By Rick Maze - Staff writer
In the remaining 3½ months of the Bush administration, the nominee to head the Veterans' Benefits Administration knows he cannot put much of a dent in the backlog of benefits claims, nor significantly reduce the time it takes for claims to be processed.
But retired Rear Adm. Patrick Dunne, nominated to be VA's undersecretary of benefits, said Wednesday he will concentrate on setting the stage so things work more smoothly for the next administration.
Getting VA ready to pay Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits when that program takes effect on Aug. 1, 2009, is a top priority, Dunne said. Continuing to prepare for a future paperless claims system and completing a review of disability ratings issues so the next administration could reform benefits are two other things he'd like to get done in the remaining months of the Bush presidency.
Dunne, currently VA's acting benefits director, appears to have strong support among members of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee. But congressional aides, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said getting a full Senate vote on the nomination could be difficult because of concerns among some senators about veterans' issues not directly related to Dunne.
The aides would not name the senators.
Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, veterans' committee chairman, strongly endorsed Dunne.
"You have been doing a good job," Akaka said.
The committee's ranking Republican member, Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, also endorsed Dunne, saying the nominee could help set in motion changes at VA to help veterans in the future.
Dunne said harnessing technology to help process claims and allowing veterans to file electronic claims and to send e-mail to claims processors are keys to a faster, more accurate system.
But he said technology is not a cure-all. "I intend to ensure that every Veterans Benefits Administration employee has the requisite training to be effective in his or her job," Dunne said. "Technology is not the magic wand that will deliver benefits rapidly and accurately. Rather, we need a well-trained work force that can effectively use those tools."
The issue of harnessing technology is creating a controversy over implementation of the Post-9/11 GI Bill because VA is turning to an outside contractor to develop a software program to process claims, make tuition payments directly to colleges and universities, and make payments for living expenses and book allowances.
Dunne said VA does not have a payment system configured to handle such benefits, which is why it is turning to the private sector for help, adding that VA is preparing backup plans in case the contractor is not ready by Aug. 1.
Akaka said outsourcing benefits on a permanent basis "would be ill-advised" and hopes VA plans to cancel the contract as soon as it can. But Burr said he is comfortable with using outside companies to process claims; he said his own experience in helping constituents showed that government payment systems are far from error-free.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/military_veterans_benefitschief_091708w/
