War veterans who suffer physical and emotion illness frequently suffer financial hardships due to their inability to find suitable employment. Veterans Affairs (VA) offers substantial medical services and benefits to those who have suffered a disability. Unfortunately, the VA disability benefits can serve as an incentive to commit fraud and abuse. Psychiatric disabilities, like Post Traumatic […] Read more

The International Herald Tribune, has an article on how post-traumatic-stress-disorder (PTSD) sometimes manifest years and decades after a traumatic event. For example, some World War II and Korean War veterans did not show symptoms of PTSD for 30-years. As the Center for Disease Control (CDC) states PTSD can be very difficult to diagnose, which may be […] Read more

Karen Kaplan’s August 18, Los Angeles Times article, U.S. military practices genetic discrimination in denying benefits, tells how the U.S. Military denies disability benefits to both active and veteran military personnel. The problem began in 1999, when the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) decided that soldiers with a genetic predisposition for a disease will be denied benefits for […] Read more

On the 7th floor of the Walter Reed Hospital is Ward 71, the oncology unit. When politicians come to visit wounded Iraq soldiers, they go to the 3rd floor where they can get publicity shots with amputee soldiers. “No one even knows we’re on the oncology ward,” says Sergeant Valentin. This past July, Iraq’s environment minister claimed […] Read more

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) provides the most recent reports and testimonies related to military and veteran’s health care and disability benefits issued since March 2003. Currently there are 28 items listed related to veterans disability benefits. GAO Findings and Recommendations Regarding DOD and VA Disability Systems GAO-07-906R, May 25, 2007 Abstract   PDF    Veterans Benefits […] Read more

Veterans Adminstration (VA) Secretary Jim Nicholson has been accused by injured Iraq war veterans of denying them benefits. The class action suit was filed on behalf of hundreds of thousands of veterans. Attorneys filing the class action said that the objective is not monetary. What they want is for the VA to provide the mental […] Read more

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals chastised the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for contributing substantially to our sense of national shame. The ruling agrees with the Veterans that they should receive retroactive disability benefits for those who contracted a form of leukmia after being exposed to Agent Orange. Also affected are Vietnam vets […] Read more

The Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) has been asked by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to help determine why veteran disability compensation payments vary from state to state. The study will continue IDA’s seven-year history of providing the VA with analytical analysis and support according to the Spring issue 2006, of IDA Research Notes, […] Read more

In 1996 Congress passed the Veterans’ Health Care Eligibility Reform Act, which was designed to simplify the process of determining benefit eligibility. When applying for benefits, the first thing that happens is the eligibility of the Veteran. Next, a determination is made as to which of the 7 priority groups they will be assigned. Priority […] Read more

With nearly 17% of troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan showing signs of suffering Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) the Army has opened a 6,000-square-foot center at Fort Bliss. The Army says that the center has an unique approach because it treats both physical and mental ailments. The center’s goal is to remain ahead of […] Read more