VBA Letter 20-04-42     Reprint for Vets       VA Benefits:   1-800-827-1000

VA HELP LINES UPDATE 01:   VA officials told a congressional committee 16 MAR 06 (Thursday) that they're working to better inform veterans of potential pension benefits, as well as to boost the accuracy of the help lines that veterans from around the country call for assistance.   Speaking before a subcommittee of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, VA officials admitted that their outreach efforts had failed to reach certain people who could benefit from its pension program. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) said in testimony that VA workers face many challenges in their jobs, including a growing number of complex claims, staff attrition and intense productivity pressures, including the three-minute rule.   The rule, the union said, requires a caller to spend no more than three minutes on hold waiting for a VA employee to answer, and for the discussion itself to last no longer than an additional three minutes.   Witnesses testified that although phone inquiries are typically not very case-specific, the responses often last more than a few minutes, especially if corrective action is needed or specialized information needs to be retrieved.   The subcommittee chairman Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL) Miller and ranking Democrat Rep. Shelly Berkley (D-NV) said they would continue to investigate the union's complaint.

Rep. Berkley said she has been told the VA has assigned people to answer phones as punishment for poor performance.   Jack McCoy, the VA's associate deputy undersecretary for policy and program management, said mistakes have been made, but denied there is a three-minute rule.   He said there are daily performance standards requiring 64 calls to be answered, but said there is no specific time limit on any one call.   He also defended VA employees answering the calls.   The Committee also said that they were disappointed in a recent study detailing the bad information that veterans received when they called the agency for help.   In a VA mystery caller program investigators pretending to be veterans called to ask questions.   It was found that up to 50% of the information provided was wrong and that callers often were treated rudely.   It was reported on 30 DEC 05 that an estimated 2 million people were missing out on VA pensions aimed at helping low-income veterans or their widows.   VA help lines are one of the primary means to alleviate that situation and people calling them were more likely to receive completely wrong answers than completely right ones.   The disability subcommittee hearing was held in response to those reports. Rep. Berkley and the subcommittee chairman Rep. Miller said the VA must do better.

VA told the committee it is working to improve communications between its benefits division and its health system. Starting 1 MAY 06 the department will include in enrollment letters to certain new VA health-system patients information that lets them know that they might be eligible for pension benefits.   On the help-line issue,   the agency is expanding training for and oversight of the people who answer questions from veterans or their family members.   In January, the VA notified its offices nationwide of the training and oversight increases and told the top official in each regional office to be directly involved in improving help-line performance.   A new online reference system for VA phone workers is scheduled to be available by the end of the year.

[Source: Times staff writer Rick Maze & Knight Ridder Newspapers Chris Adams articles 16 Mar 06]

The report of the 2004 Mystery Caller Telephone Service Quality Assessment Follow-up Study is enclosed. This letter provides significant findings from the report and discusses local quality control requirements, available training, and rotation issues related to the Public Contact Team (PCT).       [Source: VetJobs Veteran Eagle Newsletter 1 Feb 06]

Editorial:     This veteran will be seeking complete reform in the State of Nevada as soon as my claim has been (properly) settled.     The "kangaroo court" system the RO in Nevada follows must be put to rest and the military retirees "serving" in such positions of responsibility should be retired! *     It should be a privilege to assist, not a discipline problem.

    Stay tuned as I re-publish the entire report in html for the benefit of all veterans that served 90 days or more.     The only difference is that it will include hyper-text links to pertinent background information as well as my "pen" in editorial comments.

*     It is pathetic what prejudices and opinions this veteran has observed by military retirees
that feel they are "God's gift to" veterans...

    Reprint for Vets

    Surveys were performed in both 2002 and 2004 and the V.A. gives itself high grades (predictable) and result categories that explicitly lay the foundation for a pattern of excuses starting with "Completely Correct" of 5% (2002) and 19% (2004.)     Now, in my professional career, if I screwed up ever so slightly, it wasn't "partially" correct and I take full responsibility (without making excuses.)

    Now, what isn't so obvious is "What percentage of the PCT are military retirees?"

    When you have only 5% and 19% of the official responses of this department considered "completely correct," that is pathetic and the only positive remark that can come to mind is the V.A. hires the handicap, military retirees.     (Training will not help the current group of PCT, imho.)





Thailand Vietnam Veterans for Equal Treatment (TVVET)
Exposure to AO while serving in Thailand


Purpose of VBA Section      

1)   Educate veterans on the processes associated with VA Appeal Board

2)   Provide meaningful examples and case illustrations for your research,   example.     Thailand Veterans - see "Serving in Thailand".

3)   Educate veterans on terms and make reference to applicable CFR   (Code of Federal Regulations) and USC (United States Code)

4)   Provide you with website URL addresses for further research

          Veterans Service Organizations ( VSO )

    Other areas of the country, go to Veterans Service Organizations to locate one nearest your home

5)   Motivate you to action, file your rightful claim to compensation

6)   Contact your U.S. Senator   or   Congress Representative in the House.

    Now, that you know you have come to the right place, here is a prologue to an official V.A. document regarding adjudication (passing judgment; making a decision authority on your claim.)

PROLOGUE

"to care for him who shall have borne the
battle and for his widow and his orphan...."

Abraham Lincoln

    Abraham Lincoln emphasized the debt owed to America's veterans and our citizens have honored that debt by creating the Department of Veterans Affairs whose responsibility it is to place into deeds those words.

    Veterans Benefits Administration employees have a unique opportunity to serve America's veterans. Our mission is to see that our country's veterans and their dependents receive the benefits they so richly deserve. We are fortunate to have the opportunity to help repay those who so courageously and unselfishly served their country.

    In performing our duties we must be constantly aware of the special status of those we serve. They responded willingly when called to duty to defend the people of the United States, risking their lives and limbs. We must respond just as willingly to their needs and those of their families.

    This manual provides procedures for administering compensation and pension benefits. While these procedures are important to our accomplishing our task, VA employees must never lose sight of the humanity of those people we serve. We must commit ourselves to seeing that they are treated sympathetically and with respect and dignity.

    As you go about your daily duties, keep in mind Abraham Lincoln's pledge and our commitment.


J. Gary Hickman