Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) today launched a website designed to help Iowa veterans whose disability claims are tied up in the Veterans Administration disability claims backlog. The VA is facing a record backlog in processing veterans disability benefits claims. The process normally takes nine months on average, but in some recent cases has been taking years.
Iowa veterans who log on to http://braley.house.gov/helpingveterans and fill out the form will be contacted by a member of Braley’s staff who specializes in veterans casework.
“Our veterans deserve the benefits they’ve earned putting their lives on the line for our country,” Braley said. “Unfortunately, the disability claims backlog at the VA is making many veterans feel like second class citizens.
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“I’ve urged the VA to devote all possible resources to reducing the backlog, but they’re just not acting fast enough. If they’re not going to do something about this embarrassing backlog, I will. That’s why I launched http://braley.house.gov/helpingveterans. If you’re facing a mountain of red tape from the VA, log on to this website to request help from my office. We’ll do everything we possibly can to resolve the problem you’re having with the VA.”
Last month, Braley sent a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki calling on him to end the Veterans Affairs’ backlog of more than 600,000 disability claims and urging him to dedicate all possible resources toward end the backlog.
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According to a report by the Center for Investigative Reporting, over the last four years, pending claims at the VA have increased by more than 2,000 percent. For veterans who submit a first-time disability claim, the average wait time is between 316 and 327 days; many veterans wait even longer.