 Dear Legion Family Members and Friends,
Last month, Past National Commander Dale Barnett issued a call for action to improve the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) appeals process. I wholeheartedly believe modernizing VA’s archaic appeals process is of the utmost priority. Appeals modernization is not a request; quite frankly, it is a demand.
For veterans electing to appeal VA decisions, their wait is not measured in days or even months; it is measured in years. A veteran appealing a decision to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals waits longer to receive a decision than a standard four-year enlistment. Imagine honorably serving your nation for four years and having VA take longer than those four years to grant benefits earned through defending this nation.
Take action: Click here to contact your members of Congress
The American Legion represents nearly 800,000 veterans seeking VA benefits. Nearly 10 percent of those veterans are currently caught in the quagmire that is VA’s appellate process. Despite the best efforts of The American Legion’s 3,000-strong army of well-trained accredited representatives, veterans nationwide are suffering due to VA’s bureaucratic appellate maze.
Over the past year, The American Legion has engaged in discussions with VA leadership, veterans service organizations and private attorneys to improve the appellate structure. It proved to be a daunting task to restructure a system that has existed since pre-World War II; together, we created a structure that will expedite decisions while providing greater ownership and alternatives to veterans electing to appeal their claims while maintaining the original effective date.
The American Legion represents 80,000 veterans awaiting decisions on their appeals. And this doesn’t include the 450,000 veterans not represented by The American Legion who are also awaiting their decisions, a number that is roughly the equivalent of the population of Fort Worth, Texas. It is imperative that we take action to have these veterans receive their decisions in a timely manner.
People often associate the granting of disability benefits as simply compensation. It is much more than compensation. For a veteran to be service connected means access to health care. It means employment priority. It means housing benefits. The American Legion responded to the needs of veterans in 2014 through the implementation of Veterans Benefits Centers. At one of the events, a Marine veteran sought our assistance; for years, she had been seeking service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to military sexual trauma. When one of our experienced accredited representatives noted the error in a previous adjudication; working with VA, we were able to secure her benefits. Neither her first nor her second question dealt with compensation; she simply asked if she could finally receive treatment for PTSD and where the treatment could be received.
Unfortunately, this veteran is not an isolated case. There could be upwards of nearly half a million veterans with similar stories. Until we can create an effective and efficient appellate structure, these stories will continue.
VA Appeals Modernization Act of 2016
The VA Appeals Modernization Act will create an efficient appellate process while maintaining a veteran’s effective date. Through this act, veterans can maintain the original effective date of their claims, provided they submit new and relevant evidence within 12 months of the most recent decision. This represents a significant improvement to the entire VA appellate structure, allowing veterans to gain access to their benefits in a more timely fashion. For taxpayers, it is cost neutral for the next five years; beyond five years, appeals modernization saves taxpayers’ money.
Fellow Legionnaires, I need your help. Please contact your U.S. senators and representatives to vote for passage of the VA Appeals Modernization Act of 2016. This act benefits veterans and taxpayers. More importantly, it is quite simply needed to meet the needs of those injured serving this great nation.
Take action: Click here to contact your members of Congress
Carry the legacy forward.
Charles E. Schmidt
National Commander
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National Commander Awards for 2016-2017
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| September 09, 2016 • Issue No. 388 |
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