Are older PTSD Veterans being sidelined, as new veterans are being treated first!
Officials at six of the seven VA medical facilities visited by GAO researchers reported that although “they are now able to keep up with the current number of veterans seeking PTSD services, they may not be able to meet an increase in demand for these services.”
They also expressed concern because the VA had directed them to give priority for PTSD care to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Follow-up care for veterans now receiving PTSD treatment could be delayed as much as 90 days, they fear."
Full Article at: GAO Questions VA's Ability To Provide More PTSD Care
by Kate Mulligan
The VA is working hard to make certain that soldiers returning from Iraq benefit from lessons learned since Vietnam.
Will veterans returning home from Iraq receive prompt and effective treatment for their war-related mental health disorders?
Neither the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) nor the Department of Defense (DoD) can provide a definitive answer, according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The report, released September 20, offered recommendations that would lead to improved data collection and coordination between the two governmental agencies.
The VA is working to implement the recommendations that call for the agency to combine data about veterans receiving treatment for PTSD at VA medical centers with data about those receiving treatment for PTSD at its veterans centers (Vet Centers).
(Vet Centers were established as entities separate from the medical centers because Vietnam veterans were reluctant to receive medical care for their war-related mental health disorders in a federal building.)
The combination of the data sets will give VA officials a better assessment of the current availability of treatment for PTSD and improved ability to project need for more services.
Officials at six of the seven VA medical facilities visited by GAO researchers reported that although “they are now able to keep up with the current number of veterans seeking PTSD services, they may not be able to meet an increase in demand for these services.”
They also expressed concern because the VA had directed them to give priority for PTSD care to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Follow-up care for veterans now receiving PTSD treatment could be delayed as much as 90 days, they fear."
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Tens of Thousands of Returning Troops Mental Health Questionnaires Records Missing
This is extremely upsetting, is this what we can expect from electronic records?
Hopefully more will come out on the type of records that were lost, I mean were the lost records associated with soldiers applying for benefits?
Full Article at:
Troops' post-deployment questionnaires missing
By KIMBERLY HEFLING, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON – "Congressional investigators said Thursday that tens of thousands of questionnaires aimed at measuring the mental and physical health of returning combat troops can't be found.
As a result, the Government Accountability Office said, the military does not have reasonable assurances that the service members got the opportunity to report their health problems on the forms.
The forms are filled out electronically and used to track health problems among troops. They also give returning soldiers a chance to say if they'd like to see a counselor.
The GAO said about 20 percent of the questionnaires it sought during a set period were missing."
Hopefully more will come out on the type of records that were lost, I mean were the lost records associated with soldiers applying for benefits?
Full Article at:
Troops' post-deployment questionnaires missing
By KIMBERLY HEFLING, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON – "Congressional investigators said Thursday that tens of thousands of questionnaires aimed at measuring the mental and physical health of returning combat troops can't be found.
As a result, the Government Accountability Office said, the military does not have reasonable assurances that the service members got the opportunity to report their health problems on the forms.
The forms are filled out electronically and used to track health problems among troops. They also give returning soldiers a chance to say if they'd like to see a counselor.
The GAO said about 20 percent of the questionnaires it sought during a set period were missing."
A Look at the Time Peroids Involved in Changing VA Appeals System
This article give you a look at the time period that is involved in changing the appeal times of veterans claims.
Full Article at: Panel votes to speed benefits appeals of vets
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
"A House subcommittee moved Wednesday to reduce the amount of time it takes for a veteran to appeal a benefits decision, which can add two to five years to the wait for benefits.
Approved by the disability assistance and memorial affairs subcommittee of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, the unnumbered draft bill, called the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2009, attempts to streamline both the administration appeals process within the Veterans Affairs Department and the judicial review process through the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Included in the bill are procedural changes, such as allowing new information from a veteran whose claim is under appeal to be sent directly to the Board of Veterans Affairs, rather than to a regional office where it would have to work its way through the bureaucracy; and giving the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims the power to review an entire claim, not just one part at a time. The change in the appeals court process is aimed at what veterans have come to call the “hamster wheel” of having a claim with multiple issues decided one at a time in a process that never seems to end as the claim is sent back and forth between the regional official and administrative board.
Additionally, the bill tries to set the stage for more fundamental changes by creating an independent panel, the Veterans Judicial Review Commission, that would evaluate the disability and survivor benefits claims process and recommend changes. An interim report from the commission would be required by July 2010 with a final report by Dec. 30, 2010.
The report deadlines make it possible that some changes could be approved by Congress as early as next year, but major changes would not be considered until 2011."
Full Article at: Panel votes to speed benefits appeals of vets
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
"A House subcommittee moved Wednesday to reduce the amount of time it takes for a veteran to appeal a benefits decision, which can add two to five years to the wait for benefits.
Approved by the disability assistance and memorial affairs subcommittee of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, the unnumbered draft bill, called the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2009, attempts to streamline both the administration appeals process within the Veterans Affairs Department and the judicial review process through the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Included in the bill are procedural changes, such as allowing new information from a veteran whose claim is under appeal to be sent directly to the Board of Veterans Affairs, rather than to a regional office where it would have to work its way through the bureaucracy; and giving the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims the power to review an entire claim, not just one part at a time. The change in the appeals court process is aimed at what veterans have come to call the “hamster wheel” of having a claim with multiple issues decided one at a time in a process that never seems to end as the claim is sent back and forth between the regional official and administrative board.
Additionally, the bill tries to set the stage for more fundamental changes by creating an independent panel, the Veterans Judicial Review Commission, that would evaluate the disability and survivor benefits claims process and recommend changes. An interim report from the commission would be required by July 2010 with a final report by Dec. 30, 2010.
The report deadlines make it possible that some changes could be approved by Congress as early as next year, but major changes would not be considered until 2011."
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