Chairmen Michaud, Ranking Member Brown, Member Teague and distinguished members of the subcommittee,  It is my honor to be here today to represent the VFW members in New Mexico here in Las Cruces and around our wonderful state

I come before you as an advocate for our brave service men and women, and for veterans and their families from all eras.  I come before you as a reminder that those who go to war return home with an obligation to make things better for every ensuing generation who follows.  This is central to the VFW’s core value “to honor the dead by helping the living.” 

With these thoughts in mind I would like to address a number of issues that we are facing here in New Mexico.  Foremost among them is VA’s claims backlog and unacceptable waiting times for veterans seeking care.

VA CLAIMS BACKLOG

VA currently has more than 1.1 million individual claims and appeals for compensation, pension and education benefits.  Right here in New Mexico’s own regional office of Albuquerque there are 6,240 disability compensation claims and appeals pending.  Over the past year this backlog has grown by more than 10 percent.  Of the nearly 3,400 claims requiring rating action, 38 percent are pending over 125 days.

Rating quality reviews show a whopping 19 percent error rate.  That is, 1 in every 5 cases VA decides in New Mexico is wrong.

The evidence shows that the Albuquerque VA Regional Office fails to provide adequate service in all three areas that VA measures: workload, timeliness and quality.  This is totally unacceptable.

VFW has made reforming the VA claims processing system a top legislative priority.  

The VFW realizes there is no silver bullet to fix VBA, but there are opportunities for steady and deliberate improvement.  We also know that any single plan to make the overall claims process simpler could occur at the expense of the rights and benefits earned by veterans, their dependents and survivors.  A quick fix plan is simply unacceptable because fixing the backlog will require thoughtful solutions to avoid harming veterans and exacerbating the problem. 

VBA is the key to everything the VA does, so the VFW will continue to offer its expertise to the VA and your committees so that we can solve this backlog problem together.  Veterans have grown tired of the excuses.  They want and deserve action.  The VFW wants to help.

The VFW has offered potential solutions in testimony and in the Independent Budget, but we cannot wave a magic wand and make the problem go away.  Our suggestions have included improvements to the funding process; increased emphasis on ratings decision accuracy instead of speed; improvements in staff education and training; and increased use of technology.

Unfortunately, it may be years before VBA will be able to reduce the backlog and improve rating timeliness and accuracy.   We believe however, that VA can still make incremental improvements to demonstrate to veterans that it is both candid in its problems and responsive to their needs. Some of the first steps would be:

• Demand a total commitment from VA leadership to do every claim properly the first time. 
• Improve VA’s IT infrastructure to include adopting paperless initiatives to help transform VA into a 21st Century agency.
• Upgrade and enhance training systems that invest in skills and knowledge of VA employees, reducing turnover and improving quality. 
• Higher accountability and accuracy standards for adjudicators.  VA must hold every employee and manager accountable for quality as well as providing proper positive incentives for production goals.
• Ask Congress to commission a third-party study of the quality assurance of claims processing at VBA.

We envision a VBA of the 21st Century, one in which veterans receive accurate and timely decisions. Congress must invest in the long-term success of VBA, which is only achieved through constant improvement.  Part of the improvement process is utilizing service officers and other advocates who can help navigate through the system.

The VFW and other VSOs have a nationwide network of excellent service officers including our own Fred Ortiz, but we can only help those who seek us out.  For a veteran who navigates the bureaucratic process without a service officer to guide them, it can be a nightmare, and a number of them simply give up, which means they lose their earned benefits, their disability compensation and their access to VA health care. 

VA MEDICAL CARE

As the Nation’s largest health care provider, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has four primary missions that benefit veterans as well as the entire country.  They are:

1. Providing health care and services to America’s sick and disabled veterans;
2. Training and educating doctors, nurses and other health care professionals;
3. Conducting world-class research into medical issues, to include prosthetics, and;
4. Serving as the Nation’s primary health care backup in times of war or domestic emergency. 

VHA’s primary mission is the care of this Nation’s sick and disabled veterans.  As of August 2009, (based on 2008 data) more than 554,000 New Mexican veterans sought care through VA‘s outpatient services, and some 2,395 recently returning OIF/OEF veterans used VA services.

Nationally, VA projects about one million veterans will receive some type of care this year, nearly double the number from a decade ago.  Much of that increase is due to improved access as VA has shifted focus from being an inpatient provider into more of an outpatient provider, but the increase is also partially due to the aging veterans’ population and the influx of our newest war veterans. 

The VFW strongly believes that veterans must have timely access to quality health care.  The VFW supports expanding rural healthcare options to those veterans who live in rural areas – New Mexico has a vast rural landscape and getting care can be difficult in many locations.  Congress must ensure that gaps in care are recognized and filled, Telemedicine opportunities must be expanded, as well as additional points of care, so that veterans can be served wherever they live.

VFW Supports HR 2879, the Rural Veterans Health Care Improvement Act.  HR 2879 is a comprehensive bill which would improve and expand programs offered to veterans living in rural areas like New Mexico. We applaud the provision that increases the travel reimbursement rate to 41.5 cents a mile for those traveling to VA facilities for treatment. This is long overdue.

OEF/OIF Health Care: As of the end of FY 2009, almost 1.1 million Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom veterans have left active duty and become eligible for VA health care; 46 percent of them have sought care from VA.

This demand for service created some major challenges for VA, which to their credit responded correctly by making the health care of OEF/OIF veterans a top priority.  The VFW believes we must do everything we can to ensure that these men and women are properly cared for.  Their care is part of the ongoing cost of war, and the fulfillment of that cost — a true national obligation — is central to the work of your Committees.

The health care issues this population faces varies from the routine to high-interest injuries and programs, such as mental health, PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injuries, suicides, and the proper care of women veterans. 

Women Veterans Health Care: The percentage of women serving in uniform today far exceeds any previous conflict.  Approximately 15 percent of the force is comprised of women, with more entering military service every year.  Of those who have served in uniform, VA estimates that 44 percent have already enrolled in VA for health care, a percentage that VA expects to rise.  VA continues to expand its female health care services, but more needs to be done.  

VA must expand gender-specific and primary health care services tailored to women.  The VFW supports improved training and certification of female veterans’ mental health care providers, as well as improved programs for the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Military Sexual Trauma (MST).

Legislation (S. 1963) currently pending in Congress would address a number of the needs of female veterans.   It would mandate studies to assess VA’s current programs and services for women, to include examining specialized programs for treating PTSD, substance abuse and mental illness, the availability of obstetric and gynecological care, and the possibility of providing a licensed childcare service at VA medical facilities. 

The study would also collect data on waiting times, demographics, geographic distance and other barriers to care.  One of the largest hurdles VA faces is providing a woman a degree of privacy inside its medical facilities.  Properly serving women veterans is a culture change to the VA, which for decades functioned in a “one size fits all” mode.  The VA must tailor its programs and services to the specific needs of women veterans, and that’s why the VFW strongly urges the passage of the provisions of this bill.

Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI): Explosive blasts from roadside bombs and other Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) are causing devastating and often permanent damage to the brain tissue of our ground forces.  Veterans with severe Traumatic Brain Injuries or Acquired Brain Injuries (ABI) may need a lifetime of intensive service to care for their disabilities, but VA also needs to study and develop programs for those suffering from mild or moderate TBI.

TBI can occur even without other forms of physical injury, making detection difficult.  It is likely that thousands of OEF/OIF veterans may be suffering from blast effects, but are unaware of their condition.

Medical science is lacking on TBI.  Recent studies have suggested that even mildly impacted veterans can have long-term mental and physical health difficulties, and there is no clear treatment model to be followed, especially for those with mild or moderate impairment.  The VFW strongly urges Congress to ensure proper funding for additional studies into the treatment of TBI.  VA must investigate and research all avenues to care for TBI patients, including Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment.  Finding optimal treatments will enhance the quality of life of veterans and their families. 

Mental Health: We applaud VA for raising the awareness on mental health issues.  Congress and this Administration have continued to fund the growing support networks, medical treatment and services available through VA.  Currently, VA operates a nationwide network of more than 190 specialized PTSD outpatient treatment programs.  Further, VA’s Vet Center program operates a system of 232 community-based counseling centers, many of which are staffed by combat veterans who — like every VFW member — understand that no one goes to war and comes back the same.  

A recent OEF/OIF update shows that more than 48 percent of all patients treated at VA have suffered from some form of mental health impairment — a staggering number.  Among the more than 243,000 OEF/OIF veterans who have been diagnosed with some degree of psychological symptoms, more than half are suffering from PTSD.  War has a profound effect on those who defend the Nation.  We must do everything we can to provide the men and women who are put in harm’s way the treatment options they need to care for them and their families.

We need strong outreach and education programs to help eliminate the stigma of mental illness and other barriers to care.  We need meaningful post-deployment health assessments that are designed in a way that eliminates the disincentive servicemen and women sometimes feel in providing completely honest responses.  We need regular screenings of all at-risk veterans as part of their routine examinations.  We need continuing education programs for military leaders at all level to understand and help reduce the stigma of seeking care and treatment.  Care must be available to veterans and their families in order to help keep family units intact and functional.  Providing a stable, safe, and supportive home environment is vitally important to the overall effectiveness of a treatment program. 

VA must also properly train its staff to ensure that they know how to deal with the unique needs of these veterans, and to recognize warning signs and other signals to get veterans into the programs they need immediately.  We need continued emphasis on increasing entry points to care, especially at Vet Centers.  Access to care must be as convenient as possible, which increases the likelihood an at-risk veteran will use the service.

Suicide: The rate of veteran suicides is a national tragedy.  VA has improved their outreach efforts, notably through the 1-800-273-TALK suicide prevention hotline, but more must be done for the active duty forces, as well as for the Guard and Reserve, a great number of whom reside in rural areas far away from the informal support network of fellow veterans, and from the formal services and programs provided for their benefit. 

I cannot imagine how depressed someone must be to take their own life, but I do know that war is an experience that is never forgotten.  The vast majority of veterans are able to come to terms with their experiences, but not everyone.  VFW members know that coming back to the Real World is not easy for any generation.  That’s why I continue to urge VFW members everywhere to reach out to our newest veterans to welcome them home, to thank them for their service, and to extend a hand of friendship and support.  We must all do more to ensure every veteran, regardless of age, does not feel alone.

Veterans Homelessness: President Obama recently called for an end to veterans’ homelessness within five years, and his call to action could not have been timelier.  According to VA estimates, at least 131,000 veterans are homeless on any given night, and twice as many veterans may experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year.  Recent statistics also indicate that the number of homeless female veterans and veterans with dependents are increasing as well.  This issue is further compounded by poverty, unemployment and the lack of affordable housing. 

Homelessness is a nationwide problem that cannot be cured from Washington.  It must be addressed at the local level and supported with resources and services from the federal government.

Major components in reducing veteran homelessness include outreach, transitional and permanent housing, training and employment assistance, and medical and psychiatric rehabilitation services.  Yet many programs authorized at the federal level to assist local communities are under funded or are not adequately promoted to community-based help organizations.  In addition, information pertaining to the availability of these programs is also not widely disseminated or readily available to homeless veterans living on the streets.

We strongly support the national call to end veterans’ homelessness, and we look forward to working with Secretary Shinseki to help VA meet its five-year goal. 

EMPLOYMENT ISSUES

Veterans’ employment must be part of any jobs bill because the unemployment numbers are shocking — during this economic recession the number of unemployed veterans has increased to 1,124,000 as of February 2010. The unemployment rate of our youngest veterans has reached a staggering 21%, and there are more unemployed OEF/OIF veterans than service members serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. We vigorously urge Congress to include the following three policy improvements that have proven successful as veterans’ employment solutions:

1. Broaden the tax credit beyond recently separated veterans to encompass all veterans.  Nationwide, there are 1.1 million unemployed veterans who are motivated, educated and responsible.  Encourage employers to put hard working veterans at the top of the list by increasing the $2,400 credit for hiring a veteran and $4,800 for hiring a disabled veteran.  Public awareness is central to the solution.  We must continue to offer incentives to American industry to hire veterans FIRST.

2. Modernize the Vocational Rehabilitation &Employment (VR&E) program, which in 2009 served more than 32,000 disabled veterans by training, educating and helping them finding employment.  Improve the program’s effectiveness by providing higher educational stipends that are on par with the Post-9/11 GI Bill, eliminate the arbitrary 12-year “use or lose” program window, and provide additional family services, such as child care to eligible veterans. 

3. Lastly, increase opportunities for veterans interested in starting businesses, which inevitable leads to veterans hiring other veterans.  Invest in their ingenuity through proper education, training, and access to small business start-up capital.  Increase funding and access to the Small Business Administration Patriot Express Loan Guarantee program. 

Veterans need to be at the forefront of congressional efforts to get America back to work. It is legislation like HR 4592, introduced by Congressman Teague which passed the House last week that begins to make it happen. The Energy Jobs for Veterans’ Act would authorize $10 million annually through fiscal 2015 for a Labor Department pilot program to encourage the employment of veterans in energy-related jobs. The bill establishes a pilot program that would award competitive grants to three states which would reimburse energy employers for the cost of providing on-the-job training for veterans in the energy sector. Through expansion and improvements to existing programs like this, Congress can reverse the veteran unemployment rate.

QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUES

The War on Terrorism has greatly increased the demands of those serving on active duty and in the Guard and Reserve.  As a result, active military and Reserve Component members are deploying at an alarming rate to fight the present day war on terror at home and abroad.  More than one third of today’s troops have served at least two tours of duty in Operation Iraqi Freedom and/or Operation Enduring Freedom. 

The VFW is committed to improving the quality of life for all active military and Reserve Component members and their families.  The VFW is increasing its efforts to provide Guard and Reserve members with benefits and entitlements equal to their participation and contribution in today’s conflicts.  We will help ensure that our men and women in uniform receive the most modern equipment, best training, and resources they need to succeed, and we will continue to urge Congress to provide critical support services for the family members of those serving.

The VFW firmly believes in taking care of the people who accomplish the mission, and although most of the below issues fall under the purview of your respective Armed Services Committees, each of you has a personal stake in a strong and viable military.  We view the following bullets as essential to ensuring a high-quality, all-volunteer military:

• Servicemen and women deserve base pay equity to their private-sector workers.
• Benefits and entitlements must keep pace with inflation.
• Increased funding is necessary to upgrade or replace military family housing, recreation and work facilities, and equipment worn out after almost nine years of war.
• Congress must lower the retirement pay age from 60 to 55 for all Reserve Component members.  At the very least, Congress must make retroactive to Sept. 11, 2001, the FY 2008 defense budget provision that allows Reserve Component members to receive retirement pay earlier than age 60 by three months for every 90 days served on active duty in support of a contingency operation.

Lastly, VFW reminds Congress that legislation for the full concurrent receipt of military retirement pay and VA disability compensation without offset should be passed and implemented regardless of the rating percentage.

In 2004, Congress passed legislation that gradually phased in by 2014 the full current receipt of military retirement pay and VA disability compensation without offset, but only for those 20-year or more retirees who have 50-percent or higher disability ratings.  Excluded were those service-connected disabled military retirees with VA ratings of 40 percent and below, and Chapter 61 retirees who were medically retired with less than 20 years, regardless of VA disability rating.

All veterans should be entitled to receive full disability compensation concurrently with their military retirement pay, regardless of the nature of the disability.

Mr. Chairmen, I again thank you for the honor to present our priorities to you.  I would be happy to answer any questions that you or the members of your Committees may have.