VA Improves Delivery of Benefits to Vietnam Vets At Sen. Franken’s Urging
U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) announced today that Veterans Association (VA) has made significant improvements to how it delivers benefits to Vietnam veterans suffering from exposure to Agent Orange. VA made the changes after Sen. Franken urged them to make the necessary improvements. Sen. Franken wrote VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki this March after hearing from several constituents who were having a hard time getting new benefits following a ruling VA made on Agent Orange.
"Making sure Minnesota's veterans get all the benefits they've earned without confusion or delay is a priority for me," said Sen. Franken. "I am very pleased that Secretary Shinseki responded to my request and made the necessary improvements to ensure our that Vietnam veterans get their benefits as easily and seamlessly as possible."
In August of 2010, VA issued a final rule for implementing Secretary Shinseki's decision to recognize a positive association between exposure to certain herbicides, commonly known as Agent Orange, and the development of Parkinson's disease, ischemic heart disease, and B-cell (or hairy cell) leukemia. As a result of this decision, Vietnam veterans who suffer from these conditions and deceased veterans who suffered from them can have those conditions recognized as service-connected, which makes them and their families eligible for a range of VA benefits.
After speaking with constituents about their individual cases, Sen. Franken identified several systemic problems that need to be tackled in order for VA to best implement the decision to grant service-connection for the new conditions. Specifically, Vietnam veterans who may be eligible for retroactive benefits and who have submitted their claims to special processing centers are encountering lengthy processing delays and, when they have asked, have gotten no information in response from VA. In addition, VA has created confusion among Vietnam veterans and their families about which veterans should be using VA's new "Fast Track" claims processing system for the new presumptive conditions. Based on the feedback from Minnesota veterans that Senator Franken transmitted to VA, VA has revised the way it communicates with veterans, via its website and live, about the new benefits. In addition, not long after sending his letter to Secretary Shinseki, Sen. Franken learned that veterans in Minnesota eligible for retroactive benefits did in fact start having their cases processed more quickly.
Secretary Shinseki's response to Sen. Franken can be read here.
Sen. Franken's original letter to Eric K. Shinseki, Secretary of Veterans Affairs can be read here.
