VSO Claims Processing Shouldn’t Be Hell for Veterans

By Walter “Woody” Woodring. Read it in the DC Journal.

I knew Douglas Gurian from West Point class of ’86.  We were classmates. He was killed in the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Doug was very much on my mind when I requested a deployment to Afghanistan. I didn’t sign up with the military to push papers; I wanted to fight. In 2006, I got my wish and deployed to Afghanistan with 14 members of the Embedded Training Team. I’m proud of the year I spent deployed there. Was it easy? No. Would I do it again, knowing what I know now? Probably. Did the deployment change my life? Yes, in all aspects.

I retired from the Army in 2016. Little did I know that after 30 years of service, I would encounter another battle at home with Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs), which have been a complete disappointment to veterans.

I joined the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars and began the process of filing for benefits. Our VA system is supposed to support people who have served, but after navigating the frustrating VA claims system, I learned that modern VSOs simply don’t help veterans the way they should.

Traditional VSOs have played an essential, historical role in assisting those who wear the uniform, but many of these organizations haven’t evolved alongside today’s VA. Today’s veterans deserve more options when seeking the benefits they’ve earned.

 First, my VSO didn’t really ask all the pertinent questions about service-connected injuries. We just went off what I could recall off the top of my head. I guess this works for first-time filers, but looking back, it left a lot on the table, which I was not aware of.

After getting frustrated with the process and the back-and-forth and paper-pushing, I realized that legacy VSOs contribute to a broken system where veterans face bureaucratic delays, provider shortages, and far too few effective advocates. Yes, they file the paperwork, but in my experience, that is where it ended. 

They were not available to fight for me. They were too busy with other cases to follow up and teach me what I needed to know to get the benefits veterans deserve. I’ve witnessed firsthand countless veterans struggle to access VA benefits, left waiting months as their claims linger in the system.

More than 4 million veterans have served in the U.S. armed forces since 9/11, not counting the  2 million more who are on active duty or in the Reserves or National Guard. An estimated 75,000 veteran disability benefit claims are pending in the backlog. Our current VA system can’t accommodate this waitlist, and the added inefficiencies of the legacy VSOs that file claims only contribute to more veterans left waiting in limbo for the care they need.

The obvious solution is to modernize veterans’ representation by expanding accreditation, addressing individual needs, and allowing professional services to help us navigate the complex process of preparing paperwork. Don’t get me wrong: Consulting firms and individuals should absolutely be regulated so that opportunists don’t take advantage of veterans seeking assistance. But veterans should at least have the option to turn to outside help to guide them through the benefits application process.

Americans are beginning to wake up to how broken this system is. There was the 2014 Phoenix VA hospital scandal, where at least 40 veterans died while awaiting care, many of whom were forced to wait months or even a year to see a doctor. This scandal, which ultimately led to a national investigation, was the first time the public got a glimpse into how awful the VA experience can be for veterans.

Then there was the recent controversy where the VFW made a T-shirt depicting veterans facing a firing squad as part of a national advocacy campaign. That inflammatory message, which angered members of Congress and ignited an uproar on social media, is just another example of how out of touch VSOs like the VFW are with our service members.

Twenty-five years later, America has honored the service of post-9/11 veterans, but far too many still struggle to receive the assistance they’re due. There are nearly 17 million U.S. veterans, and only 5.5 million have access to VA disability benefits. If the VA is serious about advocating on our behalf, it should allow well-regulated outside parties to compete alongside traditional VSOs for the greater good of helping vets. 

I was prepared to endure incredible hardships in Afghanistan, but no vet should have to employ that mentality against bureaucracy and red tape from his own country in accounting for the suffering we endured to serve. Legacy VSOs should support reforms that actually help veterans, not obstruct change and uphold the status quo. 

Veterans are hurting, and we’re tired of excuses. As we approach the 25th anniversary of 9/11, let’s work to find new solutions that will help veterans move the ball forward, albeit years too late.