The Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee is set to unveil a bill as
early as Wednesday that would speed up the appeals process for veterans
unhappy with their benefits payments.
Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) and member Sen. Richard Blumenthal
(D-Conn.) announced the bill in a joint statement Tuesday. It aims to
overhaul the appeals process at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA),
which has been criticized as too lengthy.
“The VA’s current
appeals process is in desperate need of updating, and nearly half a
million veterans are in limbo because of the VA’s existing backlog,”
reads the joint statement announcing the bill, the Veterans Appeals
Improvement and Modernization Act.
“Between fiscal year 2015 and
fiscal year 2017, the number of pending appeals increased from
approximately 380,000 to 470,000 – a more than 20 percent increase.”
Veterans
currently have a five-year wait on average if they appeal a decision,
with the VA being criticized for having an outdated review process.
Lawmakers said they want that wait time to be reduced to less than a
year.
Isakson, who is in Georgia recovering from two recent back
surgeries, plans to introduce the act as early as Wednesday. The bill is
co-sponsored by Sen. Jon Tester (Mont.), the committee's top Democrat.
“For
too long our veterans and their families have faced unacceptable delays
during the VA’s disability claims appeal process,” Isakson said in the
statement.
“This legislation, created with input from the VA and
veterans groups, overhauls the current appeals process and puts in place
a new system that is more transparent and allows veterans to choose the
option that is right for them.”
Blumenthal added that the new
legislation “would dramatically shorten the average wait time for an
appeal from five years to 125 days.”
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