'Sole Survivor' Legislation

President Bush Signs Law To Ensure Health Benefits for 'Sole Surivor Veterans' 09/03/08. President Bush on Friday signed into law legislation (HR 5825, S 2874) that will guarantee health benefits for "sole survivor" veterans who receive honorable discharges, the Los Angeles Times reports. Under the Department of Defense "sole survivor" policy, the military cannot deploy in combat areas soldiers who lose all their siblings in war and must issue them honorable discharges upon request. However, veterans who previously received honorable discharges under the policy lost their health benefits because they did not fulfill their service contracts. Kaisernetwork.org