The VFW Post 9473 Service Officers Page.

From the VFW Post 9473 Veterans Service Officer

I am Michael Moehl, your Service Officer. Even though many of our 9473 members have met me at the Post and I have the honor to work with a few, I believe it is important that I advise you.

The changes in our personal and national economic situation, and the basic rules that protect our rights as veterans are changing. Below are a few:

1. Category 8 - those veterans making over $35K were not allowed to utilize the clinic. The VA is currently taking and reviewing those applications and are approving some on a case by case basis. If your employment status or economic status has changed, reapply with your new information.
2. The Franklin County Veterans Service Commission - this commission was established by ORC 5901 and is funded by an inside set aside of the property tax collected in the county. The commission can assist with utility bills, mortgage, rent, transportation to and from medical appointment and much more. They also have fine service officers who can and will assist with VA claims.
3. In order to set up a "safety net" for health care I urge all veterans to go the clinic off of Stelzer road and apply. You will need a copy of your DD 214 or retirement orders and fill out the application paperwork. Again, the Category 8 status may apply but the VA will record your paperwork for future action.
4. For those service members returning as OIF/OEF veterans, please report to theVA clinic asap. You have 5 years free medical care from the time you return. All you need is a DD 214 or orders showing you were deployed.

Here are a few contact telephone numbers if you have any specific questions:

• VA Medical Center 614-257-5200
• Vets Service Center 614-462-2500
• Vets Center 614-257-5550 PTSD Group and 1 on 1 counseling
• Michael Moehl VFW 9473 Service Officer 614-596-1974

In closing, I urge all veterans to sign up at the VA not only will it provide your safety net but, it can affect your family also.

About theVFW National Veterans Service Officers

Imagine spending years wading through the bureaucratic red tape offered up by VA only to find you’ve been denied a disability claim. Where would you turn? Maybe you’d just throw up your hands and walk way in defeat. VFW understands the frustration associated with claims and that’s why its National Veterans Service (NVS) program was formed.

Service Officers Lead the Way
Service officers are the key to the success of NVS. They advocate for veterans rights. Veterans need not be VFW members to take advantage of this assistance, which is provided free of charge.

With a nationwide network of service officers, both on the Department (state) level (full time, professional advocates) and Post level (volunteer advocates), NVS assists more then 120,000 veterans and their families each year. Annually, Department Service Officers (DSOs) garner over a billion dollars in compensation benefits.

The work of service officers involves important matters like helping a veteran get outpatient treatment or gain admission for inpatient care at a VA medical center. They assist veterans and their families in filing for VA disability compensation, rehabilitation and education programs, pension and death benefits, employment and training programs, and many other programs.

At times, the work is very complicated, requiring evidence to prepare oral arguments for formal hearings on VA disability or social security benefits. And there are those numerous occasions when VFW assistance helps lift a disabled veteran's family out of the grip of poverty.

VFW service officers are skilled professionals, trained experts in developing disabled veterans' cases by reviewing and applying current law, pertinent legislation, regulations and medical histories. VFW service officers function as attorneys-in-fact for the veterans and families they represent. Their counseling on the full range of veterans' benefits and programs provided under federal, state, and local law is indispensable.

Service officers also review rating board decisions, informing veterans and their families of the appeals process and of their appellate rights. When needed, they request hearings before the VA and the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) to present oral arguments.

As part of NVS’s continuing effort to ensure the service officers are properly trained, VFW provides basic and advance training to the VFW cadre of service officers, claims consultants and other VFW-accredited representatives.

Furthermore, field representatives operating out of the Washington, D.C. office evaluate VA operations and services – health-care facilities, regional office, cemeteries and vet centers.

New info: August 2009

The new VA Budget has been passed and signed. The increase for this year is 15% across the board. This is the largest single increase in the budget in over 30 years. According to the VA clinic here in Columbus this will allow for an expansion of staff and services of approximately 30% within the next 2 years.