Illinois Senators Hold Hearing On Veterans' Benefits
Thursday, July 7, 2005
NBC 5 WMAQ
Benefit Payouts To Illinois Veterans Increase
CHICAGO -- Illinois U.S. Sens. Barack Obama and Dick Durbin heard testimony on Wednesday about the benefits for the state's veterans.
Illinois' U.S. senators held a hearing on Wednesday to see if veterans are receiving their due when they come home from war.
Officials from the VA told the senators that conditions have improved substantially, but there are worries that conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are about to flood the already-overburdened system, NBC5's Phil Rogers reported.
"I don't want the men and women risking their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan to be greeted by a system that tells them, 'Thanks for fighting for your country, now take a number,'" Obama said.
The VA already serves more than 5 million veterans from conflicts like Vietnam, Rogers reported. Last week, a congressional report stated that the agency is under funded by at least $1 billion.
Stephen Harris, who told the committee that his hands were crushed in an on-duty accident in 1974, said his VA claim still hasn't been satisfied more than 30 years later.
"It's supposed to be erring on the side of the veteran," Durbin said. "It certainly didn't do that for Mr. Harris."
"I don't feel betrayed by my country -- I love my country," Harris said. "But I feel betrayed by the system."
Other veterans told the committee that some in the Chicago office almost automatically reject veterans claims. As proof, they claimed more than 60 percent of those rejections are actually bounced back to the Chicago office on appeal.
"If we had cars on the road, 60 percent of which were being recalled, the auto manufactuer would go out of business," said veterans' advocate Al Lynch.
The Chicago office, which once ranked 50th in the nation, now ranks in the upper half of benefit payouts, Rogers reported.
Chicago VA officials said they've put on more staff and insist services have improved, Rogers reported. The senators applauded that but said returning veterans deserve a quicker hearing, and a more lenient approach. VA officials promised to meet within the next week with veterans' advocates to determine who is rejecting so many claims.
"You should see this as an opportunity to improve the management of your office," Obama said.