Top 10 Veterans News from Around the Country 9-24-09

What’s Inside Today’s Local News for Veterans

1. VA’s IG Concerned About Disability Claims Processing Time. 
2. VA Says It Has Processed Less Than Half Of Pending GI Bill Claims. 
3. Lawmakers Question Appropriateness Of VA Bonuses.
4. Forum Discusses Support For Wounded Service Members. 
5. Virginia Gubernatorial Candidate Hoping For Boost From Military Vote. 
6. Head Of VHA Suicide Prevention Program Earns Top Honor. 
7. Man Surrenders After Seven-Hour Standoff At Jesse Brown VAMC. 
8. Two Veterans To Receive Military Honors
9. Groups Petition California To Investigate Vets’ Vision Loss At Palo Alto VA. 
10.     Disabled Vet Returns To James A. Haley VAMC.

1.      VA’s IG Concerned About Disability Claims Processing Time.  The AP (9/24, Hefling) reports, "Too many veterans’ disability claims take more than a year to process, the Veterans Affairs Department’s inspector general said Wednesday. An audit released by the VA," which is "struggling with a growing number of claims approaching one million as more" Iraq and Afghanistan veterans file claims, "showed that a year ago, 11,000 veterans had claims pending more than a year." The "report said the VA has made progress in reducing lingering claims, but it’s still creating too much of a financial burden for veterans." It "recommended changes such as improving its workload management. The VA agreed with most of the IG findings and recommendations, the IG said." The New York Times (9/24, A29, 1.09M) runs a shortened version of this story in its "National Briefing" column, as does the Philadelphia Inquirer (9/24, 326K), which places the article three stories down in its "In The Nation" column. 

2.      VA Says It Has Processed Less Than Half Of Pending GI Bill Claims.  In continuing coverage, NextGov (9/24, Brewin) reports, "The Veterans Affairs Department said on Wednesday that it has processed less than half of the pending education benefits claims veterans are entitled to under the post 9/11 GI bill claims, and veteran groups expressed serious concerns students will not be able to pay their rent next month and colleges will need to wait for tuition payments." VA officials "said it takes an average of 35 days to process post-9/11 GI bill claims, but added the processing time increased by an unspecified number of days when the fall semester began at colleges and universities. ‘Our top priority is providing our students and schools with accurate and timely benefit payments so veterans can focus all of their energy on studies,’ said Patrick Dunne, undersecretary for benefits. Despite the optimistic report," however, "student veterans groups expressed concern that their checks would not be in the mail in time to cover tuition payments or housing expenses, as outlined in the GI bill."
      VA Urged To "Work Day And Night" On Claims.  In a related editorial, the Cleveland Plain Dealer (9/24, 304K) says, "The VA needs to work day and night to make sure that the generous benefits are quickly and properly distributed" because school "is stressful enough without the VA adding to student-veterans’ worries and financial burdens."  

3.      Lawmakers Question Appropriateness Of VA Bonuses.  In continuing coverage, the AP (9/24, Hefling) reports, "Lawmakers on Wednesday questioned whether millions of dollars in bonuses were appropriately awarded" to technology office employees and executives at the Veterans Affairs Department, which "has nearly one million claims to process and has faced criticism in areas of quality control because of issues such as endoscopic procedure problems at three Southeast hospitals that potentially exposed thousands of veterans to infections." In response to such questions, VA Deputy Secretary W. Scott Gould "said to the extent possible, multiple levels of review have been implemented to ensure bonus levels to executive level employees are appropriate. Gould said the situation among technology office employees investigated by the IG was professionally disturbing and inexcusable and that actions were being taken to ensure something like that doesn’t happen again."

4.      Forum Discusses Support For Wounded Service Members.  In continuing coverage, the Washington Times (9/24, Nelson, 77K) reports, "Hundreds of uniformed service members, administration leaders, legislators, health professionals, wounded warriors, family members and concerned citizens gathered in Alexandria last week for the Defense Forum Washington to discuss the unseen injuries of war." Topics discussed included post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, "and progress on various pilot projects designed to improve support for wounded service members." Veterans Affairs Assistant Secretary L. Tammy Duckworth, "who oversees public and intergovernmental relations" at the VA, attended the forum, where she said, "Post-traumatic stress is a tremendous challenge for us. We are improving screening for our troops. There will be no veteran left behind." However, "Leslie Kammerdiener, who sat on the ‘Caring for Families and Caregivers’ panel, said the VA has failed to provide ample support for her and her…son," who "was severely wounded in Afghanistan in May 2008." 

5.      Virginia Gubernatorial Candidate Hoping For Boost From Military Vote.  The Washington Times (9/24, Abruzzese, 77K) says GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bob McDonnell, "a former Army officer who as Virginia’s attorney general helped ensure overseas military members’ votes counted in the last election, is hoping to reap the rewards of his effort when service members vote again in November. With 814,000 veterans and 203,508 Department of Defense employees," Virginia’s "military community is expected to have a large
say in a state that Gov. Tim Kaine won in 2005 with just over 1 million votes." University of Virginia political scientist Larry J. Sabato "said…McDonnell has many attributes that will appeal to the military voter. ‘It is a vote that usually leans Republican by various margins, and, of course, McDonnell having been a veteran himself, and having a daughter fight in Iraq, and being from Virginia Beach, [he] has some good arguments to use in courting them,’ he said." The Times adds that "McDonnell…is looking for a large military turnout in the hope it will give him a boost."  

6.      Head Of VHA Suicide Prevention Program Earns Top Honor.  In a "Federal Diary" column for the Washington Post (9/24, 684K), Steve Vogel writes, "Faced with alarming numbers of suicides by veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs turned several years ago to Janet Kemp, an experienced hand who had started her career as a VA nurse over two decades ago, earned a doctorate and became an expert on the subject of suicide prevention." Vogel adds Kemp instituted the "Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline — 800-273-TALK — which began taking calls in July 2007." The VA "credits the service with helping to resolve more than 5,000 incidents involving callers who were removed from a suicidal situation. On Wednesday, Kemp, national director of the suicide prevention program for VA’s Veterans Health Administration, was recognized as Federal Employee of the Year by the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, which sponsors the annual Service to America medals for outstanding public servants."  

7.      Man Surrenders After Seven-Hour Standoff At Jesse Brown VAMC.  In continuing coverage, the AP (9/24, Rousseau) reports, "A gunman who fired one round inside a Chicago veterans hospital before barricading himself in the emergency room peacefully surrendered Wednesday after seven hours of negotiations, police said. No one in the hospital was injured" during the standoff, which "began around 2 a.m. after the man walked into the lobby of the Jesse Brown Veterans Administration Medical Center and fired a shot, then holed up in an ER exam room, police said. The emergency room was evacuated, but the rest of the hospital, a 205-bed facility on the city’s west side, remained open." The AP adds, "Police did not identify the man, who had not been charged as of Wednesday afternoon."
      On its website, WLS-TV Chicago, IL (9/23, Knowles) reported, "A man who holed up at a VA hospital…Wednesday morning may be responsible for a double homicide, police said." The" standoff with police lasted for about 8 hours," during "which time the man — who has not been identified because he has not been charged — said he did not want to hurt anyone but needed help. He also reportedly told a hospital worker he’d just shot his parents," a statement which "led police to the 2200-block of South Kildare, where two bodies were found. The victims have been identified as Joe and Johnnie Washington." They "had lived in the home for years and their son, an ex-Marine, had been with them there for about 5 years, neighbors said." The WFLD-TV Chicago, IL (9/23) website
published a similar story.
      

8.      Two Veterans To Receive Military Honors.  The Bakersfield Californian (9/24, Mayer, 57K).

 9.      Groups Petition California To Investigate Vets’ Vision Loss At Palo Alto VA.  The AP (9/24, Barbassa) reports, "A Veterans Administration probe that found eight veterans suffered potentially preventable vision loss while under the care of optometrists at a Northern California VA facility is prompting medical groups to call for a state investigation." On Wednesday, the California Medical Association, California Academy of Eye Physicians & Surgeons, and American Glaucoma Society "sent a petition…to the California Department of Consumer Affairs seeking an evaluation of the care received by the veterans at VA Palo Alto." The groups "want the state to suspend a new state law set to take effect in January that would expand optometrists’ ability to care for glaucoma patients." The California Optometric Association "argued the petition was…an attempt to use the VA cases to derail a process meant to more conveniently give patients the care they need at a lower cost." The groups "calling for an outside investigation," however, "are citing the VA cases as examples of what can go wrong if optometrists’ scope is expanded."  

 10.    Disabled Vet Returns To James A. Haley VAMC.  In continuing coverage, the St. Petersburg (FL) Times (9/24, Catalanello) reports, "A wheelchair dependent man who disappeared from James A. Haley VA Medical Center on Monday is safe, his sister says. On Wednesday morning, hospital police told Donna Rudner that her brother, Richard Crook, 51, had returned to the hospital and was being medically evaluated." Rudner "said her brother told her he left voluntarily after meeting someone on the Internet."