VA Focusing on Reducing Disability Claims Backlog

September 7, 2010 - Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki spoke at a recent veteran conference and addressed the VA's enormous backlog of pending disability claims. VA Sec. Shinseki stated the VA is "making great strides" battling its backlog. Sec. Shinseki also stated he believes this is the year the VA will "break the back of the backlog."

The VA's current processing time for disability claims is approximately 160 days. The VA's goal is to get down to a 125 day processing time by the end of the year but that is by no means a final goal. Once they get to a 125 day processing time, they will set a new, faster processing time. Faster isn't the only goal however, the VA also strives to be more accurate. 

2009 was a record year for the VA. For the first time in the VA's history they received over 1 million disability claims. The last 10 years have shown a huge increase in claims and there is no reason to believe they will slow down anytime soon. The VA estimates they will treat over 6.1 million veterans in 2011.

The VA is taking steps to rise to the challenge being presented by the incredible influx of veterans needing care. The VA has already hired over 3,500 people to focus their work solely on disability claims. In an attempt to better the claims process itself, the VA devoted over $130 million to build their paperless claims process, which should be in effect sometime in 2012.

Additionally, the VA has put time into developing tele-health technology and lifetime electronic records. The VA has also made disability claims processes easier for veterans suffering from PTSD and presumptive illnesses. Instead of focusing on one fix for the process, the VA is tackling their problem from all angles.