Bruce Coulter: Backlogged claims still an issue for VA

“The VA system is confusing, overwhelming and is not at all friendly to veterans.”

Reading the words of Gulf War veteran David Bohan, who testified before a house subcommittee last month brought on a feeling of déjà vu for me.

Been there, done that, threw away the T-shirt.

Bohan appeared before the House Veterans’ Affairs Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, which heard testimony on the growing backlog at the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA).

According to a release issued by Bob Filner, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, the hearing, led by Congressman John Hal, D-N.Y., was held to examine the record number of claims – nearly 1 million – the Department of Veterans Affairs is dealing with.

Just how well the VA deals with that backlog has been the subject of discussion for years, during which the numbers have only climbed.

Michael Walcoff, VA’s deputy undersecretary for benefits said the VBA has made progress in improving the timeliness of its decisions. According to Walcoff, the waiting game for rating claims has improved from 178.9 days at close of fiscal 2008 to 161.8 days as of the end of May.

But Walcoff also told the committee the term for claims awaiting decisions is not a “claims backlog,” which he said is an incorrect description. Rather, he added, the inventory is dynamic rather than static.

“It includes all claims received, whether pending for just a few hours or as long as six months,” he told the committee. “Completed claims are continuously removed from the inventory while new claims are added. This year we are averaging over 80,000 new claims added to the inventory each month.” 

For the record Mr. Walcoff, and this is an old complaint of mine – we’re veterans – not “inventory.” Further, if a veteran is waiting for a decision on a claim, it’s a backlog. Particularly when the VA has nearly 21 percent of its cases pending for more than 180 days. Add to that the fact that Appeals Management Center (AMC) recently completed it final case – for 2003 – and still has 40 cases pending from 2004. Moreover, AMC and the Board of Veterans Appeals takes on average nearly 18 months to complete a case.

Veterans understand claims aren’t processed and approved overnight. Cases taking five and six years to complete are another story.

Larry Scott, founder of VA Watchdog, said hiring additional claims processors and training them is the simplest answer to the backlog of claims.

“Training is a two-year process ... and, right now, training is a joke,” Scott wrote in an e-mail. “New employees are told to read the manuals ... go to a class or two ... and then thrown into the mix.”

Scott also said the VA lacks a system requiring the training needed and verifying it was completed.

“It’s a mess. I really feel that a top-notch management team from the insurance industry (they know about claims) should re-design the entire process from the bottom up.”

But giving the devil its due, the VA is attempting to speed up fully developed compensation and pensions claims no more than 90 days after those claims are submitted under a one-year pilot program.

A second pilot program would assess the feasibility and advisability of providing a claimant and his/her representative (if any) a checklist containing information or evidence required to substantiate the claim. 

The programs are part of the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act (P.L. 110-389), which hopes to modernize the VA’s disability benefits claims processing system by, among other things, authorizing temporary ratings and claimant substitution. The law also calls for additional training and certification of VBA employees to speed the claims process along.

Bruce Coulter is a retired, disabled veteran. He may be reached at 978-371-5775 or by e-mail at Burlington@cnc.com.