European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 25, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday october 25, 1991 the stars and stripes b Page 9 $40 by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington a As Many As 59,000 service members May owe the government Between $40 million and $50 million on overpayment made during the massive mobilization for the persian Gulf War according to congressional sources. The defense finance and accounting service had been sending out collection notices As each debtor was identified As required by Law. But the situation has grown to such magnitude that the Pentagon decided oct. 18 not to pursue collections of the overpayment or mail out any More notices until the Issue can be thoroughly reviewed said Jean Marie Ward a Dias spokeswoman. Moreover deadlines for payment As Well As penalties for missing those deadlines will not apply until such a review can be accomplished she said. Pentagon officials acknowledge that the situation goes Well beyond what had been reported earlier this month when the  said several thousand reservists had received too much Money in Advance pay and quarters allowance during the War. The problem has now been found to encompass All services As Well As the Active duty and Reserve components Ward said. Ward would not comment on the number of service members affected or the Dollar value of the overpayment nor could she estimate How Many collection notices had been sent out before last weeks decision to temporarily halt the process. But estimates Given to the House armed services committee by military officials last week showed that about 43,000 soldiers 11,600 air Force members 2,600 sailors and 1,800 marines were collectively overpaid at least $40 million and possibly More. Ward said the overpayment run the Gamut of pays and allowances although most seem to be advances for Basic pay. One possibility under discussion is whether current Law might allow for group waivers of some or All of the debts she said. Debt waivers Are usually handled on a Case by Case basis. Ward advised service members who have received collection notices to Contact the finance Center director listed on the notice and ask about guidelines for requesting a debt waiver. A a we re trying to provide equitable treatment of service members and come up with the Best solution but there Are Many players in this and we done to know what the outcome will be a she said. As a precaution service members should apply for a waiver individually in the event that the defense department decides not to use Blanket waivers she said. Normally a collection notice must be paid within 30 Days of the Date of notification. If the deadline is missed administrative fees and interest on the debt arc added. If it is still not paid after 90 Days overdue penalties Are added. The situation stems from the massive and relatively Swift mobilization and demobilization for operations desert shield and storm Ward said. To prepare for mobilization Reserve personnel were allowed to draw up to three months pay in Advance which the services planned to recoup in smaller payments Over a 12-month period Ward said. A but a lot of reservists did no to stay on Active duty for 12 months and Many of them returned to civilian life before the Money could be recouped a she said. That problem also extended to Active duty personnel who were kept on Active duty past their Normal separation and retirement dates during the mobilization. A we wanted to get them Back to civilian life quickly so the services used Many temporary finance offices that were not necessarily hard wired to their Central processing centers in Cleveland Denver Kansas City and Indianapolis she said. The temporary offices did not always have immediate Access to official up to Date pay records which meant that necessary deductions and adjustments to final pays were not always made before an individual was discharged Ward said. The services also instituted a Liberal casual pay policy for Active duty personnel to manage unexpected financial problems associated with their deployment she said. Casual pay was issued by deployed units in saudi Arabia but delays in getting that information into main payroll records in the United states led to delays in recouping the Money Ward  raising civilian health care fees by Walter Jahncke staff writer civilians will pay More for medical care at military facilities this month As higher fees go into effect throughout the european commands. The fee changes Are the result of an annual Cost adjustment review by the assistant Secretary of defense for health affairs and the Pentagon comptroller at the Start of each fiscal year. The fees will take effect at different times throughout Europe. Current defense department policy is that the charges Are not retroactive. A spokeswoman at 7th medical come which oversees the  a medical interests in Europe said the new rates will be in effect at All  medical treatment facilities in Europe next week. The Navy has not yet implemented any of the fee increases a spokesman for the Navy a european come said. The air Force surgeon general sent out a message oct. 4 informing the services bases worldwide of the change in rates according to an air Force surgeon general spokeswoman. She said the message does not specify a Date on which the change must take place but rather states that the rates take effect when each base gets the message. All medical facilities did not get word of the new rates at the same time. For this reason the new rates went into effect at different times. At the air Force Hospital in Wiesbaden Germany for example the rate changes went into effect oct. 15, said capt. Cliff a. Atkinson chief of Public affairs at Lindsey air station in Germany. The 48th fighter Wing Hospital at Raf Laken Heath England enforced the new rates oct. 9, said Joan Cross medical services accounts officer. The 401st fighter Wing Hospital at Torrejon a Spain began using the new rates oct. 11, said Yvette n. Radcliff a budget analyst at the Hospital. Fee changes for fiscal �?T92 patient status amount Changa 1 Hospital inpatient ii civilian $657.00 Active duty $4.80 dependents of Active duty or retired $8.95 retired officers $4.80 retired enlisted no charge non beneficiary $701.00 $92.00 .10 .40 -.10 -$4.90 $98.00 1 outpatient 1 civilian $72.00 non beneficiary $77.00 a $5.00 $6.00 a includes contract personnel civilian emergency and unauthorized persons troops land As Dubrovnik shelling continues Zagreb Yugoslavia apr the serbian dominated Federal  bombarded croatian defences around the historic heart of Dubrovnik on thursday and landed troops in a nearby resort on the secessionist republics Adriatic coast. Croatian defenders in Kupari four Miles South of Dubrovnik beat Back Federal forces first attempt to land. By late thursday morning however the Navy succeeded in Landing troops who hoisted the red Blue and White yugoslav Flag croatian defense officials said. Five gunboats had begun shelling Kupari just after 6 a.m., the defense officials said. The Federal forces apparently decided it would be quicker and safer to take Kupari from the sea rather than do Battle in Hilly terrain where a Small defense Force can repel an attack. The yugoslav news Agency Tan Jug said five Federal soldiers were killed and 22 wounded in wednesdays fighting for Kupari. Associated press photographer Karsten Thielker said from the heart of Dubrovnik that Federal forces were shelling the Road South out of the City from land and sea thursday morning. On wednesday heavy shelling virtually Cut routes North out of the City Center Thielker said. Damage to the heart of Dubrovnik on wednesday a in the first shelling within the old City Walls a was relatively Light and there were no reports of casualties Thielker reported by Telephone. Four or five shells landed on or inside the Walls hitting the revel in fortress and other ancient buildings. The Federal  issued a Strong statement denying initial croatian Media reports that the air Force had bombed Dubrovnik. Smoke Billows Over towers in the historic heart of Dubrovnik after it was hit with shells fired by Federal forces