Another Stupid Idea by the VA

The Department of Veterans Affairs is proposing a major change to the benefits process. Currently, a veteran can send any sort of written note to the VA and it starts a claim or appeal for VA benefits. The reason for this is because the VA system is supposed to be uniquely pro-claimant and make it extremely easy for the veteran to file and develop his or her claim. The effective date for many of the benefits is the day that VA receives this piece of paper.

The VA is now proposing that only requests made on official VA standardized forms will be accepted. The reason for this? The VA claims that this will aid in reducing the claim backlog that has about 400,000 veterans waiting more than 125 days for a decision. The VA wants us to believe that the VA workers spend so much time trying to read the letters and figure out what is being claimed, that it contributes to the backlog and wastes time.

One of the fears by veterans’ groups is that requiring a standardized form will take time and effort to fill out, leading to a later effective date (and therefore less money) for the veteran when the benefits are awarded. Another concern is that claims will be denied or kicked back to the veteran because he or she failed to check a certain box or fill out the form correctly. Furthermore, concern is had that the most vulnerable veterans—the homeless, those with a traumatic brain injury, or those with limited education—would have the most trouble obtaining and filling out the form correctly.

Critics and the VA alike recognize that the VA system is broken. It is backlogged and the in-house processes that VA utilizes are illogical and antiquated. However, requiring standardized forms will only make the system more difficult for veterans to navigate. Instead, effort should be made to have competent VA workers in the mailroom—ensuring that mail that is received is properly saved, statused in the computers, and passed along to the correct department. VA should have employees that actually process claims in order of receipt, instead of handling easier claims first. The VA should not lose files or records, and should properly follow its own protocols uniformly among its offices in each state. VA shouldn’t take 3 months to transfer files between offices when a veteran moves to a different state. These changes would actually speed up the benefits process and make it more productive. Unfortunately, it seems as though VA is hell bent on “solving” the backlog problem by making the whole process more difficult for the veterans. 

The Truth of How Long it Takes

Brig. General Carol Ann Fausone (ret)

 

In the last year, I have spoken to VA representatives over 600 times for clients of the firm.  I am asked to call on files where the VA process seems stalled for our clients.  The reason for the stalled claim process varies in each case.  I have to call ROs all over the country.  By and large, the VA employees that I talk to are hard working and dedicated but overwhelmed.  I recently spoke to a RO coordinator that told me they are working on late 2009 and 2010 claims.  Even remands from the Board are taking 3 years.  I know our clients are frustrated and some people will tell you they can move the claim faster, but it is not true.  If you want the truth, it is what I hear from talking to VA every day.  Do not get so frustrated you do something silly like dismissing your claim that has been pending for 2.5 years and starting over because you think it will go faster.   It won’t and all you did was give up the back pay award to which you are entitled.  We will keep marching forward together.

 

If you are waiting on your claim to be decided, even if it’s on remand, the old rule of 1 year has stretched to 3 years.  That is just the truth of the matter at many ROs. 

VA Not Making the Grade

James G. Fausone

Veteran Disability Lawyer

An annual survey of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ services was circulated to veterans by Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC.  The direct e-mail and social media survey went to hundreds of veterans involved with the VA disability claim process around the country.

Veterans with disability claims were asked to grade VA’s handling of their disability claim.  VA did not make the grade – 51% gave VA a D grade.  Only 6.1% gave VA an A or B grade.

The survey found that nearly half, 47.9%, felt that VA should take less than 6 months to decide a disability claim.  Deciding a claim in 6-11 months was supported by 28.1% of respondents and 16.7% thought the end of the year would be an acceptable time period.  Only 7.3% of the veterans felt a claim should take more than a year.

The vast majority, 73%, of the survey respondents had been waiting over one year.  In fact, 42% had a VA experience that took over 3 years.

The customer service problems from long delays, misplaced records, asking for the same information again, and scheduling repeated exams are all well documented.  This survey asks the customers – the veterans – to rate VA.  The response is a failing grade by 75% of the respondents.

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC is a national firm representing veterans before the VA since 1998 and has helped thousands of veterans obtain over a million in veteran disability compensation benefits.

VA Inspector General’s Findings at Regional Offices

by Kristina Derro
Veterans Disability Lawyer

This month, the VA’s Office of Inspector General released its report on the systemic issues identified at 16 VA Regional Offices (VAROs) from April 2009 to September 2010. You can view the full report here: http://www.va.gov/oig/52/reports/2011/VAOIG-11-00510-167.pdf

Unfortunately, the report revealed the ineptitude that all the veterans experience and suffer from on a daily basis. The report identified that VARO staff incorrectly processed 23% of an estimated 45,000 claims. The biggest mistakes involved claims for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).

Over 8% of claims for PTSD were not adequately processed because the VARO staff “lacked sufficient experience and training to process these claims accurately. Additionally, some VAROs were not conducting monthly quality assurance reviews”. The bulk of the errors were in failing to properly verify claimed stressors and assigning incorrect effective dates for the grant of benefits for PTSD.

75% of VAROs inspected did not follow VA policy when processing claims for residuals of a TBI. In December 2009, it was estimated that 28,000 veterans suffered from a TBI, with many more being added to that list daily with the increase of bombings and IED attacks that our military is exposed to in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Inspector General’s findings regarding the VAROs’ incompetence in processing these claims can have disastrous effects for our veterans. Over 19% of claims for TBIs were not processed correctly. The report found that 42% of the errors were due to the VARO staff utilizing inadequate medical examinations which did not contain sufficient information upon which to make a decision. Evidently, the VA medical examiners were not using the most current examination formats and therefore not providing the VARO staff with sufficient information. Unfortunately, due to the VAROs staff’s lack of experience and training, they did not recognize when an examination was inadequate and failed to send it back to the VA examiner for corrections.

Compounding this problem is the fact that when the VARO actually did grant service connection for a TBI, 42% of errors involved the VARO assigning incorrect evaluations for the residuals of TBIs. The VA policy requires a separate evaluation for any disability with a distinct diagnosis related to a TBI, such as headaches or tinnitus. Regrettably, VARO staff failed to give separate ratings for disabilities and instead lumped them together in one rating.

A statistic which will come as no big surprise to any veteran that has sent information to VA is the fact that the report found 75% of the VAROs failed to properly control and process mail according to VA policy. Shockingly, the majority of mistakes were attributed to the staff being “generally unaware of policy requirements, including date stamping, governing mail processing at VA facilities. Further, VARO workload management plans contained unclear procedures or first-line supervisors did not always follow guidance delineated in these plans”. The failure to properly date-stamp materials obviously has catastrophic effects on a veteran’s claim. For instance, the document may be considered to be untimely, even though it was timely submitted but the VARO staff failed to properly date stamp it. Additionally, if a claim came in on January 31st, then the start date for benefits when the claim is ultimately granted would be February 1st. However, if the item isn’t date stamped until February 1st, then the start date for benefits would be March 1st. This would cause the veteran to lose out on a month of benefit payments.

An interesting read for sure, the report details the mistakes that the 16 VAROs made, along with the Inspector General’s suggestions for improvement. All we can do is wait and see if VA actually gets around to implementing the suggestions. Until then, veterans’ claims continue to be improperly handled on a daily basis…

To learn more or to contact a Veterans disability lawyer, Veterans disability attorney, Veterans lawyer, or Veterans attorney call 1.800.693.4800 or visit Legalhelpforveterans.com