Washington, D.C. — U.S. Congressman Mike McIntyre announced today that the Veteran Benefits Administration (VBA) will begin implementing new procedures at the Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Regional Office designed to reduce the backlog of disability claims and provide veterans with more timely and accurate claims decisions.

“This is a good day for the veterans in North Carolina who have served their country so ably!” stated Congressman McIntyre. “Our retired service members have earned the benefits and care our nation promised them, and they deserve the steadfast support that should not end when they leave active duty. By implementing new training techniques for employees and introducing new technologies to the claims process, the VBA is working hard to ensure that our veterans have the access they need to the benefits they have earned.  I will continue to press the VBA to improve and speed up their decision making process!”
               
In response to repeated concerns over delays and inaccuracies processing disability claims, the VBA has begun implementing a Transformation Plan, which includes initiatives addressing the people, process and technologies involved in the claims process. Under this plan, the Winston-Salem, North Carolina Regional Office will begin using the Transformation Organizational Model (TOM), which will change the organization and training of the employees within the office.
               
Under this model, the regional office will establish a new Intake Processing Center to separate claims into categories based on the amount of time it takes to process the claim. In addition, employees will be placed on Cross-Functional Teams to increase staffing flexibility and better balance workload by utilizing a case-management approach to completing claims.