1 Down 72,000 To Go – Dead In New Mexico

V.A. Traitors Get Their First Vietnam Vet Kill

October 21, 2005 By Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes. [Excerpt]

WASHINGTON Veterans groups and House Democrats blasted VA plans to review all post-traumatic stress disorder claims because of irregularities in their compensation system, calling it insulting to heroes who have served their country.

“To the VA, this is simply a process seeking out voids in paperwork,” said Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M., at a Thursday hearing on Capitol Hill. “But to veterans, it’s a jolting realization that their day-to-day struggles are being questioned again.”

Critics called it a way for the department to save money by shirking its duty to care for disabled veterans. Quentin Kinderman, deputy director of legislative service for the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, called the IG report flawed and the proposed review a waste of money.

“There is very little potential to reduce the number of cases here,” he said. “And we’ve very concerned about the impact of the review and publicity on veterans, especially those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, who need the kind of counseling that the VA can provide.”

Udall said in one case, a veteran in his district committed suicide after hearing about plans for the review. Officials from New Mexico found the man, a Vietnam veteran, with information regarding the review beside his Purple Heart when he took his life.

[This new rule, designed to cut thousands off the VA rolls, demands that a Vet document the “specific incident” that caused his or her PTSD. Since most armed forces PTSD is brought on by an extended period of cumulative stress in combat, rather than a “specific incident,” that makes meeting the new requirement nearly impossible. Then, no more disability payments. This is nothing less than murder. But it’s important murder. Got to save money somewhere. The Bush Buddy war-profiteers need their billions. Can’t have Halliburton going without. What are some dead Vets compared to that? Thomas]

By Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Friday, October 21, 2005

WASHINGTON — Veterans groups and House Democrats blasted VA plans to review all post-traumatic stress disorder claims because of irregularities in their compensation system, calling it insulting to heroes who have served their country.

“To the VA, this is simply a process seeking out voids in paperwork,” said Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M, at a Thursday hearing on Capitol Hill. “But to veterans, it’s a jolting realization that their day-to-day struggles are being questioned again.”

In August, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced plans to review 72,000 cases where veterans had received a 100 percent disability rating for post-traumatic stress disorder, after an investigation of 2,100 such cases found that more than 25 percent lacked justification for those claims.

Jon Wooditch, acting inspector general for the department, said Thursday that the goal of the comprehensive review was not to cut benefits but to find reasons behind inconsistencies in the way claims are rewarded.

For example, in Illinois, only about 2.8 percent of PTSD cases receive the 100 percent rating, and the average yearly payment for treatment is $6,961. But in New Mexico, more than 12 percent of PTSD receive that highest disability claim, and the payment average there is $12,004.

“We want to make sure everyone is receiving what they’re entitled to under the law,” he said.

But critics called it a way for the department to save money by shirking its duty to care for disabled veterans. Quentin Kinderman, deputy director of legislative service for the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, called the IG report flawed and the proposed review a waste of money.

“There is very little potential to reduce the number of cases here,” he said. “And we’ve very concerned about the impact of the review and publicity on veterans, especially those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, who need the kind of counseling that the VA can provide.”

Democrats echoed those concerns, and called for a halt to plans to review the cases.

Udall said in one case, a veteran in his district committed suicide after hearing about plans for the review. Officials from New Mexico found the man, a Vietnam veteran, with information regarding the review beside his Purple Heart when he took his life.

“The manner in which [VA officials] have proceeded has done more harm than good,” he said.

Cynthia Bascetta, director of income security issues at the Government Accountability Office, said the VA does need to review how it handles cases for efficiency purposes, but she told the committee the department’s proposed approach is flawed.

She said officials need to sample both completed claims cases and rejected applications to find inefficiencies and mistakes in the process, which Democrats also asked for.

Ranking member Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., also questioned the review, noting that federal law prohibits veterans benefits from being revoked unless officials can prove fraud occurred.

Wooditch said cases reviewed that lacked evidence to prove the 100 percent PTSD disability claim were likely not the result of fraud, but instead simple mistakes in paperwork or administrative review.

By Tom Philpott, Special to Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, August 25, 2005

Ronald Nesler of Las Cruces, N.M., a Vietnam veteran rated 100 percent disabled with post-traumatic stress disorder, learned this month that his case, as decided in 1997 by the Department of Veterans Affairs, lacked documents to support the finding of service-connected PTSD.

The VA regional office in Albuquerque advised Nesler in an Aug. 11 letter that he has 60 days to provide evidence he was exposed to the stressful wartime incidents described in his claim papers years ago.

SNIP: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=30337&archive=true