VA Reports Backlog Down by More than 2,700 Claims

VA Reports Backlog Down by More than 2,700 Claims
Posted by Kaitlin Ramlogan onNovember 4

This week, the VA reported that the backlog decreased again this week after a few weeks of stalled progress. The total number of pending claims was reduced by about 2,300, translating to about 517,000 veterans waiting for a decision on their disability claim. The backlog decreased by more than 2,700 claims. 

 To date, about 235,000 of those 517,000 veterans have been waiting more than 125 days for a decision on their claim. With 46 weeks remaining until the FY 2015 deadline, the VA will need to reduce the backlog by more than 5,100 claims per week to eliminate the backlog in time. The chart below show the recent progress in reducing the backlog, as well as the projected decline in backlogged claims based on the average weekly reductions since March 2013.

The VA has made significant progress in processing backlogged claims, reducing the disability claims backlog by almost 63% since last year. This is good news for our veterans overall, however, delays in the disability claims process may be more problematic for some veterans than it is for others. 

Last week, Assistant IG for Audits and Evaluations Linda Halliday testified before the House Veterans Affairs Committee on the current state of investigations into the Philadelphia VARO. In the testimony, Ms. Halliday spoke more broadly of the inspections that have occurred to date of VA Regional Offices (VAROs), confirming that since April 2009, 93 VAROs have been inspected. She stated that as a result of these inspections, the VA Office of the Inspector General (VAOIG) has “consistently reported the need for enhanced policy guidance, oversight, workload management, training, and supervisory review to improve the accuracy and timeliness of disability claims processing and VARO operations.” 

This testimony and the findings from these inspections highlight the need for strong leadership and accountability across the VAROs. IAVA recognizes that progress has been made in decreasing the VA backlog, but emphasizes the need for continued reforms to improve the accuracy and timeliness of claim decisions for all veterans. These recommendations were highlighted in IAVA’s 2014 Red Tape Report. 

To hear more about the veterans who have waited or continue to wait in the backlog, visit http://www.thewaitwecarry.org.

* Note: IAVA continues to track and report backlogged claims to include claims not counted in the VA’s Rating Bundle. IAVA does this because we believe that claims from all veterans and their families should be included in the goal to end the VA Backlog by 2015. For more on this, please see IAVA’s blog post from July 22, 2103, “Is the VA Moving the Goalpost?”

Read more http://iava.org/blog/va-reports-backlog-down-more-2700-claims