2021 Veterans Day Q&A with U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Denis McDonough

The phone system sucks. I have driven the 20 miles to Omaha to talk to someone in person because the worthless phone system keeps taking from one computer voice to amother. It is quicker to drive there rather than spend a half hour on the phone.

VHA strives to provide timely and responsive customer service to Veterans. If a Veteran has billing issues concerning care received, the average speed to answer calls is less than three minutes and improvements are in place to soon bring those times to under two minutes to ensure prompt and efficent service for Veterans.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you experienced. We want to make it easy for you or anyone who cares for a Veteran to get the care they need in a timely manner and we're working to make that happen. It's difficult to get into any specifics without knowing more about where you are and the type of care you're seeking but we are taking steps to improve access across VA.

In fact, in early 2022 we will introduce a new service that provides access to virtual care at every facility – with just one phone number to call for each of VA's 18 regional networks.

As this new service rolls out, we will offer Veterans pharmacy support, scheduling and clinical triage with someone available to answer your calls 24/7 – 365 days a year. Also, many clinics at our medical centers offer VA online appointment requests and scheduling options.

The Board agrees that 7 years is too long, but also note that claims and appeals can be very complicated and many processes are in place to protect Veteran claimants. If you are facing any hardships that meet the criteria for Advance on the Docket (AOD) (38 U.S.C. § 7107(a) and 38 C.F.R. § 20.900(c), you should work with your representative or VSO to file a motion to expedite your appeal.

Hypertension reached the level of "sufficient evidence of and association" based on a study of a specific cohort, the Army Chemical Corps, done by VA's Post Deployment Health Services (now Health Outcomes Military Exposures). However, hypertension is also a disease with many causes that increases with age, independent of environmental exposures. Because this is a common condition of ageing and conflicting evidence, hypertension is not currently a presumption for Agent Orange exposure. VA is currently awaiting two other studies that may shed light on possible associations between Agent Orange and hypertension. VA considers all relevant information about a condition before a recommendation is made.

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VA added bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and Parkinsonism to the list of those conditions presumptively associated with exposure to herbicide agents. As of August 18, 2021, VA completed over 3,800 of these claims. Vietnam Veterans and their survivors, who previously filed and were denied benefits for one of the three new presumptive conditions, will have their cases automatically reviewed without the need to refile a claim. VA is reaching out to invite individuals who filed claims in the past and were denied, to resubmit their claims associated with new presumptive conditions. If VA previously denied a claim for the new presumptive conditions, the Veteran may contact their accredited Veterans Service Organization or call [login to see] for more information.

Ambulance claims are subject to the laws and regulations that govern the program under which services were provided.  For instance, Veterans who take an ambulance for non-service connected emergency care to a community emergency department are under an authority that is not restricted to Veterans who are rated 30% or more disabled.

Unfortunately, the law as it is currently written does not allow multiple evaluations to be assigned for conditions affecting the same bodily systems. In the case of the respiratory system, injuries casued by asthma and other respiratory disabilities result in injury to the same bodily systems.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/chapter-I/part-4/subpart-A/section-4.14

They sure as hell did wait for vets to die with Agent Orange for Vietnam vets. Now they are doing the same for Gulf War vets on their health problems.

Vietnam Veterans and their survivors, who previously filed and were denied benefits for one of the three new presumptive conditions, will have their cases automatically reviewed without the need to refile a claim. VA is reaching out to invite individuals who filed claims in the past and were denied, to resubmit their claims associated with new presumptive conditions. Please contact our national call center for claim specific assistance at [login to see] for the status of your claim and so we may provide individual assistance.