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MILITARY & VETERANS AFFAIRS |
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| RELEASE:
IMMEDIATE (20 July 2000) |
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COMMITTEE PASSES MEASURE MANDATING VA ASSISTANCE TO VETERANS FILING CLAIMS
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs approved legislation Thursday providing a cost of living adjustment, enhanced compensation and benefits programs, and improved claims process.
VA Committee Chairman Bob Stump (R-AZ) said both bills, along with a third measure designating the name of a Rome, NY outpatient clinic, hopefully would go to the full House floor for a vote Tuesday, July 25th.
The Veterans Benefits Act of 2000, H.R. 4850, would increase, effective December 1, 2000, the rates of disability compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of certain disabled veterans.
The measure would consider a stroke or heart attack suffered or aggravated by a reservist during inactive duty training as service-connected. H.R. 4850 would also provide a special monthly compensation for the service-connected loss of one or both breasts due to a radical mastectomy, at the same rate as that for a service-connected "loss or loss of use of one or more creative organs." Finally, H.R. 4850 will permit certain members of the Individual Ready Reserve to participate in the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance program.
The Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000, H.R. 4864, would eliminate the requirement that a claimant first submit a "well-grounded claim" before receiving assistance from the VA Secretary. A well-grounded claim for service-connected disability benefits would be one that included supporting medical opinion and evidence
"Our action on this legislation demonstrates the VA Committee’s bipartisan dedication to fair treatment of veterans," Chairman Stump said. "There is a long history of assisting veterans to obtain government and other records which may substantiate their claim for benefits, and this bill reaffirms the government’s obligation to continue that practice."
"It has been a classic Catch-22," said Congressman Lane Evans (D-IL), the VA Committee’s Ranking Democrat. "If you can prove you’ve got a good case, the VA will help you prove you’ve got a good case. If you need help, they can’t help you. We’ve added some additional useful ideas to the legislation I introduced last year, we’ve got wide-spread bipartisan support, and the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee has adopted it. We’re an important step closer to eliminating this obstacle for America’s disabled veterans."
The measure would require the VA Secretary to make a reasonable effort to obtain relevant records identified and authorized by the claimant. The VA Secretary would also have to provide a medical examination if warranted. H.R. 4864 would permit veterans who had claims denied or dismissed by the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims to request a review of those claims within two years of enactment. Finally, H.R. 4864 would require other federal agencies to furnish relevant records to the VA at no cost to the claimant.
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Please visit http://veterans.house.gov, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs web site, named ‘One of the Best Web Sites in Congress’ by the Congressional Management Foundation, May 3, 1999.
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