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Commissaries’ Freedom’s Choice Enhanced Water earns more industry honors for taste, label design

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NEWS RELEASE

Defense Commissary Agency

Corporate Communications

1300 E Avenue, Fort Lee, VA 23801-1800

Tel:  (804) 734-8000, Ext. 8-6105  DSN: 687-8000, Ext. 8-6105 

FAX: (804) 734-8248  DSN: 687-8248

www.commissaries.com

Release Number:        12-21                                                                                                                        

Date:                              February 18, 2021

Media Contact:           Kevin L. Robinson, public affairs specialist

Tel.:                               (804) 734-8000, Ext. 4-8773

E-mail:                         kevin.robinson@deca.mil

‘Salute to Excellence’

Commissaries’ Freedom’s Choice Enhanced Water earns more industry honors for taste, label design

By Kevin L. Robinson,

DeCA public affairs specialist

Note: To read this release online, go to the DeCA website.

FORT LEE, Va. – The Defense Commissary Agency’s Freedom’s Choice Enhanced Water received the Private Label Manufacturers Association’s 2020 Salute to Excellence Award virtually through the PLMA’s Private Label Week event Feb. 1-5.

DeCA’s commissary store brand product emerged as a winner in the water category out of over 700 product submissions from 55 North American retailers in 68 categories. The submissions were tested and judged by evaluators from consumer and industry groups.

Taste was among the attributes lauded by PLMA judges. This is a key component to the product’s quality, said Bill Moore, DeCA director and CEO.

“The taste of our water is enhanced through an electrolysis process which is recognized as the premier technology for creating pure drinking waters,” Moore said. “The added electrolytes create a healthful drinking water that is perfect for after workout refueling – without adding calories.”

Because of social distancing restrictions linked to COVID-19 safety precautions, the PLMA replaced its traditional award display at its Chicago Trade Show with a “Salute to Excellence” winners video aired during the association’s virtual Private Label Week.

The water’s package label also drew praise. The look was a collaborative effort from the JPG Global and the SpartanNash design teams, said Jennifer Ferrell,DeCA’s private label program manager. SpartanNash is DeCA’s private label distributor.

“With the label design we wanted to capture the fluidity of the ocean along with the colors of our Freedom’s Choice logo,” Ferrell said. “We also wanted a design that would stand out from other waters so our customers would understand the elevated benefits of our product.

“Many of our customers have a dedicated exercise regimen, and we knew it was important to get the design and taste right while still ensuring optimal mineral replenishment,” she added. “We believe that this design accomplishes this, and we’re so honored that our industry colleagues noticed.”

DeCA’s Freedom’s Choice Enhanced Water was initially recognized in August 2020 when it received the 2020 Gold Vertex Award for packaging.

Besides the Freedom’s Choice brand, which includes food products, DeCA’s commissary store brands lineup also includes the HomeBase brand for non-food items including paper towel and tissue products, garbage bags and other household items.

Commissary Store Brands are also sold under TopCare (health and beauty), Full Circle Market (natural and organic food options), Tippy Toes (baby products), Flock’s Finest (wild bird food); Pure Harmony (pet food) and Wide Awake (coffee beverages). Crav’n Flavor (comfort food favorites) will be coming soon to commissary shelves.

Crav’n Flavor, TopCare, Full Circle Market, Tippy Toes, Flock’s Finest, Pure Harmony and Wide Awake are not exclusive to DeCA.

Since DeCA introduced its private label program in 2017, the agency has added over 1,000 private label products. Store brand sales in fiscal 2020 were over $136 million and the program moved almost 62 million units.

-DeCA-

10 Ways to Use Your Tax Rebate Wisely

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Tax time can be a confusing time. There are many numbers, acronyms (we have so many of those in the military community), and those ever-important dates for filing. After the paperwork is gathered, numbers are entered, and the filing is done, the wait begins for the tax rebate to show up in the mail or bank accounts. What to do with the rebate once it arrives? It is tempting to splurge on something new and exciting. There are wise and useful ways to spend the rebate.

  1. Pay off orthodontic bills. While the military’s dental insurance does cover a little of orthodontic care, it does not cover it all. Especially as military families move across the country while a child, or yourself, is under orthodontic care, this leads to bills for care. Then there is a phase I and II of orthodontic treatment, and that can add up quickly. Use your rebate to pay for the remaining amount. If you pay the bill in full, ask if the orthodontist will provide a percentage off to cover this payment in full. It may not seem like a splurge, but using the rebate money is a splurge on a pretty smile!
  2. Pay off or put a payment toward a high-interest loan. Have a credit card debt? What about a high-interest car loan? Maybe you are paying off school debt. Use the rebate to pay it down or off. Interest adds up, especially when it is above 10%. Depending on the risk, most investments can earn 7-10%, so any interest rate higher than that is worth paying down faster. This allows your money to be yours at a quicker pace to have available to invest in the future if you desire.
  3. Put payment on the principal of your home payment. Putting a payment on the home mortgage will lower the principal amount and save some of that interest added to the larger principal amount. If you want to pay off your house sooner, consider adjusting the paycheck deduction, so you do not get a rebate at the end of tax season and instead receive the higher paycheck monthly and use that extra money to pay off the mortgage with bigger payments monthly.
  4. Invest in a Financial Planner. Some fee-for-service financial planners can help determine the best investments for your family. From a Simple IRA to a 529 or education savings accounts, financial advisors can guide types of financial accounts that best suit your family’s financial abilities.
  5. Boost Your Emergency Savings. Financial emergencies happen. The car engine stops working, you need to pay for an emergency dental bill, or the HVAC in your home stops working in the dead of winter.  If you don’t already have an emergency fund, put aside your tax rebate for it. Set an attainable goal – be it $500 or $1000 and go up from there as you are able. The age-old saying is to have three months’ expenses as an emergency fund. If funding is less predictable, have a larger emergency fund.
  6. Build up your PCS fund. Moving is not cheap. While the government pays for the physical move of the household goods, and there is reimbursement for hotel stays when moving to the new location, there are still extra costs associated with replacing missing and broken items and pantry items. Put the tax rebate aside in an interest-bearing account ready to pay for the upcoming PCS costs.
  7. Build a Savings Goal. If you have paid off debt and built up an emergency fund, start saving for a savings goal. If you want to own a home, consider building up savings for payment on the principal of a home, even if you use the VA Loan for the purchase of a home. Are you looking to purchase a car in the future? Consider saving for that. Maybe your goal is to buy new furniture during your twilight tour that you don’t worry have to worry about the weight with. Or perhaps your family wants to buy a Recreational Vehicle in the future to explore after retirement, consider the rebate as a boost to saving towards it. Decide on a savings goal for yourself or your family, and put the tax rebate toward that.
  8. Consider purchasing life insurance. While in the military, SGLI provides wonderful life insurance coverage to the active duty member, but life insurance is not available after retirement. Life insurance provides coverage of funeral expenses and any living expenses needed for the family left behind.
  9. Invest in education. Whether it is education for yourself or your spouse, using the rebate to pay for college courses can be an investment that pays dividends later. Maybe you wanted to take photography courses or get a certificate in a computer program. These skills can help build business or skill levels to help with future employment. If you have been looking at going back to school, using your rebate may be a smart way to do it.
  10.  Save it. While this sounds like the simplest of all of the above, if you already have the debt paid off and an emergency fund in a separate account, maybe all you need to do is save the amount. Let the interest in your savings or checking account grow a little more, and you will be ready for whatever you need when you need it.

14 Items to Get at the Commissary to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Home

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St. Patrick is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. The legends that surround him that he drove the snakes out of Ireland and shared the Trinity through the use of the Irish clover, the shamrock, led to the celebration of St. Patrick. The secular holiday began in the United States in the 1700s and has grown over the years. While the potato famine occurred in Ireland, there was meat readily available in America, making corned beef a welcome addition to the potato and making dishes like corned beef brisket a staple for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.

The International Aisle is a bevy of options for traditional Irish goods. Start St. Patrick’s Day with Irish Oatmeal that is truly hearty. There are several stone-ground mustards available in the International Aisle with varying levels of spice or kick. A seasonal favorite is Irish Potato Flakes – once made and kale or cabbage added with heavy cream makes the traditional Irish mashed potatoes of Colcannon.

Outside of the International aisle, the meat department offers plenty of options. Pre-packaged containers of brisket with carrots, potatoes, cabbage, and spices are all ready to go in one convenient package. When you get home, all that is needed is to put it in a stew pot with the required amount of liquid and viola – a traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal is ready to go. If you prefer, corned beef can be picked up in the meat department. The produce section offers a bounty of potato choices in addition to carrots (maybe even mix up the colors with rainbow carrots) and cabbage. Pickling spices are available in the Deli and/or spice aisle.

If Irish Seafood Chowder is your celebratory dish for St. Patrick’s Day, pick up any variety of seafood from the seafood counter from salmon, trout, or shellfish. The vegetables for the stew vary based on taste but can include celery, potatoes, or cabbage.

If you want to make your own pickling spice mix, hit the spice aisle to pick up whole peppercorns, bay leaves, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, crushed red pepper flakes, allspice berries, ground mace, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, or ground ginger. The recipe for corned beef and cabbage pickling spices vary, so stick with the spices you know and use after making the pickling spice mix. Some basic pickling spice mix would be mustard seeds, allspice berries, bay leaves, salt, and pepper.

If you want pre-made Irish Soda Bread, check out the deli for a selection of different sized loaves of bread, some made into the size of muffins. The deli is a great place to get sugar cookies in shamrock shapes to decorate at home or even pre-decorated for a non-traditional but sweet treat.

For the adults in the home, if Irish Coffee is the cocktail of choice to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, pick up a strong, bold ground coffee and sugar from the commissary in preparation. If you are looking to make it a 21 and up only cocktail, don’t forget to stop by the Class 6 or Package store for Irish Whiskey like Jameson.

Things to get from the Commissary for your St. Patrick’s Day Celebration:

  • Corned beef
  • Cabbage
  • Potatoes
  • Carrots
  • Pickling Spices
  • Stone-Ground Mustard
  • Seafood as desired
  • Celery
  • Irish Oatmeal
  • Irish Soda Bread
  • Shamrock Cookies
  • Heavy Cream
  • Strong Ground Coffee
  • Sugar

What will you eat this St. Patrick’s Day?

Vacation Planning for Pandemic Year 2

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As we enter the second year of a world in pandemic mode, we as humans are craving exploring the great outdoors. While travel has changed drastically, there are still ways to explore and plan vacations safely. Military families are not immune to travel during pandemic, with many having to travel to complete Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders. Many states limit nonessential travel still, so vacation planning will look different during a pandemic. With different planning, a break from the monotony of stay at home, and the virtual school can be safely completed.

  1. Stay Local. The safest way to travel is to stay in your local area. Many states now require quarantine either before or after travel to the state, except for those traveling on government orders. Planning a staycation locally means you are aware of the current requirements and guidelines for the area. There is the advantage of being aware of resources like grocery stores and medical care if needed. And there is no travel needed outside of your own personal vehicle.
  2. Review the COVID-19 Cleaning Guidelines. If you are looking to stay at a hotel, call to inquire about the COVID-19 cleaning guidelines they follow and ensure they have flexible cancellation policies. Many hotels are following more stringent cleaning policies and require a gap between guests in the rooms.
  3. Keep trips short. Gauge your comfort level with short staycations. Traveling is not the same as it once was, and it can cause an increase in anxiety in some. If you are wary of traveling, pick a location near you and for a day or two. Feeling uncomfortable? Head home, and even if you can’t get all of your payback, less money is lost.
  4. Get outdoors. Free exploration through hiking is a wonderful way to get outdoors for a fun vacation. There is lots of space to move, keeping more than 6 feet from others freely. Tent camping allows for the family group to stay together and enjoy the space. Bringing and prepping your own food and sleeping in your own sleeping bags means you are in charge of your living quarters and food.
  5. RV it. Like camping – this is a home on wheels. You can grocery shop once a week and take it on the road, pulling into RV/campgrounds for refueling and waste dump. It is economical and limits contact with others outside your family group. Remain mindful of travel restrictions and consider staying within your state for exploring.
  6. Sanitize, sanitize, sanitize. Let’s repeat it. Remember to bring sanitization. Just like leaving your home to grocery shop, wherever you travel, bring sanitizer with you.
  7. Discuss travel plans with a travel agent. Travel agents are updated with current travel restrictions for areas and aware of each area’s refundable policies.
  8. Go completely virtual. The safest way to “vacation” is in your own home. Consider “camping” under the stars with live and wildlife cams of National Parks while laid out in sleeping bags in your living room.  
  9. Book charades at home. Escape through the pages of a book by reading a book out loud with your family and act out scenes as you are able.
  10. Cooking camp. Another at-home vacation through culinary exploration. Choose a cookbook you have at home or can find online and cook around the world at home.

Vacation planning may look different this year, but it can be done – locally or virtually. As with any travel, continue to check for travel restrictions and updates prior to any travel.

600 Students to Start Pilot Program for the United States Naval Community College

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The first students have started at the newly established United States Navy Community College (USNCC). The new college is intended to serve three services, the Navy, Marine Corps, and the Coast Guard. Each service selected students for the January 2021 pilot program with input from their chain of command. Higher education can encourage service members to enlist or continue their service so this new program is a major incentive.

“We are very excited to make this announcement,” said Dr. Randi Cosentino, president of the USNCC. “We are working with top colleges and universities to bring to the members of our maritime service community programs that are going to be of high value to them and help them achieve their educational goals.”

Northern Virginia Community College, the University of Arizona, the University of Maryland Global Campus, Alexandria Technical and Community College, and the State University System of New York (SUNY Online), are part of the pilot program scheduled for January through June of 2021. The schools were notified in November of their selection to support the USNCC pilot program. “Now that we’ve identified our collaborating schools, we can move forward with our program to ensure we offer the best education to our service members and benefit all those involved,” Cosentino said. “The pilot will allow us to collect important data that will inform the development of the USNCC. Working in consortium with leading colleges will help us explore outcomes around the design of the program, the processes involved, working relationships and overall impact.

The USNCC is the result of a study that sought to identify opportunities to help prepare enlisted service members and support them throughout their career. Naval leadership directed programs that would provide access to naval-relevant education opportunities to produce better warfighters, improve operational readiness and to support lifelong learning. Areas of study during the pilot program will include the nuclear field, cyber security, data analytics, English, math, and naval ethics. 

“It is imperative we have a more educated enlisted force, grounded in the understanding of current events, allowing them to add context to the actions they may be ordered to do,” said Secretary of the Navy Kenneth J. Braithwaite. “This will provide a critical advantage in any scenario, but specifically to the understanding of how they fit into our overall strategic goals and objectives.”

“We have so much to be proud of throughout our military history and anything we can do to draw more attention to that through education has my enthusiastic support. There are many lessons there to be learned, and I have no doubt a better understanding of our origins will only contribute to the future successes of our Maritime services in any situation.”

“We are in an era of great power competition,” said Braithwaite. “Any advantage we can achieve over an adversary will increase our warfighting prowess. Innovating solutions through improvement of critical thinking skills will only serve to give our leaders more flexibility in the effective and efficient deployment of our naval forces.”

After the initial program January through June 2021 will have participants taking courses for college credit. The second phase of the program is currently scheduled for Fall 2022. This second phase will expand the study areas of the first phase and include select associate degree programs for 5,000 students. Being in the Fall 2023 and ongoing after that, the USNCC will expend enrollment for multiple degree programs and continue pursuing accreditation.

Department of Defense Plays Role in Combating Human Trafficking

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“Combating human trafficking is a responsibility the Defense Department (DoD) takes very seriously,” Anthony M. Kurta, deputy assistant secretary of defense for military personnel policy, said during a recent seminar on Human Trafficking Awareness. “Human trafficking is modern-day slavery. It not only destroys the lives of those victimized, but also destroys countless families and poses a direct threat to the security and well-being of the entire world. Those who engage in human trafficking exploit the weak and the vulnerable and capitalize on those who patronize the sex-trade industry and those involved in forced labor. For those reasons, DoD is committed to continuing its aggressive stance against human trafficking, and will further training its personnel to expand awareness.”

One wouldn’t normally think of the DoD as working to prevent human trafficking, but the signs could be evident around DoD personnel. Some examples are a subcontractor could withhold passports and payments to employees. Some companies make workers pay a large fee to obtain a job on a DoD installation. The three most common forms of trafficking, according to the DoD’s Combating Trafficking in Persons office, are labor trafficking, sex trafficking, and child soldiering.

According to Kurta, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency recently received a presidential award for the development of the Memex program. It searches the deep web and connects open-source information to identify tracking patterns. U.S. law enforcements, military and intelligence entities are using it to stop human trafficking enterprises and bring traffickers to justice.

“Additionally, our Special Operations Command, partnered with the National Association to Protect Children and the U.S.  Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations to establish the Human Exploitation Rescue Operative Child Rescue Corps,” Kurta said. “Known as HERO, the group trains wounded, ill and injured service members in high-tech forensic and law enforcement skills to assist federal agents in the fight against online child sexual exploitation. HERO exemplifies the power of public-private partnerships to help combat trafficking in persons,” Kurta said.

The DoD also partners with the Joint Staff and combatant commands. According to Kurta, Joint training exercises are conducted that include trafficking in persons scenarios that will help ensure our forces understand their roles in preventing, recognizing, and reporting trafficking in persons incidents. The DoD will continue to invest in and develop a variety of robust training resources to help educate its total force to combat trafficking in persons. Such training also will include specialized training for DoD law enforcement and acquisition professionals, in addition to toolkits to assist leaders in developing their specialized training.

During the month of January, the DoD recognizes National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Military and DoD civilian personnel must take at least one Combating Trafficking in Persons training course every fiscal year. Kurta quoted from the proclamation declaring January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month: “There is no place in our world to allow modern slavery to persist,” he said. “We will do our part to strive for its total abolition.”

DoD says everyone can do their part in fighting trafficking. Incidents of human trafficking can be reported to the DoD Inspector General hotline at 1-800-424-9098, 703-604-8799 or DSN 664-8799, or at www.dodig.mil/hotline.

Commission to Rename Bases Formed

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The 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) included a bipartisan agreement made by the House and Senate members requiring that the Secretary of Defense implement a plan submitted by a commission to rename 10 military bases that are named after Confederate Generals. The 10 bases that will be renamed are Ft. Bragg in North Carolina; Camp Beauregard and Fort Polk in Louisiana; Fort Benning and Fort Gordon in Georgia; Fort A.P. Hill, Fort Lee and Fort Pickett in Virginia, Fort Hood in Texas and Fort Rucker in Alabama. The army bases were named by the War Department during World War I and II and are now getting a name change.

Part of the 2021 NDAA was that a commission is formed to plan the 10 Army bases’ renaming. The NDAA stated that the commission would be composed of eight members, four of which would be appointed by the Secretary of Defense and appointed no later than 45 days after the bill passes. On January 8, 2021, Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller announced the appointment of four people to the commission assigned with the task of renaming these military bases. Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller selected Sean McLean of California, Joshua Whitehouse of New Hampshire, Anne G. Johnston of North Carolina and Earl Matthews of Pennsylvania to the Commission on the Naming of Items of the Department of Defense that Commemorate the Confederate States of America or Any Person Who Served Voluntarily with the Confederate States of America. The other four members will be selected by the House and Senate Armed Services Committees’ ranking members.

The NDAA provides specifics on the meetings and reports required as part of the commission. Per the bill, the commission must hold its first meeting within the first 60 days after the bill becomes the law and must brief the Armed Services Committee on the current plans no later than October 1st, 2021. The commission has been given three years to complete the plan for the name changes. By October 1, 2022, the commission must brief their plan of the costs associated with the “renaming or removing the names, symbols, displays, monuments, or paraphernalia that commemorate the Confederate States of American or any person who served voluntarily with the Confederate States of America” including the procedures for the renaming. For further details about the Commission can be read in Section 377 of the National Defense Authorization Act here in the Senate version of the bill. While H.R. 6395 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 has become a public law as of 01/01/2021, the full public text is not currently available as of this writing.

DeCA reports FY ‘20 customer savings of 25%

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FORT LEE, Va. – Commissary overall worldwide customer savings were 25 percent for fiscal 2020, reported the Defense Commissary Agency.

The latest savings report reflects the market basket average that compares the pricing of commissary products with retailers outside the gate.

When it comes to delivering the commissary benefit, the savings are the thing for Bill Moore, DeCA’s director and CEO.

“To me it’s all about the benefit; how do we deliver the 23.7 percent savings our Congress mandated,” Moore said. “The analogy I like to use is for every dollar spent in the commissary, you have roughly saved yourself a quarter compared to what you would have spent outside the commissary. Across the agency, if we have $4 billion in revenue, we’ve saved our customers around the globe a $1 billion in their grocery expenses with the 25 percent savings we achieved in 2020.”

Congress requires that DeCA maintain the global savings at levels reasonably consistent with the fiscal 2016 baseline of 23.7 percent. “I am confident in the way we measure, the savings are real,” Moore said. “I do believe we need to better educate our eligible patrons on the savings and then we have to earn their trust. I want to show them how we calculate and develop those savings, and then let them reach their own conclusions.”

The customer savings reflects DeCA’s partnership with its industry partners to consistently offer patrons the lowest prices possible through programs such as the agency’s Your Everyday Savings (YES)! Program. YES! lowers prices year-round on trending items that commercial retailers often reduce temporarily as “loss leaders” to attract customers into their stores hoping they’ll buy their higher-priced products.

DeCA also sells private label products, known as commissary store brands, which offer high-quality products at even lower prices. “Every grocery chain offers private label items, and it’s an option our patrons expect in their commissaries,” Moore said. “I’m very excited about the private label opportunities we have, and how we will refine our strategy going forward.” 

The customer savings report also shows figures specific to each geographic area, indicating how much, on average, a patron could expect to save on grocery purchases in comparison with local grocers in that area. DeCA measures savings for a region so it can better monitor how much commissary patrons actually save in the geographic area in which they shop.

The agency also checks local prices at major retailers near commissaries, quarterly, to see how DeCA pricing compares in order to ensure that commissary customers are saving money when they shop their commissary.

Because the cost of living varies by geographic region, Congress requires DeCA to report on savings regionally. DeCA compares prices with commercial grocers, including at least one supercenter, in the local area of each commissary in the United States. The savings comparison measures 38,000 items at a regional level and local prices of about 1,000 products, which are representative of a shopper’s typical market basket.

“It is all about the benefit,” Moore said. “I do believe the savings make a significant difference to our customers’ quality of life. Even after my father retired from the Army as a combat veteran, I remember him and my mom passing several grocery stores for their weekly visit to the commissary because of the savings.”

            The fiscal 2020 patron savings versus the fiscal 2016 baseline are provided as follows (percentages rounded to the nearest tenth):

For information on savings by region, see the tables below.

FY 2020 SAVINGS VS. BASELINE OVERALL
AREAFY 2016 BASELINE % SAVINGSFY 2020 % SAVINGS
Total U.S. (including AK & HI)20.2%21.1%
Overseas44.2%42.6%
Global23.7%25.0%

Table 1

FY 2020 SAVINGS VS. BASELINE U.S. BY REGION
REGIONFY 2016 BASELINE % SAVINGSFY 2020 % SAVINGS
New England (25 stores)21.4%21.8%
South Atlantic (22 stores)19.9%18.7%
North Central (13 stores)20.2%21.4%
South Central (26 stores)18.1%18.9%
Mountain (15 stores)17.6%20.0%
Pacific (22 stores)20.9%22.6%
Alaska & Hawaii (7 stores)32.6%33.2%
Total U.S. (130 stores)20.2%21.1%

Table 2

Note: Baseline percent savings for all U.S. commissaries shopped in Fall 2016 (177 commissaries)

-DeCA-

What You Need to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines at the VA

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Like many health care providers, the VA is hard at work to distribute vaccines to Veterans in a phased plan based on the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Information is constantly changing so it is important to check with the VA for updates. You can also sign up to stay informed by filling out this simple form.

Can I Get A COVID-19 Vaccine?

The VA’s phased plan is in effect and these groups listed below are now being vaccinated at some VA health care facilities. (From the VA official website) There is a limited amount of the first 2 COVID-19 vaccines authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and will be available at some VA health care facilities.

  • VA health care personnel. Vaccinating our VA health care personnel helps us continue to provide care for Veterans.
  • Veterans living in our long-term care facilities
  • Veterans who receive care at VA and are at high risk from COVID-19 based on VA and CDC risk criteria. At many VA health care facilities, this group includes all Veterans who are at least 75 years old. Each facility will determine when Veterans in this group can receive a vaccine. They’ll base this decision on vaccine availability, local needs, as well as the strict storage and handling requirements of the vaccines.
  • Family caregivers who are enrolled in our Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) are eligible for vaccination when the Veteran they care for becomes eligible. If the Veteran you care for meets the criteria above, both you and the Veteran may be able to get vaccinated now. Vaccinating caregivers helps us support and protect Veterans.

Do not contact the VA about getting a COVID-19 vaccine. If you are receiving care at your local VA health facility, they will contact you and let you know when you can make an appointment. Only those who are currently eligible for the vaccine based on the VA and CDC risk criteria can receive a vaccine. Some VA health care facilities are hosting, large vaccination events or requesting Veterans to call for an appointment. They options are for those in the risk categories mentioned above at this time.

How was the COVID-19 Vaccine Plan Created?

The VA based their phased COVID-19 plan on guidance from the CDC (from the VA website).

  • Risk of becoming infected with the virus
  • Risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19
  • Risk of spreading the virus to others
  • Risk of harm to society if essential workers, including health care personnel, are unable to work

There are many factors that can determine what your risk of server illness is. Death or severe illness from COVID-19 increases with age. If you have certain health problems like diabetes, heart disease, or obesity it will increase your risk of severe illness of death. Lifestyle factors such as living in a group home also increases your risk.

Going Forward

Currently the 2 authorized COVID-19 vaccines require special handling and storage which limits its distribution to VA facilities with proper storage. There is a limited supply of vaccines but as soon as more vaccines are available VA care teams will let you know your options. Veterans have the choice if they want to get the vaccine or not. Your choice will not affect your VA health care or benefits. Once more vaccines are available the VA plants to offer a free a COVID-19 vaccine to all Veterans who receive VA health care that want one.

Resources for More Information

For answers to general questions about getting a vaccine call 800-698-2411 TTY:711

When Will You Be Able To Get a COVID-19 Vaccine?

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That is a good question as the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines continue their slow rollout. Shots have not been getting in arms as fast as expected. Alex M. Azar, the secretary of Health and Human Services encouraged state governors to expedite uptake, if needed by expanding eligibility for the vaccines so that no doses go to waste during an Operation Warp Speed briefing, “States can … accelerate vaccine administration by moving on to providing vaccinations to broader populations right now. There is no reason that states need to complete, say, vaccinating all health care providers before opening up vaccinations to older Americans or other especially vulnerable populations.”

Azar reiterated that the CDC and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices have made recommendations with healthcare workers high on the list to get the vaccine but these are just recommendations. He stated it is up to the states how vaccines are delivered within the state. At this point it is more important to get vaccine into arms as soon as possible than to keep it locked up until the right candidates step up to get their shot.

“They should never stand in the way of getting shots in arms, instead of keeping vaccines in the freezer, or even, heaven forbid, wasting a dose of vaccine in a vial,” Azar said. “It’s more important to vaccinate. I have encouraged our governors, and I will continue to do so, that if they are using all of the vaccine, that is … allocated, ordered, distributed, shipped — and they’re getting it into healthcare provider’s arms, every bit of it, that’s great. But if for some reason their distribution is struggling, and they’re having vaccines sit in freezers, then by all means you ought to be opening up to people … 65 and over. You ought to be making sure that the nursing home patients are getting vaccinated.”

Another way to speed up vaccine delivery, Azar said, will be with the early launch of the federal “Pharmacy Partnership” program, which will eventually cover more than 40,000 pharmacy locations within 19 pharmacy chains and associations across the U.S. “This partnership allows states to allocate vaccines directly to these partners and these partners can then administer vaccines to particular groups, like those over a certain age or in certain occupations, and eventually to the general public,” Azar said. “To help give states as many options as possible for vaccine administration, we’re launching the program this week and states can choose particular partners to send vaccines to now.”

“Nearly 20 million doses of vaccine [have been] already delivered,” Army Gen. Gustave F. Perna, the chief operating officer of Operation Warp Speed said. “We have delivered that to over 13,000 different locations throughout the United States … simultaneously, fair and equitable distribution of vaccines so that everybody has the opportunity to distribute simultaneously to the American people. I would tell you that it’s going very well and our goal is to maintain the steady drumbeat so that the states have a cadence of allocation, planning and then the appropriate distribution to the right places, as designated.”

The Department of Defense has established a Population Schema which details at what phase you can receive the vaccine.  There are two Phases and Phase one is broken into 3 subcategories. Basically 1a covers everyone involved in healthcare as well as the support care both military and civilian. 1b Critical National Capabilities and those about to deploy and DoD beneficiaries age 75 or older and essential workers. Phase 1c is DoD beneficiaries age 65-74 and those age 16 and older with increased risk for severe illness as well as essential workers not covered in previous phases. Lastly Phase 2 is everybody else age 16 and older.

Visit Health.Mil to get the latest update on getting the COVID-19 vaccine through the military healthcare system. Listed is all the sites that you can receive the vaccine once you are in the right phase.  Different sites can be in different phases, so it is important to check locally to see what phases your area is in.

You may also have the option to get the vaccine through your state’s healthcare system. Visit the CDC’s website for more information. There are tools to search options through your state. Demand for exceeds supply at this point. The key to getting the shot is to keep up on the most current information.