Thursday, July 16, 2009

Pittsburgh VA Inflates Claim Performance, Receive $300 Bonuses

Altmire presses for in-depth probe into VA benefits
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Dissatisfied with a recent probe into the handling of benefit claims at the Pittsburgh Veterans Affairs office, U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire yesterday called for "a second, more in-depth investigation."

A report released in May by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General found that the Pittsburgh VA office's performance numbers were artificially inflated due to a delay in the processing of veterans' claims. The result, Mr. Altmire said, was that employees received $300 bonuses.

"I want the VA OIG to dig deeper so we can find out exactly what went wrong and what we need to do to ensure mistakes like this do not happen in the future," said Mr. Altmire, D-McCandless. "We owe it to our veterans to ensure that they receive the benefits they have earned as quickly as possible."

The Office of Inspector General's first report simply stated that a "misunderstanding" between management and staff led to a delay in the processing of veterans' claims.

New VA Endoscopy Letters Linked to Money

WSMV Nashville

VA Letters Give Vets Two Options
Patients Can File Federal Tort Claim, Apply For Monthly VA Payments


POSTED: 4:41 pm CDT July 15, 2009
UPDATED: 7:38 pm CDT July 15, 2009
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- More letters are being sent to veterans who may have had questionable colonoscopy procedures at the Murfreesboro VA Hospital. But this time, the letters are linked to money.

One attorney warns recipients might want to read the fine print before signing on the dotted line.

The letters offer veterans who have tested positive for HIV and hepatitis B or C after colonoscopy procedures at the Murfreesboro VA options to seek payment, but by filing out these forms, patients could be placing limits on future options.


Tony Mayo of Chattanooga served three years in the U.S. Army in the early 1970s. He said he always had a clean bill of health, until recently.

Mayo had a colonoscopy three years ago at the Alvin York Medical Center in Murfreesboro. In February, he was informed he'd tested positive for hepatitis C.

"Last week, they changed it to hepatitis B, chronic," said Mayo.

The problem left Mayo and his wife confused and worried.

"We've got 13 grandkids," said Mayo's wife, Sandra. "It worries me that maybe one of them could catch it."

The Mayos recently received a letter, which they plan to send to their attorney Mike Shepard for advice.

"I think it's premature for the veterans to be asked to settle at this point," said Shepard. "You have to be careful, understanding exactly what's happened to you before you start filing claims.

The letter starts with an apology but quickly gets down to business, giving veterans two options: They can file a federal tort claim or apply for monthly payments from the VA.

"Just because you get these forms have been sent out doesn't mean there's going to be compensation for the veterans," Shepard said.

Shephard said both options can be filed for, but both cannot be received. Opting to receive the monthly benefits will offset any lump sum payment received from the tort claim act.

Veterans will have two years to file a federal tort claims act. Shepard advises letter recipients refrain from filing because all the facts aren't yet in.

"Don't jump the gun here," he said. "Wait until the investigation is complete. Wait 'til Congress is done with their investigation."

Another issue to think about is if veterans file now and receive compensation, some of these infections lay dormant for years, so it could be three years before the patient realizes he or she has full-blown HIV but has already settled with the VA.

Last week, the VA announced that any veteran affected will receive completely free treatment from the VA.

Percentage of Veterans with Mental Health Problems Jumps Nearly 50%

"About 37% of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have mental health problems, a nearly 50% increase from the last time the prevalence was calculated, according to a new study published today analyzing national Department of Veterans Affairs data.

The study, which examined the records of about 289,000 veterans who sought care at the VA between 2002 and 2008, also found higher rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

“What’s really striking is the dramatic acceleration in mental health diagnoses, particularly PTSD, after the beginning of the conflict in Iraq,” said the study’s lead author, Dr. Karen Seal, a staff physician at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and an assistant professor at UC San Francisco."

Full Article: Percentage of veterans with mental health problems jumps dramatically
LA Times
1:00 PM, July 16, 2009

Congressman Filner Backs Paying all Disability Claims Now

Harvard Professor Linda Bilmes has noted, that the VA ends up paying almost 90% of all filed VA disability claims and proposed that, given this, why not handle disability claims like "the way the Internal Revenue Service handles most tax refunds. The IRS pays refunds to most and just reviews a small percentage of the tax returns. Why can't the VA do something similar?"

"Here's how we can stimulate the economy: Pay our military veterans the benefits we owe them - right now! We can treat VA benefits claims like IRS tax returns. Select a sampling, perhaps 10 percent to 25 percent, to be reviewed - and immediately pay the claims of the rest.

"That's a great idea - let's do it," said House Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Bob Filner, D-Calif. "I endorse it completely."

He said Vietnam War veterans are still being challenged for disability claims due to exposure to the defoliant Agent Orange - stop challenging and start paying."

Full Article:

Schram: What to do about vets' claims? Pay them - now


By Martin Schram/Syndicated columnist