From a Senate Finance Committee
press release:
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking
Member Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today called on the Social Security
Administration (SSA) to work with the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) to reduce the dramatic backlog in veterans’ disability claims. The
senators wrote a letter to SSA in response to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, which found SSA’s delays are major contributors to the backlog. ...
In their letter, the senators noted that VA has consistent problems
getting the medical records it needs from SSA. In one instance,
regional VA officials commented that SSA takes more than a year to
respond to requests. The senators asked SSA to provide information on
any changes it is currently making or plans to make in the future to
resolve their delays.
5 comments:
Strangely disconcerting. I would think most Vet's applying for V.A. disability would have V.A. medical records?? If so, the delay is not SSA, but V.A. Maybe they just find V.A. records to confusing to use and want us to straighten them out for them? I think it has been discussed about how long it takes to get V.A. records..olquede 35
SSA has just as much trouble getting the records from VA, and then they are mostly indecipherable without a lot of time and patience. Any competent doctor is going to get a patient's records from his or her previous medical providers . . . so maybe the VA Hospitals are not doing their jobs.
SSA would realistically only be providing relevant records for a vet in the case of non-service connected conditions, and more than likely long after the vet left service. So how is this an emergency that means SSA has to suddenly accomodate the VA when SSA cannot get its own work done?
My guess is that the VA wants SSA records for vets that have filed SSA DIB claims in the past. That would mean unarchiving the old SSA file, which can be a timely process; although it should be a lot easier now that most cases are fully electronic and all SSA would have to do is burn a CD and send it to the VA, like they do for claimants and representatives.
Here's an idea.
If you want to apply for disability, submit evidence to support your claim, don't rely on the government agency to go around finding it for you.
Think about private insurance programs. You don't go to them and say "I'm disabled, go find the information to support that." You go to them with documentation supporting your claim. Why should government insurance programs be any different?
On a side note, the next time I see VA medical records that provide information that is useful AND coherent will be the first time.
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