Surge needed on vets claims, lawmakers say

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Surge needed on vets claims, lawmakers say
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Feb 11, 2009 12:52:31 EST

While representatives of the Board of Veterans’ Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims bickered over who bears more responsibility for the long delay veterans face on disability claims, a key Republican senator said it was time to take some drastic action.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, ranking Republican on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said proposals from the appeals board, the court and veterans service organizations will not end veterans’ frustration any time soon.

While such changes as holding federal workers more accountable for errors and shortening deadlines for filing and ruling on appeals might provide some help, Burr said, the end result is likely to be modest, with the Veterans Affairs Department able to finish a few more claims each year than received.

But with an estimated backlog of between 600,000 and 800,000 claims, depending on how it is counted, modest progress isn’t enough, he said.

Burr called for a military-style “surge” strategy to allow VA to quickly reduce the backlog using temporary measures.


Rest of article at: http://armytimes.com/news/2009/02/military_veteransclaims_surge_021109w/%2e