3 Stories That Exemplify the Erosion of Veterans’ Benefits
Story 1 - http://www.bluejersey.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4790
An Expatriated Texan over at BlueJersey.com has an interesting post about the disintegration of benefits for Veterans. He tells the story of a retired Marine who spent 32 years in the service but is unable to convince the VA to help with his back problems.
He goes on to blame President Bush for the erosion of benefits for Veterans saying that Bush sees Veterans as dead weight. They are unable to continue serving the country but are a constant cost for taxpayers. As more and more soldiers are coming home from Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan intending to depend on the services of the VA something must be done to ensure the promised services are available to the men and women defending this country.
Steve Rothman, is taking action on this issue and is fighting to reverse a Bush Administration decision denying honorable veterans needed services. Sign BlueJersey.com’s petition to support Rothman and others fight back for veterans rights.
Story 2 - http://www.fremontneb.com/articles/2007/05/17/news/news2.txt
Angie Newbold-Steffen is a mother in Omaha whose son was a Marine during the Persian Gulf War in 1990-91. In 1992 Todd Newbold was honorably discharged, but in 1996 he became ill. Initial test showed lesions on his brain and after six months of struggling to even get additional tests done his physicians at a VA hospital in Omaha suspected Todd had multiple sclerosis.
There was no treatment or follow-up, but fortunately, his body healed itself and he was able to function again. However, in 2004 his symptoms returned again, and in 2006 he was finally diagnosed with MS. This was 15 years after he was discharged from the Marines.
Unfortunately, the current law states that a Veteran must be diagnosed with MS within 7 years of discharge to receive service-connected status, so Todd is unable to receive benefits that will provide him the care he needs. His mother is lobbying the VA to change the limitations on discovering diseases that could potentially be service related. Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, is reintroducing her proposal from 2005 that would extend the seven year window indefinitely.
Murray is receiving lots of support for her bill from veteran groups such as, MS Vets, Veteran of Foreign Wars, the Disabled American Veterans, the American Legion and the National Gulf War Resource Center as well as Newbold-Steffen herself.
Story 3 - http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2007/05/military_vetsbenefits_hamsterwheel_070522w/
Representative John Hall (D – NY) is the chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs disability assistance and memorial affairs subcommittee and is back in the news after hearing pleas from veterans to get their benefits claims through a never ending cycle of appeals. “This is not the desired result,” Hall said, referring to the bouncing of claims between the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, and a federal court.
One single error in a claim can bounce a case back to one of the lower courts without looking at any other issues in the case. This extends the appeals process for years and many die while waiting for their appeal to be resolved. Under pressure from Congress, some retired judges were recalled and asked to handle some cases. Another change in procedure that could help speed the process along would be to decide all issues covering a case, but this would require a change in the federal law.
