Veteran Issues Digest Number 1730

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1. Today, Hearing: Review of Veterans' Disability Compensation:

Posted by: "Colonel Dan" colonel-dan@sbcglobal.net coloneldan1

Thu Jan 24, 2008 9:33 am (PST)


Go to web site... can click on review various statements, can also listen to
it live

http://www.veterans .senate.gov/ public/index. cfm?pageid= 16
<http://www.veterans .senate.gov/ public/index. cfm?pageid= 16&release_ id=11504&
view=all> &release_id= 11504&view= all

Hearing: Review of Veterans' Disability Compensation: Report of the
Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission

January,24,2008

Thursday, January 24, 2008 9:30am- Noon
SD-562

Oversight hearing - Review of Veterans' Disability Compensation: Report of
the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission.

<http://www.veterans .senate.gov/ public/media/ live_hearing. ram> Click Here
to View Live Hearing

Panel I

Lieutenant General James Terry Scott (Retired), Chairman, Veterans'
Disability Benefits Commission

Panel II

Mr. Todd Bowers, Director of Government Affairs, Iraq and Afghanistan
Veterans of America

Gerald T. Manar, DEPUTY DIRECTOR NATIONAL VETERANS SERVICE VETERANS OF
FOREIGN WARS OF THE UNITED STATES

Steve Smithson, DEPUTY DIRECTOR VETERANS AFFAIRS AND REHABILITATION
COMMISSION THE AMERICAN LEGION

In our review of those discharged as unfit from 2000 through 2006, only
about 1,500 of 83,000
were rated by DoD as 100 percent disabled and only 5,000 were rated as 50
percent or higher.

Partial reprint of statements by Lieutenant General James Terry Scott
(Retired), Chairman, Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission

PTSD

* We found that there is insufficient monitoring and coordination
between VBA and VHA for veterans experiencing PTSD. An October 2007 IOM
report on PTSD treatment (not reflected in our report) found that there is
not even an agreed-upon definition of recovery and that there is not
sufficient evidence of the efficacy of treatment modalities and
pharmaceuticals.

* Although there has been a lot of discussion about the extent that
OEF and OIF service members experience PTSD, we noted that only some 1,400
service members had been found unfit for duty due to PTSD out of some 83,000
over the past seven years. This does not indicate that sufficient attention
is being paid to this disorder.

* The Commission believes that a holistic approach to PTSD should be
established that couples compensation, treatment, and vocational assessment.
We also believe that re-evaluation should occur every two to three years to
gauge treatment effectiveness and encourage wellness.

Individual Unemployability (IU)

* Veterans with service-connected disabilities rated 60 percent or
more but less than 100 percent and who are unable to work due to their
disabilities can be granted what is known as IU and be paid at the 100
percent rate. The number of such veterans has increased by 90 percent over
the past few years causing considerable attention. We found that the
increase is largely explained by the aging of the cohort of Vietnam
veterans.

* As the Rating Schedule is revised, specific focus should be given to
the criteria for PTSD and other mental disorders so that IU does not need to
be awarded so frequently. Currently, 31 percent of veterans with a primary
disability of PTSD are awarded IU. Since incapacity to work is part of the
criteria for a rating of 100 percent for PTSD and other mental disorders, it
is not clear why many of these veterans are not rated 100 percent instead of
IU.

*********
Concurrent Receipt

* Regarding concurrent receipt of military retirement and VA
disability payments, the Commission found these to be two different programs
with entirely different missions. DoD retirement recognizes years of service
and VA disability payments compensate for impairment in earnings and should
compensate for impact on quality of life.

* Over time, Congress should eliminate the ban on concurrent receipt
for all military retirees and for all service members who are separated from
the military due to service-connected disabilities. Priority should be given
to veterans who separate or retire with less than 20 years of service and a
service-connected disability rating greater than 50 percent or disability as
a result of combat.

* Payment offset should also be eliminated for survivors of those who
die in service or retirees who die of service-related causes so that the
survivors can receive both VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation and DoD
Survivors Benefit Plan.
* ************ *

Our Commission's recommendations are in many ways similar to the intent of
the Administration' s proposed legislation but we recommended stronger
support for the families of those severely disabled and we would not
restrict benefits such as family health care to those with serious injuries
experienced in combat or combat-related circumstances. There is currently no
commonly accepted or used definition for serious injuries but I feel that
the definition proposed in the Administration' s proposal is too stringent.
It is not clear to me that all veterans currently rated 100 percent would
meet that proposed definition. In our review of those discharged as unfit
from 2000 through 2006, only about 1,500 of 83,000 were rated by DoD as 100
percent disabled and only 5,000 were rated as 50 percent or higher.
We believe as a matter of principle that benefits should be based on the
severity of disability, not on when or how the disability occurred.



2. FW: VA has collected more than $56,000 from the families of 22 deceased

Posted by: "Colonel Dan" colonel-dan@sbcglobal.net coloneldan1

Thu Jan 24, 2008 10:00 am (PST)



_____

From: guenther2@netzero. net [mailto:guenther2@netzero. net]
Sent: Thursday, January 24, 2008 10:09 AM
To: colonel-dan@ sbcglobal. net
Subject: Fw: VA has collected more than $56,000 from the families of 22
deceased so ldiers

Dan,
Didn't know if you had seen this article or not, so I wanted to send it to
you along with the e-mail I sent out this morning. The link to the article
is at the bottom.
Thanks again for all you do.
Inga

Dear friends,

Please read the article below and then contact your Senators regarding
S.2536:
'A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs from collecting certain debts to the United States in the
case of veterans who die as a result of a service-connected disability
incurred or aggravated on active duty in a combat zone, and for other
purposes.

Please pass this e-mail along to all who care that our service members are
giving their lives for their country without their families having to
sacrifice any more than they already have due to the loss of their loved
one.

Link to the bill and to contact your Senators:
http://www.congress .org/congressorg /issues/bills/ ?billtype= S.
<http://www.congress .org/congressorg /issues/bills/ ?billtype= S.&billnumb= 2536
&congress=110> &billnumb=2536& congress= 110

Bill would clear vets estates of VA debt

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jan 23, 2008 11:17:57 EST

A bill that would block the Department of Veterans Affairs from trying to
collect money from the estates of service members who die in combat was
introduced Tuesday by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas.

Her bill, S 2536, applies only to debts to the VA, and not to money owed to
private-sector creditors or other federal agencies, such as the Internal
Revenue Service.

Hutchison is asking Senate leaders for quick passage of the bill, hoping to
bypass the normal process in which new bills are sent to committee for
consideration.

She could get high-level support. VA Secretary Dr. James Peake is expected
to write a letter to the Senate endorsing her call for expedited passage of
the bill, according to Senate sources.

VA officials said they supported the bill but did not confirm that Peake
would write a letter.

Waiving normal procedures would require the Senate Veterans Affairs
Committee, on which Hutchison serves, to allow the bill to proceed without
its involvement. Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, the veterans affairs
committee chairman, would have to approve the move. Akaka aides said the
committee staff would study the measure first.

Few people die owing VA money, but Hutchison aides found that VA has
collected more than $56,000 from the families of 22 deceased soldiers,
mostly National Guard and reserve members called to active duty who received
overpayments of GI Bill education benefits.

Her bill would be retroactive to Sept. 11, 2001, allowing families or
estates that paid a debt to VA to receive a refund of any payment made since
that date.

Hutchison spokesman Matt Mackowiak said few people may be affected, but
Hutchison considers it improper for any family of a service member who dies
in combat to be contacted with a demand for money.

Current law requires contacting a family or estate if there is any
outstanding debt to VA at the time of death. A family has 180 days to file a
grievance, with the VA secretary permitted to waive the debts.

This bill is about honoring our fallen heroes by treating the families they
left behind with dignity and by showing them we mean it when we tell them
our nation is truly grateful, Hutchison said in a statement. The fact that
VA is forced to collect a few hundred dollars from bereaved mothers and
fathers for something as simple as a small debt for education benefits is
ludicrous.

Of the 22 cases, three involved Texans, Hutchison aides said. One was an
Army soldier killed by a sniper while on his third tour to Iraq whose family
repaid the government for a $389 overpayment of GI Bill benefits.

The family of another Army soldier was billed for $2,282 in outstanding
loans after the sergeant, who was married with four children, was killed in
an explosion on his second tour in Iraq. The third Texas case involved a
Marine Reservist killed by an explosion in Iraq who owed VA $845.

Hutchison aides said their review found similar cases in California,
Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan,
Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington and
Wisconsin.

Link to article:
http://www.armytime s.com/news/ 2008/01/military _veteransestates _080122w/

Inga Guenther
Proud Army wife of Scot
Proud Army mom of Andrew
Proud Marine mom of Clayton
www.militaryspouses forchange. com/
Involve. Inform. Inspire.

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3. FW: Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville (supports veterans in Florid

Posted by: "Colonel Dan" colonel-dan@sbcglobal.net coloneldan1

Thu Jan 24, 2008 11:27 am (PST)

Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville, Inc.
P.O. Box 6881
Jacksonville, Florida 32236
<http://www.veterans lawcenter. org> http://www.veterans lawcenter. org

see pages 10 & 20 at:
http://www.gabar. <http://www.gabar. org/public/ pdf/GBJ/feb02. pdf>
org/public/pdf/ GBJ/feb02. pdf
_____

From: vp legislative affairs [mailto:vp_legislation@ bellsouth. net]
Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 11:37 AM
To: colonel-dan@ sbcglobal. net
Subject: Fw: Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville (supports veterans in
Florida and across the United States)

----- Original Message -----
From: vp <mailto:vp_legislation@ bellsouth. net> legislative affairs
To: vp legislative affairs <mailto:vp_legislation@ bellsouth. net>
Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 11:22 AM
Subject: Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville (supports veterans in Florida
and across the United States)

Also check this article that is mentioned at the end of the text below
http://www.gabar. <http://www.gabar. org/public/ pdf/GBJ/feb02. pdf>
org/public/pdf/ GBJ/feb02. pdf

Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville (which supports veterans and
their families not only in Florida but across the United States).
http://www.veterans <http://www.veterans lawcenter. org> lawcenter.org

_____

My friends,

I am proud to introduce the Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville, Inc!

We are a non-profit, charitable foundation that provides support and
counsel to America's honorably discharged veterans, wherever they may
be, and we do this free of charge to them. The end result is a
valuable service to veterans and their families ... and in the
process we are building better communities and a stronger nation!

America is the proud home of 24 million military veterans who
answered their country's call with honor and sacrifice. 1.7 million
of these veterans reside in Florida, and another 800,000 in Georgia.
These Americans are what this is all about!

My name is Hal Moroz. I am a retired Army officer, former county
judge and city chief judge, and longtime veterans advocate. In fact,
I have trained lawyers on veterans law matters at legal seminars for
the State Bars of Georgia and Florida ... and represented U.S.
military veterans around the world and before the U.S. Court of
Appeals for Veterans Claims and the United States Supreme Court.

As a veteran and an attorney, I recognized the need to provide a
service to these men and women who made the sacrifice and provided us
the very blanket of freedom and security that allows us to live our
lives as God intended. This was the idea that sparked the creation of
the Veterans Law Center of Jacksonville (which supports veterans and
their families not only in Florida but across the United States).

Our services include:

(1) Veterans Law Seminars
(2) Counsel on Dealing with the Department of Veterans Affairs
(3) Legal Representation before the U.S. Court of Appeals for
Veterans Claims in Washington, D.C.
(4) Job Fairs and other services for Veterans and their Family Members

JOIN US! We need your support and charitable contributions! Visit
our website at: http://www.veterans <http://www.veterans lawcenter. org>
lawcenter.org

At your service,

Hal Moroz

P.S. - IF YOU HAVE A VA CLAIM OR WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE
PROCESS: Several years ago, I was asked to write a legal article on
the path to Veterans Administration (VA) claims resolution. Although
it was written for Georgia lawyers to assist veterans, it is readable
and understandable by all veterans and their families. The article is
entitled "Defending America's Defenders: Advocating on Behalf of
Georgia's Military Veterans," and it covers just about everything you
ever wanted to know about the VA claims process ... from the start
and all of the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, if you had to go
there! The article is in pdf format, and begins on page 20 at the
following Georgia Bar Journal link:

http://www.gabar. <http://www.gabar. org/public/ pdf/GBJ/feb02. pdf>
org/public/pdf/ GBJ/feb02. pdf