Women Veterans

November 2, 2015

Texas Veterans and Public Law 114-31: When Will VA Give You Your Veterans Identification Card?

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Veterans Day 2015 is next week – Wednesday, November 11, 2015. Here in Texas, and around the United States, restaurants, retailers, and grateful citizens offer discounts and other benefits to acknowledge the service and sacrifice of our active-duty and Veteran military men and women. Many websites provide detailed information regarding Veterans Day activities and discounts, so we won’t repeat them all here.

ID Required for Veterans Day Benefits

Unless you are in uniform, most establishments understandably request some form of military identification to establish eligibility for various discounts, including items and services they will provide for free.

Most businesses will accept at least one of the following forms of identification to establish eligibility for Veterans Day discounts: Continue reading

October 31, 2015

Veterans, We’ve Been Heard! Your Right to See a Private Physician Under the “Choice Act”

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Bob Goss, founder of the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C.

Back in September, we posted a blog about VA’s handling of the “Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014,” P.L. 113-146 (“Choice Act”). The “Choice Act” was intended to improve Veterans’ access to medical services – especially private-physician-services – provided through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

We informed you that Congress passed the Choice Act to allow Veterans access to private physicians when VA is unable to schedule an appointment at a VA medical facility within specified wait-time limits, or when the Veteran lives more than 40 miles from a VA medical facility or meets other eligibility criteria for using a private physician. We also alerted you to the fact that, more than a year after Congress passed the Choice Act, VA’s handling of referrals to private physicians created more confusion and difficulties for Veterans without providing better care.

Well – on October 29, 2015 – VA published a notice titled “Expanded Access to Non-VA Care Through the Veterans Choice Program.” What does this mean? It means we’ve been heard! VA’s “expanded access” isn’t a huge victory, but some of the improvements are those we called for and discussed in our September blog.

October 30, 2015

Let’s Talk About A Difficult Subject: Separation for Misconduct

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

If you have read the news recently, you know there’s an epidemic going on. Led by over 2,500 dismissals from Fort Hood, since 2009 the U.S. Army has separated for misconduct at least 22,000 soldiers who served in Iraq or Afghanistan and returned with mental-health disorders.

As reported by National Public Radio, our nation’s own Army therapists appear to be conspiring against service men and women to characterize service-induced mental health issues as misbehavior and misconduct. Continue reading

October 28, 2015

“It’s Not the Years, It’s the Mileage.” Why All Active-Duty Military Personnel Need A Physical.

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Mission focus is why we justly admire our active-duty and Veteran military personnel. Unfortunately for our service members and Veterans, “Playing with pain” can quickly evolve from a mantra to a way of life. This means that injuries and ailments are pushed aside, even if non-prescription painkillers are required. To protect yourself and your loved ones, before leaving service, all active-duty military personnel should make it their mission to take this one crucial step, preferably in the year before they separate. Here’s the step: a pre-discharge physical. Continue reading

October 27, 2015

Don’t Gamble With Your Health! Learn What Medical “Informed Consent” Really Means For You.

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

You are not a medical professional. But, you’re a smart person with at least average ability to understand instructions and information. Guess what? If you blindly sign all those forms they give you at the doctor’s office, your intelligence will be used to pin all the risks from any medical procedure on you. This article explain how patients are duped with administrative forms and what you can do to avoid being a victim. Continue reading

October 26, 2015

What to do when VA deliberately late mails you a notice

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Picture this scenario. Today is Monday, October 19, 2015. You open your mail. Surprise! You have a letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). You read the letter. It’s dated August 17, 2015. The letter explains that you have 60-days from the date on the letter in which to respond…or else VA will reduce your benefits. “Wait a second,” you think. “Have I gone crazy? Today is October 19, 2015. Sixty days from August 17 is…(you count)…October 16^th!” The deadline has already passed! You then scramble through the trash to find the discarded envelope. You find the envelope. Isn’t that something? The letter is postmarked October 15, 2015! What happens next? Continue reading

October 23, 2015

Meet Our Team! An Interview with Dee Doutel, Senior Paralegal

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Bob Goss, founder of the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C., has built his law practice around the concept of family and friends who have a passion to protect our troops. As part of a series of conversations with our law office family and friends, it is a pleasure to introduce Ms. Dee Doutel, Senior Paralegal with the firm.

Eleanor Meltzer: Dee, it is great to talk with you today! Could you tell us how you met Bob (Goss) and started working for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C.?

Dee Doutel: I met Bob through a mutual friend of ours. Two years ago, my eldest brother died suddenly and unexpectedly. As a result, I was the lone surviving Officer and Director of the Corporation he co-founded and was forced to spend all of my time working on keeping the Corporation going while trying to find a buyer for its assets. Continue reading

October 22, 2015

Houston, Austin, San Antonio: Self-Storage And Your Consumer Rights Under Texas Law

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Self-storage facilities are so popular they have their own national association. According to the Self Storage Association (SSA), this industry generated $27.2 billion in annual U.S. revenues, in 2014 alone! SSA asserts that the self-storage industry has been the fastest-growing segment of the commercial real-estate industry over the last 40 years.

Texas, of course, has its own self-storage organization, the Texas Self Storage Association (TSSA). Some sources identify Houston and Austin as No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the “Top 10” U.S. cities for self-storage, with San Antonio not far behind.

With so many people – including military personnel – moving to Texas, it is likely that you or someone you know has items in self-storage. What does this mean? Continue reading

October 21, 2015

Texas – Benefits for Veterans, Military Personnel, and Spouses

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

As we have mentioned in previous blogs, the State of Texas is grateful to Veterans and their families. Texas is notable for its numerous programs designed to assist Veterans and their families through discounts on various licenses, financial assistance, educational benefits, and more.

The following summary is intended as a gateway to some of the Texas agencies responsible for the many Veteran programs offered by the State of Texas.

CEMETERY – The Veterans Land Board (VLB) maintains four Texas State Cemeteries for Veterans. The cemeteries are located in Abilene, Corpus Christi, Killeen, and Mission. Continue reading

October 20, 2015

How to avoid a costly common post-service mistake. Part II of an interview with Bob Goss

by Eleanor K. Meltzer for the Law Office of Robert B. Goss

Bob Goss, founder of the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C.

Robert B. Goss is a Veteran, attorney, and the founder of the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C. Bob, as he prefers to be called, started his law firm in response to the need he saw for a level playing field between Veterans and the government system intended to provide benefits to Veterans. Recently, I had an opportunity to discuss with Bob some of his thoughts on how Veterans can be better served. The following is Part II of a two-part conversation.

Eleanor Meltzer: Bob, I know Veterans can contact you directly. What recommendations do you have for Veterans who are struggling to obtain benefits?

Robert Goss: “Don’t wait to contact me.” I hope everyone reading this interview tells their active-duty friends the following: if you are just leaving the service, make the service give you a physical. Once you leave service (and are now a Veteran), claim ALL your disabilities. For instance, a paratrooper most likely is going to have orthopedic issues, tinnitus, hearing loss. Depending on the individual, there may be other service-connected traumas such as PTSD and burn-pit related injuries. FILE WITHIN THE 1^ST YEAR after leaving the service. Why? Because then your benefits go back to the day after separation. If a Veteran has been out longer than a year, they still need to file. The sooner the better. Continue reading