The Long Blue Line (Fall 2020)

NATIONAL RETIREE COUNCIL CO-CHAIRS
WHERE DID THE SUMMER GO? Unfortunately,
continued COVID-19 restrictions forced most of us to
trade beaches for backyard inflatable pools and hitthe-road
vacations for TV travelogues. But remaining
safe is the goal and we trust that all of our retiree
community is still doing so.
We were able to convene a CG National Retiree
Council forum, via a three-hour video teleconference,
on 20 August. Both of your co-chairs made it to
CGHQ and joined VADM McCallister (DCMS); RADM
Nunan (CG-1); CAPT Tom King (new Acting CG-13),
and Bob Hinds (CG Retiree Services) to reconnect
with leaders from our 18 Regional Retiree Councils.
Most of our time was spent on receiving updates on
current National Council priorities. Of note, RADM
Nunan and PPC reported that added personnel and
automation continue to whittle away at the Audit Error
Worksheet processing backlog. PPC is on glide
slope to reduce processing time down to 120 days
or less by the end of this calendar year.
We were also honored to be joined by LtGen Pete
Osman, SECNAV (Navy/USMC) Retiree Council Co-
Chair. He briefed us on the status of DOD healthcare
facilities consolidation under the Defense Health
Agency and the possible impacts on military retirees.
Notably, many retirees have been losing access
to local military healthcare facilities and forced to
seek civilian alternatives. LtGen Osman reported
that, in an unprecedented move, all DOD service
secretaries and military chiefs co-signed a letter to
SECDEF requesting that the consolidation of military
RADM Jeff Hathaway, USCG (Ret)
hathaway.cgnrc@aol.com
MCPO Lloyd Pierce, USCG (Ret)
Ipierce38@tampabay.rr.com
healthcare (shrinkage) stop immediately. This should
be good news to all military retirees that are still
enrolled at military treatment facilities.
We learned that our USCG is currently not meeting
its recruiting goals due to effects of the Coronavirus
pandemic. A recent ALCOAST outlined a new
“Everyone is a Recruiter” incentive program. VADM
McCallister emphasized that this is an area where
our almost 55,000 retirees can be of great help. Our
USCG needs both active duty and reserve enlisted
accessions, along with direct commission aviators,
lawyers, engineers and physician’s assistants on the
officer side. Point any potential candidates to the
closest USCG recruiting office. While retirees can’t
be offered all of the incentives available to those
still wearing a uniform, a letter of thanks and a unit
coin from our Recruiting Command for referring a
candidate will be coming your way!
In an effort to modernize USCG organizational
communications, to include retirees and veterans,
the USCG has launched MyCG. It is available on
the public website: www.work.uscg.mil/mycg. Please
take a look at the USCG’s latest effort to keep the
entire Coast Guard family in the know. We will be
working with CG-13 to identify appropriate info
to post to the “veteran” section of MyCG from the
current retiree services (CG-13) webpage – which
remains active and current with a new webmaster.
Finally, if you have not updated your personal info
in the Coast Guard Direct Access system to include
an email address, please do so ASAP. Electronic
communications are the only way to contact our
retirees in near real time. At last check, only about
55% of our retirees have a personal email address
on file. If you know that your Direct Access user ID
and password are current, simply sign-in at:
hcm.direct-access.us/psp/HCPRD/?cmd=login.
You can then click on “view/change my email
address”. If you require assistance signing into Direct
Access, visit PPC’s Retiree and Annuitant Services
(RAS) website at: www.dcms.uscg.mil/ppc/ras/
gp/#guides. Let’s get that percentage up!
Thoughts on Retirement
You don’t stop laughing when you grow old, you grow
old when you stop laughing. —George Bernard Shaw
THE LONG BLUE LINE FALL 2020
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