VA Disability claims turn-a-round

[GBArmy]

Sec. Wilkie just put out a memo that commends VA Benefits for meeting the target of turning out claims decisions in 125 days or less. According to their figures, since Oct.1, 2019 75% of the claims have met that metric. That's terrific; but I think we would like a little more detail. Like what is the percentage of veterans' wins and remands compared to before the target was issued? Higher or lower? If they are churning out more rejects, we get to see that sooner so we can appeal faster? Is that an advantage? Faster is better  only if the percentage of accepted claims go up!

https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=5371

[broncovet]

Correct.  Several years ago, there was a "million man" backlog.  People got mad, so VA either "closed" many of those claims without even adjuticating them, or denied them, or in many cases Veterans died waiting on benefits, or gave up and abandonded their claim.  

NOW there is a massive backlog at the BVA (appeals) because of so many denials (more than 100,000 appeal backlog at BVA).  Its not quite as bad as it was because:

1.  Many Vets died and their appeals die with them unless an heir files "substitution of claimant" which many dont know about.  

2.  Other Vets became too sick and gave up.  

3.  VSO's and VA employees often advised Vets to "not apply for an increase, you could be reduced instead" or to "not poke the bear", so many Vets settled for less.  

4.  According to the BVA chairmans report, BVA became more efficient and is processing more claims now.  

      Unfortunately, because the "claim backlog" is essentially now an "appeals backlog" it just means we wait longer.  Delay and deny and wait till we die is not "just" a VA motto, it profits VA for doing just that.  

     Delays save the VA money in 2 ways:

1.  As explained, many Vets die or get to sick to continue the appeals and give up.  

2.  Even "if" the Veteran is successful, and wins all his benefits, the VA still wins.  How?  Well they got an interest free loan from the Veteran, and pay him back in yesteryears deflated dollars.  If you dont pay your taxes, you must pay interest and penalties.  VA pays neither.  Ditto for your mortgage.  Miss your mortgage payment or other creditor, and its late charges, and interest.  VA even collects interest from Veterans on VA loans, theoretically money they borrowed from other Veterans by delaying his benefits.  

Edited December 9, 2019 by broncovet

[Berta]

I just posted this as well Broncovet-

They never say how many claims were awarded at the Regional Office level, and Most of those RO decisions were probably denials, thus the backlog continues.Or as you said, the veteran gives up.

It is outrageous.

I was going to post this in the DIC forum but maybe better  here:

https://www.disabledveterans.org/2019/12/09/is-720000-payout-to-korea-war-veteran-widow-enough-after-50-years/

This claim was in the backlog for 5 decades, if I understand this correctly.

The widow was awarded 20 years of DIC ( $720,000)-maybe that included accrued but I can't tell.

The full story is at Facebook. I am not a member of Facebook so cant read it.

 

[GBArmy]

Disgraceful. My wife asked me last night, no lie, is it possible that the VA could actually award a case that is, say, 50 years old. I told her, nah, this day and age the odds of a veteran or widow looking for a decision that long probably couldn't happen. I stand corrected. Lesson is we have to constantly remind ourselves that we are talking about the VA here. We don't know how low they can go. Disgraceful indeed!

[broncovet]

About 15 years ago, a Vet told me he had been waiting 5 years for benefits.  That sounded very far fetched.  Now I think it is far fetched.  To get your benefits in 5 years is "expiditious treatment".  

[Dustoff1970]

Every 5 to 10 years the VA comes out with a new gimmick to speed up claims and appeals to "help" vets get their bennies faster but as we old hands know it is a prima facie lie and shallow one at that.  The only thing faster are the denials.  There are of a course a few exceptions of a granted fast claim that even VARO can't deny. 

This is the old reliable shell game from centuries ago of where is the peanut under which shell.

This problem could have been solved decades ago by hiring and properly training more adjudicators and BVA law judges and given them instructions to be honest in their claims adjudications but congress did not want to spend the money or see more vets receive benefits and the entrenched status quo of VA adjudicators did not want more competing fellow federal VA raters setting next to them as it might lower wages or prevent their promotions to senior levels much like union workers which is of course what they are.

It took the VA decades  to computerize even a small part of the claims process because entrenched dumb and  lazy VA raters did not want to learn computing skills.  Very little has changed in spite of their present day back patting and hype. 

[vetquest]

You brought up one thing that I try to overlook.  You mentioned that the VA raters are union.  I was out of a job at one time and took a job in a union shop working for the state.  My supervisor was incompetent, having failed at test in the computer language we were using.  I buckled down and got to work, I was told that I was making others look bad with my throughput.  I lasted a year, it took me that long to find another job, and I vowed never again to work in a union shop.  Maybe it is different nowadays but I am not so sure.