And now Some Important stuff of a different nature the VA

I posted on another thread the fact that some Veterans getting their yearly VA Form # 21-4140 a form that has to be returned within 60 days of the date the VA stamped on it. Seems some forms were pre-dated and had expired causing the vet to be denied his Un employability Compensation.

I just received word today that the VA said those Pre-Dated forms were caused from a Computer Glitch in their system. So if you happen to get one that has been "Glitch ed" the VA says to contact them and they will fix it so you don't lose compensation. But you still have to mail it in to them.

As usual I will give the VA Benefit of the Doubt and go with the Glitch thing, As long as they "Just fix it"!

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Now on another VA Problem that could be a Chicken Sh-it Deal.

The VA Inspector General is going to do a Full investigation because Both New and Old Veterans Claim Files have been found in at least 3 Locations that handle the Claims, IN THE SHREDDER BINS! Its said that Some employees have already, "Fessed Up". Its unknown just how many files have went to the "VA Black Hole to No Where"!

I don't know the exact Date but the House Committee on Veterans Affairs has scheduled a special Hearing on this problem. Some Early reports say VA Raters simply can't find the Veterans paperwork and have been Instructed just to "Deny the Claim" and tell the Vet to file an appeal.

How far this goes I really can't tell. To say I am disappointed in the VA would be an Understatement. I just helped a Young Kid to file his paperwork a couple months ago, He really needs it to be approved and his case is solid as a rock and I'm beginning to get worried now.

I'm taking this stuff much to personal.

House panel will target VA shredding

By William R. Levesque, Times Staff Writer
In print: Saturday, October 25, 2008


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A House committee overseeing the Department of Veterans Affairs will hold hearings next month to question VA leaders about documents improperly marked for shredding at agency offices around the nation.

Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, said Friday that he was outraged by revelations that papers crucial to deciding veteran disability and pension claims were being destroyed by VA workers.

"These guys remind me of the Keystone Kops," Filner said. "This completely shatters confidence in the whole VA system. These documents are matters of life and death for some of these veterans."

Rep. C.W. Bill Young, R-Indian Shores, is not on the committee but supports having hearings and suggested the problem might be widespread. Some VA employees could face legal problems, he said.

Filner said he will hold the hearings the week of Nov. 17, when a lame-duck session of Congress is expected to convene to consider an economic stimulus package.

Filner said among those he will call to testify are VA Secretary James Peake and investigators for the agency's independent watchdog, the inspector general.

A VA spokeswoman declined to comment on the hearings or Filner's statements. But the VA said it expects to cooperate with any House investigation.

Filner, a frequent critic of the VA, said he wanted to know how far back this problem went and said he thought the agency needed new leadership.

"I think there are some employees at the VA who don't want to do the work," Filner said. "And management allows this to happen."

The VA inspector general earlier this month found problems with documents improperly marked for disposal at benefits offices in four cities: St. Petersburg, Detroit, St. Louis and Waco, Texas.

While the inspector general investigation continued, the VA began a separate inquiry that found nearly 500 documents improperly placed in shredder bins in about two-thirds of the agency's 57 benefits offices.

At Bay Pines in St. Petersburg, the busiest benefits office in the nation, investigators found eight misplaced documents.

Young said he spoke with investigators for the inspector general in St. Petersburg this week. "What they tell me convinces me that it's bad," Young said. "And I think some people are probably in legal trouble."

But Young declined to release details or say if any employee of the St. Petersburg office deliberately threw away veterans' paperwork. Young said investigators asked him not to release information until their work is finished.

"I don't think they know the full scale of the problem yet," Young said. "I'm afraid this might be a widespread and long-term situation."

Alison Aikele, a VA spokeswoman in Washington, said a national ban on all shredding in benefits offices remains in effect. That ban will continue until the agency settles on a policy to guarantee key documents are not improperly destroyed.

William R. Levesque can be reached at levesque@sptimes.com or (813) 269-5306.