Good Morning Ladies and Gentleman. Would everyone please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance?  Flags are located at the front and back of the room.

I am grateful that you have been able to join us for today’s hearing entitled, “Examining Training Requirements of Veterans Benefits Administration Claims Processing Personnel.” 

I think it is indisputable that the quality of the training that VBA claims processing personnel receives is critical for the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) reaching its goal of processing all claims within 125 days at  98% accuracy and in reaching its overarching goal of eliminating the backlog by 2015.  As of 2009, VBA received more than 1 million compensation and pension related claims annually.  Over 200,000 of these claims take longer than four months for VBA staff to fully process, meaning that they are a part of the backlog.  Further, it is estimated that approximately 20% of the claims processed by VBA, as many as 200,000, are erroneous.  Also, according to information provided by the Board of Veterans’ Appeals in its annual report, 37% of all appeals that it receives are returned to the VBA due to avoidable errors.  It should also be noted that the backlog itself continues to grow exponentially.

Since 2007, Congress has appropriated more than $750 million to VA to hire over 10,000 new VBA claims processers on an expedited hiring timetable.  Recognizing that the backlog is not just a “people” issue and that brute force alone will not bring about transformation, Congress passed the Veterans’ Benefits Improvement Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-389), which included sweeping provisions to overhaul the claims processing system including efforts to improve the training of VBA claims personnel.  Recently VA expanded the training requirements for each of its claims processors.  Today, Veterans Service Representatives (VSRs) and Ratings Veterans Service Representatives (RVSRs) are required to complete 85 hours of instruction annually, a five-hour increase over previous levels.  VA has also re-implemented and revamped its certification testing program and I look forward to hearing more about that today.

Congress also directed the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to examine VA’s training program for claims processing personnel.   GAO answered the call with two reports, one in 2008 and one in 2010 that assess VBA’s training requirements and practices.  From these reports, we found that VBA claims processors may be hindered from completing their training requirements in order to meet work production goals.  We also learned that VBA’s training may not be sufficient to equip VBA claims processors with the skills needed to help them perform their duties.  Moreover, the GAO indicates that significant improvements might be achieved by VBA if it would monitor the claims process, particularly during the claims developmental stages, and employ appropriate training, management, and other tools to more timely correct staff processing errors. 

The Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), based on its research has also issued findings related to VBA’s claims processing related training, particularly as it pertains to rating variances between ROs. I look forward to hearing from both the GAO and the IDA on their findings.

The job of Congress in our oversight capacity is to help VA find solutions to the challenges that stand in the way of veterans receiving the benefits they are due.  Today’s hearing is designed to achieve this end by shining greater light on the efficacy of VA’s training and certification of VBA claims processing personnel.  I look forward to the testimony of Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) and other stakeholders, many of whom for years have offered recommendations for improving the training of VBA claims processors. 

Finally, I look forward to hearing feedback from the Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits on the critiques and recommendations from the earlier witnesses, and to get an action plan for equipping VBA claims processing personnel with the skills needed to for VA to “break the back of the backlog”.

As we all know, our Nation provides its military the very best training and other resources needed to achieve its mission.  Veterans understand the necessity of proper training – as they have placed their lives in harm’s way depending upon the training they and their brothers and sisters-at-arms received.    Our mission today is to ensure that VBA provides meaningful and appropriate training and resources that claims processing personnel need to perform their duty so that our veterans, their families, and survivors receive the 21st Century, world-class service they deserve. 

Thank you, I now yield to Ranking Member Lamborn for his opening statement.