U.S. Sen. Dean Heller believes Congress may have a solution to the delay in processing veterans' medical and benefit claims.
During a conference call March 6, the Nevada Republican said a senatorial working group has been able to identify many of the issues behind the delays.
Heller, one chairman of the group, unveiled the 21st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery Act - developed by the working group to keep those issues in the spotlight and reduce the disability claims backlog.
A number of veterans' groups participated in the process and approved the proposed legislation, including the American Legion, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the Military Officers Association of America, Disabled American Veterans and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Phil Jacka, the chaplin for Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Gary Cole Post 9165 Battle Mountain and a U.S. Navy veteran, said the situation veterans find themselves in when they need to access promised medical benefits is tough.
"One problem is claims are sent so far away," according to Jacka, who said claims starting in Nevada are funneled to California and even Philadelphia.
"Everything is over four months behind and many disability claims are two and a half to three years behind," he said.
Apparently, some veterans have had problems and some haven't.
At a local veteran's meeting held March 8, DVA President Tom Lyons said he specifically asked whether any of the eight people in attendance had problems with veterans benefits or claims. "They said they hadn't had problems and weren't aware of any other veterans who had problems," according to Lyons.
The 21st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery Act includes proposals to improve veterans' access to information about the claims process. It also calls for audits of regional offices as well as improved accountability with information available to the public on the size and scope of the backlog.
The section of the act on government response demands greater cooperation from federal agencies to work together to transfer requested information.
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