Thank you, Chairman Hall, Ranking Member Lamborn, and members of the Subcommittee, for providing me with the opportunity to speak in favor of H.R. 5709, the "Veterans Disability Fairness Act."

At the end of last year, the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee held a hearing on an Institute for Defense Analyses report regarding the average disability payments received by veterans in each state.

The hearing revealed that the VA’s current data is lacking, and that “regional cultures” may be partly to blame for similarly disabled veterans receiving different ratings and thus, different disability payments. I introduced legislation specifically geared to correct these discrepancies.

The Veterans Disability Fairness Act:

• Requires the VA to collect and monitor regional data on disability ratings.
• Requires the VA Secretary to conduct reviews and audits of the rating system.
• Requires the VA to submit a report yearly to Congress to track the progress of the program; and
• Requires VA raters to take ownership of their ratings by assigning identification codes to all adjudications.  The performance of specific raters will then be evaluated periodically for consistency and accuracy.

The current shortchanging in ratings is not reflective of our heroes’ service, and there is no reason that a veteran from one state should receive less than veterans in other states. This legislation is an important step in addressing these issues and in providing needed oversight.

Additionally, H.R. 5709 supplements this subcommittee’s work on Chairman Hall’s H.R. 5892, the Veterans Disability Benefits Claims Modernization Act.  Section 106 of that bill calls for an annual assessment of the quality assurance program that examines data from regional offices, the accuracy of evaluated claims, and creates automated, categorizable data to better identify trends. My bill will require accountability by enabling the specific identification of potentially problematic claims raters who may knowingly manipulate claims.  Alternatively, my legislation will protect those who are doing their jobs with integrity.

This bill is incredibly important to the veterans of Ohio; our state was ranked dead last in average disability payments, and I cannot stand for this. According to the IDA report, the national average disability payment is $8, 890, and Ohio’s average is $7,556. I believe me must act to restore parity to the disability payment system to ensure each veteran receives the full benefit he or she was promised.  Senator Brown – a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee – agrees and has introduced an identical companion version of my bill to the Senate.

Thank you again for your consideration of H.R. 5709. I am grateful for the opportunity to present this important piece of legislation to you.

Veterans Disability Disparity State by State Rankings1

1  Institute for Defense Analyses Analysis of Differences in Disability Compensation in the Department of Veterans Affairs Vol. 1: Final Report  pg. C-15  (December 2006).

Congress of the United States
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC.
July 20, 2007

President George W. Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20502

Dear Mr. President,

In visits to Veterans County Service Offices around my district, my staff hears time and again that veterans in Ohio are concerned about inconsistencies in the processing of seemingly similar disability claims. This week, the Associated Press published a story outlining the findings of the Institute for Defense Analyses' VA-commissioned study on veterans' annual disabi1ity pay from state to state. I am incredibly concerned about the report' s assertion that Ohio ranks dead last.

According to the report, approximately one third of disparities may stem from correctible factors, such as inconsistent training standards for claims evaluators and simply placing too much power in the subjective decisions of evaluators. While demographic factors also play a role in overall ratings, I believe the human component can be improved upon.

Your administration has a responsibility to ensure that the processes the VA utilizes are of the highest industry standard, and that those charged with overseeing those processes are doing so. In fact, during Secretary Nicholson’s 2005 confirmation hearings, he pledged to look into the existing discrepancies. This week, as you know, he submitted his resignation without having sufficiently acted to standardize disability pay across state lines.     .

That's why I am writing to demand that the next Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs make this the highest priority. The new Secretary must ensure that veterans in Ohio and others are not being treated unjustly and unfairly relative to the rest of the country.

Mr. President, we absolutely owe it to the veterans of Ohio to get the bottom of why they are being shortchanged. I would appreciate knowing your response to this matter.

Sincerely,

Zack Space
Member of Congress