Congress Concerned Over the Growing Backlog of VA Appeals

VA has increased its efforts to timely process new claims being filed by veterans in light of the backlog of VA appeals, but it has come at the expense of those who have received unfavorable decisions on their new claims. The result is that veterans often receive quick decisions on their new claims but may spend an unreasonable amount of time waiting to have their case reviewed on appeal. VA has reported that its claims processing time is very short but at least some of the figures reported do not seem to reflect the time that veterans spend waiting for their appealed claims to be decided. It can take a year or more for a veteran to receive a Statement of the Case following a Notice of Disagreement, and substantially more time for the regional office to send the case to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals following the filing of a VA Form 9.

This week, Congress heard testimony on the claims processing issue. It is refreshing that Congress is taking note of some of the problems that are inherent in the way the claims processing system is currently operating. Veterans who receive unfavorable decisions at the initial stage deserve to have their appeals handled in a timely manner.

How Can I Speed Up My Appeal to the Veterans Court?

In light of the backlog of VA appeals, is there anything you can do to speed up your claim? For cases where something can be done, ways to try to hurry an appeal will depend very much on the facts of the specific situation involved. Our advocate for veterans would love to be able to help you in any way we can: please fill our our free veterans disability case evaluation form and describe your situation!