Report: 6 in 10 VA claim denials are in error
Posted : Thursday Dec 13, 2012 12:05:58 EST
A new report on an old problem contains some sad statistics about veterans’ benefits claims:
Thirty-one percent of claims filed with the Veterans Affairs Department are likely to be denied — and 60 percent of those denials will be erroneous.
Sixty percent of claims will take longer than 125 days to be processed, more than 7 percent of claims will be misplaced, and 4 percent will be completely lost.
A veteran calling VA’s benefits hotline has just a 49 percent chance of being connected to someone and receiving a correct answer.
The report, “The Veterans Disability System: Problems and Solutions,” was released Dec. 12 by the nonprofit National Center for Policy Analysis.
Based on a review of the 870,000 benefits claims pending before VA in 2011 — a number that has climbed to about 900,000 pending claims today — the report says the pile of pending claims has grown despite the fact that VA is processing more claims than ever before and using a variety of new efforts to work faster and more accurately.
Even faster claims processing might be possible by contracting out administrative services or transferring claims processing from the federal government to states, the report says. It recommends expanded pilot programs to test those ideas.
The nonpartisan National Center for Policy Analysis, which specializes in retirement and health care programs, is skeptical about VA’s stated goal of eliminating the claims backlog by the end of 2015.
VA “is barely able to process current claims,” the report says, “and has exhibited little to no progress toward their stated goal of 125 days and 98 percent accuracy for processed claims by 2015.”
The federal government, in general, does a poor job of administering disability benefits and services, the report says, “as evidenced by the state of Social Security Disability.”
“But the Veterans Benefits Administration appears to be far worse.”
Leave a Comment
Most Viewed Stories
- Accused Marine faker ‘deeply sorry’
- Marine veteran of Iraq war guards Calif. school
- Fiscal year 2014 colonel selections announced
- Marines to be lauded for Libya rescue
- Accused Marine faker ‘deeply sorry’
- Accused Marine faker ‘deeply sorry’
- Recruiter uninjured in highway shooting
- Officials: 31 fired in Myer day care scandal
- Out of the Octagon: Corps cuts ties to UFC
- Marine hit by grenade rates MoH, buddies say
- Woman gets 2 years in prison in Marine’s death
- ‘Flipping lieutenant’ tumbles to world record
- FDA issues warning over Hepatitis C drug
Contests and Promotions
Win a Trip for Two to Hawaii!
Play every week for great prizes!
Enter to win today!
Win a Lifestyle® T20 Home Theater System!
Enter to win today!
Click Here To Enter.
Free Stickers
Click here and we'll send you a FREE AFGHANISTAN, IRAQ, VIETNAM, or DESERT STORM sticker.
2012 Service Members Of The Year
SMOY
Find out more about the 2012 Service Members of the Year Event
Marketplaces
MIl-MALL
Browse and buy some of the awesome products we have at Mil-mall.com
-
INTEGRATED ZOMBIE ERADICATION AND CONTAINMENT COMMAND “CONTRACT ZOMBIE HUNTER” CHALLENGE COIN Price: $12.00
Add to Cart | See More Products! -
Marine Corps Core Values Coin
Price: $10.00
Add to Cart | See More Products! -
Camo BBQ Apron and Pot Holder
Price: $34.00
Add to Cart | See More Products! -
U.S. Marine Corps Dog Tag Bottle Opener
Price: $10.00
Pre-Order Now | See More Products! -
Marine Corps Brat Dog Tag
Price: $10.00
Add to Cart | See More Products! -
Making of a Marine Officer – DVD
Price: $12.99
Add to Cart | See More Products! -
Marine Corps Bear
Price: $9.95
Add to Cart | See More Products!
Military Discounts
Save on your purchases!
In honor of your military service, you can find regular and name brand products at a special discount.