camel rides, etc. For details on this opportunity, go to: www.afvclub.com. The site explains the rules and procedures and it will display vacation availabilities. Each confirmed booking through AFVC will generate funds for the morale-welfare-recreation programs at the Watervliet Arsenal. When booking your reservation, you’ll be asked for our military installation’s ID number. Please type in WVA 232. The application process is fairly easy.

IT’S BACK – HIGH COST OF FUEL – If a trip by car is in your plans this year it would pay you to check out AAA’s fuel cost trip calculator. It will assist you in figuring the total cost of your trip. Enter your car make, model and year. Then select your starting city and final destination. It also offers a map that shows average fuel prices by region; also, www.fueleconomy.gov is a site that can help you find the cheapest local gas prices. It also lists stations to avoid – the ones with high gas prices. GasBuddy and GasPriceWatch are two additional sites that can help you find reasonable gas prices. Both allow you to search by area. If you think gas prices are too high for you, consider sharing a ride through AlterNetRides that connects you to other commuters. To access, use any or all of the following: www.fuelcostcalculator.com, www.gasbuddy.com, www.fueleconomy.gov, www.gaspricewatch.com, and www.alternaterides.com.

TRICARE ELIGIBILITY/ – Proper registration in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility System (DEERS) is the key to receipt of timely and effective TRICARE benefits. DEERS is a worldwide, computerized data base of uniformed service members (sponsors), their family members, and others who are eligible for military benefits, including TRICARE. You, as the sponsor, must register all eligible family members. Registration allows them to update personal information such as addresses and phone numbers. You have a responsibility to update DEERS immediately whenever you have a change in sponsor status affecting you and your eligible dependent(s). To register family members or update DEERS records, sponsors must complete DD Form 1172 Application for Uniformed Services Identification Card and DEERS Enrollment and provide documentation such as marriage, birth, or death certificates; Social Security numbers; active duty separation papers; and Medicare cards. Each family member’s eligibility record must be updated separately. Note: If the sponsor is not available, family members can update DEERS with a notarized DD Form 1172 or, if you have a Power of Attorney. If you try to obtain care and your DEERS records indicates you as ineligible for TRICARE (but you have not truly lost TRICARE eligibility), you’ll need to update your DEERS information. For information, go to: www.tricare.mil/certificate.

TRICARE DATA ACCESS EXPANDS – An update on TRICARE Online at www.tricareonline.com now allows user access to expanded personal health data, including lab results, patient history and diagnoses, and provider visits. These features are an expansion of the current Blue Button capability, which already allowed beneficiaries to safely and securely access and print or save their demographic information, allergy and medication profiles. For additional information visit the TRICARE web address shown above.

TRICARE ALLERGY TEST COVERAGE– TRICARE beneficiaries are eligible to receive care for the testing and treatment of conditions related to allergies. Tests administered by allergists can identify most allergies. TRICARE covers prescription medication(s) approved by the FDA and allergy treatments administered by allergists, BUT IT DOES NOT COVER MOST OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICATIONS. To find out if TRICARE covers a medication, use the online formulary search tool. To obtain more information about allergies, visit the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases website. For information on TRICARE allergy services and how to arrange care, visit the TRICARE website.

LYME DISEASE ALE/ – Now that warm weather is taking hold, think about protecting you and your family while bite of an infected deer tick. Protect yourself by wearing a long-sleeved shirt and long pants. Tuck your shirt into your pants, and tuck your pants into your socks. Check yourself, family members and pets for ticks after being outdoors. Carefully remove ticks with tweezers. Place the tick in a safe container and show it to your health provider. Use insect repellents when outdoors, and be sure to follow label directions.

RABIES WARNING – Rabies is an ongoing public health problem in New York State. This deadly virus can spread to pets and people who come into contact with rabid animals, including bats. In the last decade, bat rabies has caused several deaths in the Empire State and most of the human rabies deaths in the United States. Bats have small, sharp teeth, and you can’t always see a bite mark. If you find a bat in your home, do not discard or release it. Call your county health agency to obtain information on safe ways to handle the problem.