thedrifter
12-15-05, 03:22 PM
December 15, 2005
VA ponders lump sums for lesser disabilities
Vets’ groups oppose idea
By Rick Maze
Times staff writer
The Department of Veterans Affairs is considering a controversial change in disability benefits that would provide a one-time lump sum, rather than monthly payments, to those with low-rated disabilities.
Veterans’ groups do not like the idea, recommended in a May report from the VA’s inspector general as a way to cut costs.
Donald Mooney of the American Legion, testifying Dec. 7 before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee about problems in processing disability claims, said such lump-sum payments would create a number of problems.
For example, if a service-connected condition worsened over time, it is unclear if or how the veteran could get an increase in disability compensation.
“The veteran would not be able to obtain an increase in evaluation if he or she accepted the lump- sum payment,” Mooney said, adding that it also is unclear whether a spouse would be entitled to service-connected death benefits in such cases.
Another problem, Mooney said, is that the VA often inaccurately assigns an initial disability rating. If a veteran is paid too little or too much, the process for getting more money or repaying money would be problematic.
The idea of lump-sum disability benefits was first raised in 1996 by the Veterans’ Claims Adjudication Commission, which noted that veterans making multiple claims for the same disability were a large reason for a backlog of claims, and that most of the repeat claims came from veterans with comparatively less-severe disabilities who were trying to get their disability ratings increased.
Cynthia Bascetta of the Government Accountability Office, which has been studying VA claims processing, noted that about 65 percent of disabled veterans have disabilities rated at 30 percent or less, which consume a large amount of the VA’s administrative time and resources.
Bascetta, testifying at the same hearing, said a survey of veterans in 2000 showed that about one-third of those with newly received disability rates expressed interest in the idea of a one-time payment instead of monthly disability pay.
Bascetta said a one-time benefit would be potentially useful “to some veterans as they make the transition from military to civilian life,” but she talked about it only as an option, with veterans retaining the choice to get traditional monthly disability pay if they did not want a lump sum.
A lump-sum payment system saves money only if the payment received is less than a veteran would get in a lifetime through monthly payments and if a veteran waives the right to a re-evaluation of the disability in the future.
The 1996 commission asked Congress to approve paying reduced lump-sum disability payments, but lawmakers never acted. No immediate action is expected on the new IG recommendation either, but a new panel — the Veterans’ Disability Benefits Commission — is looking at possible changes to veterans’ compensation, particularly for those with low-rated disabilities.
That 13-member commission, appointed in February, is due to complete its work next August, but its members already have been talking about the need for an extension.
VA ponders lump sums for lesser disabilities
Vets’ groups oppose idea
By Rick Maze
Times staff writer
The Department of Veterans Affairs is considering a controversial change in disability benefits that would provide a one-time lump sum, rather than monthly payments, to those with low-rated disabilities.
Veterans’ groups do not like the idea, recommended in a May report from the VA’s inspector general as a way to cut costs.
Donald Mooney of the American Legion, testifying Dec. 7 before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee about problems in processing disability claims, said such lump-sum payments would create a number of problems.
For example, if a service-connected condition worsened over time, it is unclear if or how the veteran could get an increase in disability compensation.
“The veteran would not be able to obtain an increase in evaluation if he or she accepted the lump- sum payment,” Mooney said, adding that it also is unclear whether a spouse would be entitled to service-connected death benefits in such cases.
Another problem, Mooney said, is that the VA often inaccurately assigns an initial disability rating. If a veteran is paid too little or too much, the process for getting more money or repaying money would be problematic.
The idea of lump-sum disability benefits was first raised in 1996 by the Veterans’ Claims Adjudication Commission, which noted that veterans making multiple claims for the same disability were a large reason for a backlog of claims, and that most of the repeat claims came from veterans with comparatively less-severe disabilities who were trying to get their disability ratings increased.
Cynthia Bascetta of the Government Accountability Office, which has been studying VA claims processing, noted that about 65 percent of disabled veterans have disabilities rated at 30 percent or less, which consume a large amount of the VA’s administrative time and resources.
Bascetta, testifying at the same hearing, said a survey of veterans in 2000 showed that about one-third of those with newly received disability rates expressed interest in the idea of a one-time payment instead of monthly disability pay.
Bascetta said a one-time benefit would be potentially useful “to some veterans as they make the transition from military to civilian life,” but she talked about it only as an option, with veterans retaining the choice to get traditional monthly disability pay if they did not want a lump sum.
A lump-sum payment system saves money only if the payment received is less than a veteran would get in a lifetime through monthly payments and if a veteran waives the right to a re-evaluation of the disability in the future.
The 1996 commission asked Congress to approve paying reduced lump-sum disability payments, but lawmakers never acted. No immediate action is expected on the new IG recommendation either, but a new panel — the Veterans’ Disability Benefits Commission — is looking at possible changes to veterans’ compensation, particularly for those with low-rated disabilities.
That 13-member commission, appointed in February, is due to complete its work next August, but its members already have been talking about the need for an extension.