FW: VFW, DAV jointly launch lawsuit against the VA

Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible;

 and suddenly you are doing the impossible.

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From: chelsa51@gmail.com
To: 1076VVAHNV@GMAIL.COM
Subject: VFW, DAV jointly launch lawsuit against the VA
Date: Mon, 11 May 2015 15:46:27 -0700

VFW, DAV jointly launch lawsuit against the VA

article can be read at:  http://www.examiner.com/article/vfw-dav-jointly-launch-lawsuit-against-the-va

On Thursday, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), and the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) announced that they have filed a joint-lawsuit against the Veterans Administration(VA) on the basis that the newly instituted VA "new claims procedures" would not benefit veterans but would actually benefit the federal government, namely, the Veterans Administration.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and Disabled American Veterans filed the joint lawsuit on Wednesday, notified members, and associated parties in an email. The main issue is the elimination of an informal claims process and the institution of a rigid, veteran-unfriendly system for filing claims for benefits, among several other disagreements, explained William L. Bradshaw, VFW director of National Veterans Service, who oversees a nationwide cadre of more than 1,500 VA-accredited service officers who assist veterans with filing their VA claims.

The lawsuit, filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is directed at Secretary of Veteran Affairs, Robert McDonald, who was appointed by President Obama. The suit by the VFW and DAV is asking the court to review portions of the final rule of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) entitled "Standard Claims and Appeals Forms" ("Final Rule"), which recently became effective on March 24, 2015.

The VFW and the DAV explained that previously, any form of written communication would have served notice on the VA that within one year, that veteran would be filing a formal claim for disability compensation. If approved, the claim's effective date could be backdated to the day of the initial notification. As of March 24, the VA now no longer accepts informal claims, and instead requires all veterans to use a standardized form, which essentially postpones the effective date and denies compensation to veterans.

Bradshaw stated, "The VFW doesn't oppose the use of standardized forms. Our opposition is to this all or nothing approach that VA is forcing on veterans… changes, that if left in place, will guarantee in this year alone that tens of thousands of service-connected wounded, ill and injured veterans will be denied benefits they were entitled to before the change became effective."

"The VA is once again changing the rules to make the claims process easier for them, not for the veterans the VA was created to serve," said Bradshaw. "The VA's move to a standardized form should not come at the cost of an informal claims notification procedure that works," he said. "The VA can and should accept both."

The VFW, DAV, and other veterans' service organizations fought against the change after VA first proposed it in October 2013. Bradshaw added that the new change makes it even more difficult on veterans who do not understand the process, and especially on those who do not make themselves available for the expertise and free claims assistance provided by the VFW and other nationally recognized and VA-accredited service officers.

Tina Sansouci

Secretary

VVA Chapter 1076

702-294-0402 (Home)

702-635-2695 (Cell)