Category Archives: VA Claims Updates

Veterans With Post-Traumatic Stress Fight for Aid

Posted on March 10, 2009 by Team VCS

March 9, 2009 – It was during his first deployment in Iraq that Marine Cpl. David Tracy, 23, of Peekskill earned his Purple Heart. “I was up top behind the gun when we stopped at a checkpoint and a roadside … Continue reading →

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Mar 5, New VA Scandal: 16,000 Unopened Claims Letters Hidden at VA’s Detroit Office

Posted on March 4, 2009 by Team VCS

March 3, 2009 –  A new report about Veterans Affairs Department employees squirreling away tens of thousands of unopened letters related to benefits claims is sparking fresh concerns that veterans and their survivors are being cheated out of money. VA … Continue reading →

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VA Secretary Vows Action on Benefits Backlog

Posted on March 4, 2009 by Team VCS

(March 3, 2009) – The American Legion, in Washington for its annual lobbying push, received pledges of support on Tuesday from members of Congress and the Veterans Affairs secretary, with an emphasis on improving VA’s processing of claims for benefits … Continue reading →

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Review Board May Disappoint Disabled Vets

Posted on February 27, 2009 by Team VCS

February 28, 2009 – Complaints from veterans and from a high-profile commission that the services routinely were “low-balling” disability ratings for military members spurred Congress to take action last year. Among other things it ordered the Department of Defense to … Continue reading →

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Shinseki Wants Electronic System to Deal with Claims Backlog

Posted on February 9, 2009 by Team VCS

February 5, 2009 –  The Veterans Affairs Department needs an electronic claims system if it is ever to eliminate its massive claims backlog, new VA Secretary Eric Shinseki told a House committee Wednesday. “If you go into the adjudication rooms … Continue reading →

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Billion-Dollar Budgeting Demands Oversight

Posted on February 6, 2009 by Team VCS

February 5, 2009 – Linda Bilmes served as an assistant secretary in President Clinton’s Commerce Department and has written extensively about government budgets and the costs of the Iraq War. It’s Professor Bilmes these days, as she teaches advanced budgeting … Continue reading →

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Chairman Filner Says New VA Secretary Shinseki off to ‘Great Start’

Posted on February 6, 2009 by Team VCS

Secretary promises to be forceful advocate for veterans and forthright with Congress. February 4, 2009, Washington, DC – On Wednesday, February 4, 2009, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Bob Filner conducted a hearing on the state of the Department … Continue reading →

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Potential VA Benefits Chief Has New Ideas

Posted on February 3, 2009 by Team VCS

February 3, 2009 – A Harvard University researcher with some radical ideas about how to reduce the backlog of veterans disability claims appears to be in line to head the Veterans Benefits Administration. Linda Blimes, a public policy lecturer and … Continue reading →

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Groups Urge Faster Action to Help Veterans

Posted on January 28, 2009 by Team VCS

January 27, 2009 – A roundtable discussion, aimed at creating a consensus among military and veterans groups about top priorities for the year ahead, focused on how solving some longstanding problems might be especially important today to veterans and their … Continue reading →

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Jan 26, VCS Urges VA Secretary Shinseki to Grant Presumption of PTSD Benefits Based on Scientific Research

Posted on January 26, 2009 by Team VCS

Here is our VCS letter to Secretary Shinseki urging him to use his rule-making authority to promulgate a regulation establishing a presumption of service connection for Gulf War, Iraq War, and Afghanistan war veterans diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) based … Continue reading →

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