So, there’s this pretty cool thing happening on Capitol Hill right now. I don’t know how many readers are aware of this, but this year was declared by Congress at “The Year of the Military Family.” So, quite a few Members of the House of Representatives got together and formed the Congressional Military Family Caucus. It’s been starting to gather steam, holding hearings and figuring out what legislation is important to work on for the families of our nation’s heroes.
Well, today I was fortunate enough to attend one of their first major hearings about Special Needs Military Kids and their Families. According to the Marine Commandant’s wife, 1 in 88 Marine kids has autism. That’s a lot of kids! Yet, it’s very hard for military families to help their kids get all their benefits. TRICARE will help with a lot, but sometimes there is no specialist who accepts TRICARE insurance in the area. Other families struggle to get education and medical benefits to transfer from state to state. Respite care is hard to come by so that a mom can do her grocery shopping or get her hair cut without worrying about who is carrying for her severe special needs kids. The Marines have been doing a wonderful job re-vamping their Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) – working to ensure families have respite care, that there are lawyers ready to help them (just them) when they need it, and navigating the tricky ins and outs of TRICARE and EFMP. There’s still a lot to be a done – an Army colonel with 28 years of service has a son with autism who is no longer eligible for his ABA Therapy once his dad retires.Someone should ask why that is.
Every military family can use a helping hand from time to time – if you know the next door neighbor is deployed, offer to mow the grass. But these families are carrying the typical load of a military family in addition to making sure their special needs child gets the best possible care available to them – but it’s incredibly difficult for them to figure out how.
If you think of a way to help them, please leave a comment below!
Until next time,
Katie – proud Army brat & former EFMP member
Kids Outreach, Program Manager
Families United
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