AKAKA & TESTER CALL FOR DELIBERATE ACTION TO FIX VA’S VETERANS’ DISABILITY COMPENSATION SYSTEM
September 19, 2009 by John Allen · 16 Comments
The Senate and House Committees on Veterans Affairs are now considering whether ot not to substantially increase the amount of pensions for disabled veterans very soon here. The fight from other quarters to keep that amount of money low is aggressive and disciplined.
You need to understand what is happening and be ready to take immediate action. This is going to require you to read the following attached source documents carefully and slowly. You need to be well armed for the coming fight.
Gordon Duff and I discussed at great length exactly how to lay this information out for you. It is extremely important that you be aware of what is happening here. Take the hour or so you are going to need to familiarize yourself with this information. The source documents must be read and understood. Many of our "friends" are not acting in our best interests here. That is code, let me spell it out. The traditional veterans organizations are not necessarily in our corner on this one.
We decided that instead of breaking this down, we would simply forward the entire set of source documents to you and let you read them. If everything works out right, your V.A. pension could be increased considerably within the next couple of years.
This information has been taken directly from The Retired Enlisted Association’s update and newsletter for 18 September 2009. This is extremely important information and needs to be read completely and slowly because it discusses, among other things, a substantial increase in veterans pensions for Quality of Life compensation, something our country has never attempted for its veterans. Other countries do this all the time. The monthly increase in your pension could be quite substantial.
The total money outlay from the General Revenue Fund would be huge, so there will be tremendous push back against this from other groups that want that money for their agendas. You need to inform yourself and become very aware of all facets of this issue.
The fight will probably be vicious because we are probably talking about an annual expenditure of more than $35 billion dollars a year added on to present DVA expenditures.
Many, many groups in Washington D.C. want that money and will fight to keep it away from veterans’ use. It is just the way politics works here. If you have never gotten involved in a Veterans Compensation or Veterans Issues bar-room brawl before, this is the time, this is the fight.
We need every single veterans’ fist thrown in the direction of the usurpers on this one. This won’t be pretty. We are talking about big money here and that means the knives come out. If you have never gotten involved in a political battle before, cherry or not, we need every man and woman with veteran’s status involved in this.
Get ready for combat. This will probably be a vicious fight for at least a couple of years because the money outlay is huge. Here is the information. It is taken directly from the TREA newsletter.
Please read the source documents. This could be the most important homework you have ever done in your life.
The excerpt starts here.
AKAKA & TESTER CALL FOR DELIBERATE ACTION TO FIX VA’S VETERANS’ DISABILITY COMPENSATION SYSTEM
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI), Chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, heard testimony on the state of VA’s system for disability compensation. Witnesses from VA, veterans service organizations and the larger disability policy community urged cautious movement toward fixing what many acknowledge is a broken system.
Senator Akaka stated: “To bring the right changes to a process this complicated and important, we must be deliberative, focused, and open to input from all who are affected. At the same time, we cannot be paralyzed by complexity; the current system is already outdated, and it will get worse until we act.”
Senator Tester stated: “No doubt about it – we need to measure twice and cut once, not the other way around. I hope that among the experts in the room making decisions on ratings are the fighting men and women who are coming back. I would bring them in early in the process, not after the fact.” Later in the hearing, under further questioning from Tester, VA officials pledged that veterans would be involved early in the process of any revisions to the disability compensation process.
Today’s hearing is the latest in a series on veterans’ disability compensation. Witnesses included representatives from VA, Economic Systems Inc,VA’s Advisory Committee on Disability Compensation, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and Easter Seals. Records of earlier hearings are available at http://veterans.senate.gov, and the full written opening statements and written testimony are available here .
One last word of caution. In a fight like this where the stakes are so high, traditional "friends" of veterans are likely to be bought off by groups that oppose this type of outlay for veterans’ pensions. We cannot under any circumstances depend upon veterans organizations to carry the ball for us. Trust me, they can be bought off. You can see signs of that already by reading the source documents carefully.
We are going to have to fight this one ourselves. Get your email skills up.
CWO3 Tom Barnes, USCG (Ret.)
After reading the source docs I came away with the following thoughts: the Advisory Committee on Disability Compensation is not our friend. and the DAV wants some change but is very conservative in it’s outlook. This could cut either way. I could windup losing money if they do the wrong changes
I came away with exactly the same impression.
In fact, it appears to me, the most even handed and knowledgable group of all was surprisingly the Dept of Veterans Affairs representative and his data. He seemed to have the most veteran friendly attitude.
The DAV is talking about a 9% increase at most when in October of 2007 the Veterans Disability Benefits Commission ardently argued for a 25% increase in veterans pensions when they reported to Congress after their two year study. This is astounding that the DAV would lowball us like this if they are in fact the veterans’s advocates that they claim to be.
I have said this for many years, and Gordon Duff is much more on top of this than I am: the funny hat veterans organizations that are called by Congress so much to represent us are not our friends. They are defense industry lobbyists camoflaged as veterans advocates. The last thing they want is more government billions coming to us…that means less for defense outlays. These documents clearly show that.
Perhaps their duplicitous nature is now apparent. They are liars if they claim to have our best interests at heart. That is why Gordon and I wanted all of you to get a chance to read these source documents. Unless you see this stuff, you simply think people like he and I are blowing smoke. We are not. The funny hat and traditional veterans organizations are NOT our friends.
CWO3 Tom Barnes, USCG (Ret.)
I wonder where the other funny hats stand on this ?
I see that the DAVs 9% is more realistic than 25%, even though I sure wound like the 25% !! BTW, they seem to be talking about COMPENSATION, not Pension.
Sgt Ed:
You make a good point about compensation vs. pension, but as far as I can tell from reading the source documents, no one has clearly defined the vehicle that a Quality of Living payment would be made within (i.e. pension vs. compensation) but your point is very well taken.
It is my limited understanding of the Veterans Benefit Commission report of October 2007 that 25% was put forth as a rock bottom starting point for veterans upgrade in compensation for quality of life because the commission had data available to them to suggest that present compensation is about 40% below where it should be measured against the base year when inflation is taken into account.
In other words, the 25% figure was a low figure itself. I am quite sure that the DAV would be aware of the same data. I personally feel that 9% is a slap in the face when the VBC report clearly makes a 25% recommendation for upgrade.
CWO3 Tom Barnes, USCG (Ret.)
The only reason this is being pushed up to the front of the line is because they need an excuse to cut compensation or at least justify a 0% COLA for 2010.
A 25% raise would be wonderful, but where does that leave our Iraq and Afghanistan Vets. Are they a separate issue? We all say we care so much about our fellow Veterans, but I will feel kind of rotten getting that much of a raise, knowing that those young Veterans are getting nothing. Does anyone here care about the genome of a catfish? I didn’t think so. Well if it passes, it will cost the taxpayer of America over a million dollars. How many Veterans can you support with that? There are hundreds of those earmarked for 2010. AMERICA HAS THE MONEY TO PAY IT’S VETERANS. Fellas, all this PORK has got to go!!!
compensation to disabled veterans can hardly be considered “pork” and Iraq and Afghanistan disabled veterans would be entitled to the same pyments as all other disabled veterans based on their award percentages, the idea of creating a two tier veterans system as Senator Bob Dole recommended would be the worst thing this nation could do. Veterans are on duty 24/7 in combat or out of combat if they are harmed by any cause other than self inflicted causes that are illegal like drunk driving, or drug overdoses, then the compensation ebefits they and their families are entitled to should be equal. The last overhaul of the veterans compensation system was in 1956 under General Omar Bradley, it is time to modernize the VA claims system and the compensation tables, for to long veterans have been under compensated for loss of quality of life, and that can never be made up to them, but it can be set right for all future compensation payments. Two different commissions during the Bush Administration came to basicaly the same conclusions the VDBC and the Dole/Shalala Commissions, the VA then had a private company review them and it has published it’s conclusion on July 22 2009, it’s time for the VA to stop review commissions and take action. The House and Senate needs to put it’s foot down, we were promised change under the Obama Administration, well here’s their chance take all of the reports and take action that helps the nations disabled veterans and their families, shouldn’t we be at the head of the line when it comes to federal dollars instead of GM, Wall Street and others, our debts come from blood spilled and body parts we lost in service to our nation, not mismanagement of stockholders money.
What I was saying was that things like the study of catfish genomes have got to go. I don’t think I indicated that any veterans compensation or pension were pork. I reread my comment, and it makes sense to me. Am I missing something here?
vets are too passive with va system-how the hell can politicians run a government,war or anything-they can not even run the va!tea parties at the va might show vets anger. what does work in the us.i left the us ,for me life is better in a third world country!
It is sad to see so many young service members being slaughtered and told they are serving their country and doing their American Duty. When they do return, if they return, they’re life will not be the same. Young wives and husbands leave their spouses due to the illnesses they come back with and leave these service members alone to deal with life on their own.
Veterans served to protect our American way of life and yet the people in charge of them never feel, see or experience the pain they go through. I live in Ca and see veterans in wheel chairs, unable to work, homeless, can’t receive their benefits because they don’t have a bank account or home address. Yet illegals, are granted carte blanche to every social service.
My wife and I lost our job, I am housebound due to two surgeries on former service connected injuries and we did not qualify for any assistance. We are now filing chapter 7 bankruptcy due to job loss and loss of our home. We asked for help, there are programs and grants everywhere for communities and cities (for veterans), but none are available to help veterans hitting hard times. They state (social services), that we pay too much for rent, yet that is what rent is going for. What they state we should qualify for is; a ghetto, gang ridden neighborhoods, the barrio’s and other towns that are on the verge of decay and collapse.
The US does not consider veterans a priority or concern. Their focus is on what their pay raise will be, how to cut another benefit to fund their campaign and none of them have served their country.
Illegals can walk into an ER in CA, ready to deliver a baby, state; “No Habla.” Get free medical treatment, and walk out with a baby, recieve a benefits package they are eligible for and the veteran is pushed aside and told you don’t qualify, go to the VA. What is wrong with this picture?
I have written to Congressman Darryl Issa many times. He is a former Army Officer, with one of the largest veteran communities in the country. He is on every committee possible, yet does not support one bill that supports the veterans population. He is unattainable until it is time for re-election.
I feel the VA Department is not a major power in our government. It should be. I am tired of fighting for my country, to come back and have to learn Spanish and live in a slummed neighborhood. I cannot afford a cell phone, yet I see the illegals with new homes, new vehicles, cell phones, food stamps and jobs. And not one has served. Grants are given to schools to teach the Latino community how to get a job. Yet veterans are homeless and don’t rate. Where is our thanks.
I am sorry for the outburst, but I am housebound and upset that Americans are being screwed by our own system….for us serving our country.
Not one politician has lost their home, retirement or healthcare. They will never be turned away from a hospital for treatment. Maybe they should be. They really need a wake up call.
Veterans should allowed to proudly stand up for their country, not be buried by it. We don’t rate the treatment we are getting.
S/F
Gy Berg
amen!
I agree wholeheartedly with Gy Berg. I am so tired of seeing “illegals” get the free aid that some of us fought for. I’m recently disabled due to cancer and have diabetes. The VA approved compensation for the diabetes due to exposure to agent orange but have disapproved compensation for the cancer. My wife has had to work her *** off over the past year to make ends meet. And I do not qualify for medicaid because she makes too much. Having had to visit our local SoSec office to apply for medicaid, I’ve seen people not able to read, write or speak english qualify for services with no problem. I’m an American Indian, maybe I should go in and speak my native language. Maybe then I’d qualify. Semper Fi Gunny – I support your words and views. Now if only someone with enough power can hear them, along with all the other voices of veterans; maybe something can be done. gy “T”
MR. BERG
I AM A MEMBR OF THE WOUNDED WARRIORS. MY HUSBAND IS A DISABLED VIETNAM VETERAN 100%. he is also being taken advantage. but, not yo the extent as you Bill (my husband) is also getting the housebound rate.
I do not know what is wrong with you, but if you give me some information, I might be able to get you to the right person.
We use to live in in Corona in Riverside County…Southern ca. Where are you.
Sincerely
Susan
Does the phrase Up in Arms apply? I’m ready.
I think Gordon Duff recently said something to the effect the US congress over the years committed what amounted to was genocide, by letting Vietnam veterans alone and publicly maligned, die without aid. Not to put words in your mouth Duff.
To think something in congress is going to change is folly. These people in congress love war, and love to talk publicly on memorial day, and veterans day while ignoring their needs. My rhetorical question is this. How many grunts Army and Marines from Vietnam died from suicide, or alone. How many of their children have gone all their lives in pain with the stigma of having been a combat veterans kid.