Veteran wins full disability after 20-year wait

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Why?

Veteran wins full disability after 20-year wait
Former GI, 87, caught in system with a backlog of 400,000 cases

Veteran Ed Buckley of Houston needed almost 20 years, countless medical exams and reams of paperwork to prove he was owed full disability benefits.
The 87-year-old World War II veteran learned recently that he would be classified as completely disabled and reimbursed for back pay.

"I can be considered an example of not giving up," Buckley said. "It's just a matter of being persistent. It did pay off in a big way."

Buckley's story is not uncommon. Many veterans endure long waits without payoffs. Thousands wait six months, a year or longer for Veterans Affairs to rule on their claims.

The veterans' disability benefits system, which has a backlog of about 400,000 cases, has been studied for three years by the independent Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission, and will report to President Bush and Congress in October.

Earlier this year, the commission chairman, retired Army Gen. James Terry Scott, told a Senate committee the main problem is disagreement between the VA and the Defense Department on how disabilities are defined.

Generally, the VA's method of determining whether a veteran is disabled is more comprehensive than the military's and can make a difference in how much a veteran receives.

It's up to the veteran

Buckley's case relates only to a claim of disability with the VA. But for thousands of other veterans, the disparity in the VA and DOD systems can mean they die before receiving any benefits. The onus is on the veteran claiming disability to prove his injuries happened while on active duty. During a seven-year period that began in 2000, about 83,000 soldiers and Marines were found unfit for duty, yet only about 12,000 of them went through the disability process, said Ray Wilburn, the commission's executive director.

One of the the commission's recommendations, he added, could be to allow veterans who are less than 50 percent disabled to collect both military retirement and VA benefits, which will significantly increase the number of veterans eligible for benefits. The law now allows only those rated at 50 percent disabled or above to receive both.

Some veterans rights advocates are skeptical any real change will occur.
"Look at the history of task forces put together the last several years, a lot of these reports end up on shelves and nothing has happened with them," said Steve Smithson, the American Legion's deputy director for veterans affairs.

Some filing for first time

The VA attributes a recent surge in claims for benefits to older veterans filing for the first time, many of them Vietnam vets. In Houston, there are about 20,000 claims awaiting review by about 40 "rating specialists," said Lub Rebollar, regional director of the veterans service organization AMVETS.
Time was running out for Buckley about four years ago when he turned to Gil Sosa, a Harris County Precinct 2 veterans service officer, for help.

"I was sort of his last resort," said Sosa, whose office has a
caseload of about 5,000 claims.

Buckley, who served in China and India during the war, was hurt when a supply truck that he and other men freed from a ditch ran over both of his feet. Initially rated as 10 percent disabled, his rating crept up to 50 percent over the years.

In May, Buckley received word that his appeal had been accepted.
Sosa has helped other veterans receive up to $100,000 in back pay, he said, and he's gratified that he was able to help Buckley.

"I sit and say this is what it's all for," Sosa said. "These poor guys came back from World War II and Korean War who have gone through so much and gave so much."

Veteran wins full disability after 20-year wait | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle