Va Ignores 15% Of Appeals

[broncovet]

You file a NOD..and it disappears. Why? It gets forgotten. Veterans beware.

http://veteransforcommonsense.org/2012/06/01/va-audit-over-40000-veterans-appeals-ignored/

Correction. Not 15%, but 18.5%. Nearly one in 5 appeals gets "lost".

Edited May 2, 2013 by broncovet

[Vync]

I definitely believe it.

On a high level, it revealed that regional offices are focusing primarily on new claims and not appeals. This means, if the claims adjudicator gets it wrong the first time, the veteran has a very long wait to get the appeal decided in less than one year. If the VA fails to notice the appeal, that veteran will have another 1 year and 4 months to wait before VA even begins to adjudicate the appeal.

In addition, here is yesterday's news from Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, who makes a good point:

http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/05/senator_calls_for_action_for_t.html

"In the last four years, the number of claims pending for over a year has grown by over 2000 percent, despite a 40 percent increase in the VA's budget. As a reminder, during this same time period, Congress has given VA everything it has asked for in terms of more funding and more employees; however, this has not eliminated the backlog of claims. Solving this problem is critical for veterans of all generations. We need direct and public involvement from you to establish a clear plan to end the backlog once and for all,"

Note: This is just regarding claims, not appeals of any type (NOD, DRO, VBA, etc..).

In the past I have read advice of Veterans asking for help from their Senator. Some people get results while other say it blacklists you. I wonder if it would be worth it to inform him that the new initiative will end up railroading Veterans from a bad situation to an even worse one.

Peggy says the Montgomery, AL, RO (one of the RO's which was audited by the OIG per the link) is averaging 314 days for DRO NOD's, but mine is now over 600 days and I haven't even filed the Form 9 to bump it up to the void (the board of appeals). It is still waiting to be looked at by someone.

I checked the statistics which shows 1,797 days as the Appealed Claims Average Wait time in Montgomery, AL.

http://vivid-leaf-2293.herokuapp.com/e/pending-claims/timeline/130000000/

[71M10]

Remember, when we are talking claims the VA is handling that request for a copy of something in your C file as a claim. Doing this allows them to game the average time to process statistic and the accuracy rate statistic.

FIgures don't lie, but liars can figure!

[meghp0405]

a 40% increase in financial support did nothing but line the pockets of those that sit behind a desk and make decisions on what's best for veterans.

I said this before and I'll say it again, the VA will not change its way until the VA receives new leadership. I read that the Deputy to the Under Secretary of benefits received a bonus of over $20,000 dollars. I just happen to know Michael, but someone please tell me what the leadership is doing to warrant their bonuses. "I sit behind a desk, make decisions for others to follow which have assisted in the mess VA is in today, and I receive a bonus of over 20 grand" What the hell? And now, there are articles being published that the VA is going to forego the bonuses for the executive staff, wow, and we should be thankful? I'll be thankful when this backlog is cleared and each veteran receives what he/she is entitled to, that's really not to much to ask for is it?

[Chuck75]

" I'll say it again, the VA will not change its way until the VA receives new leadership."

Things will not change until Congress forces changes.

When the VA screws up, it invariably costs veterans money. The laws need to be changed so that it's the other way around.

If the VA pays, say 10% as a penalty, see how fast things change.

Even with such things, changes in the cost of living, loss of use of the money, and depriciation, veteran's still lose when the VA delays or makes mistakes not in the veteran's favor.

[Legate]

Interesting...I wonder what the stats are on pre-NOD appeals (informal requests for reconsideration). I realize this isn't an official appeal method but it is widely used, particularly when the issues are fully developed. I recently had one submitted on my behalf by a VSO using a County Veteran Fast Track form. Of course if it takes longer than ten months I'll need to prepare an official NOD.

[broncovet]

Since the VA "loses" almost a fifth of our appeals, I wonder what other evidence they lose? A fifth of our C and P exams? A fifth of our "stressor verifications"?