Tag: Veterans Administration

PACT Act Application Deadline Extended

Veterans have a few more days to apply for PACT Act benefits, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). 

Veterans have a few more days to apply for PACT Act benefits according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). 

Veterans and survivors can apply (or submit their intent to file) for PACT Act benefits by 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. 

The VA made this decision after experiencing technical difficulties with the VA.gov/PACT site in recent days. Extremely high demand caused some veterans to receive error messages. 

Despite these messages, according to the statement, the VA has successfully logged every one of these intents to file – meaning that every veteran or survivor who has received an error message while applying for PACT Act benefits can consider their intent to file complete. 

The VA has also resolved nearly all of the technical issues with the site. As of 5 p.m. on Wednesday, less than one tenth of one percent of attempts to submit an “intent to file” had resulted in an error message. 

This percentage is down from about 18 percent on Aug. 8. Additionally, there was a high volume of calls to VA call centers throughout the week, and the agency is working to decrease abnormally long call center wait times. 

Veterans and survivors who apply or submit their intent to file for PACT Act benefits by 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 14, 2023 will be eligible to have their benefits backdated to Aug. 10, 2022 – the day that President Biden signed the PACT Act into law. 

Veterans and their survivors should visit VA.gov/PACT for more information.

Williams Asked Manchin To Push For Shelter At Veterans Cemetery

Williams, the last living Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, died on Wednesday.

Woody Williams made a final request to U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin on Sunday.

Williams, the last living Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, died on Wednesday.

But days before, he asked Manchin to move forward with plans to build a shelter at the Kinnard national veterans cemetery in Dunbar.

The shelter would provide a comfortable place for families of veterans buried there to gather.

Williams told Manchin he wanted the shelter to be built. He even provided his own drawing.

“To be left with that kind of instruction on Sunday is amazing,” Manchin said. “And he was just as sharp as a tack.”

Williams, who was 98, built more than 100 memorials nationwide to Gold Star Families – those who lost loved ones in service to the country.

Manchin is a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

Helping Veterans Maneuver the VA System: The American Legion Stages Outreach

  The American Legion is sending a team of experts to West Virginia this week to help veterans access their Veterans Administration health care benefits and services. The group is holding a town hall meeting in Shinnston Monday evening and setting up a “Veterans Crisis Command Center” there Tuesday and Wednesday.

The initiative is part of the American Legion’s System Worth Saving Task Force.  A spokesman says the Legion believes in the quality of care at VA medical centers, and that, despite the scheduling scandals that have topped the news, it values and supports the VA medical system. The Legion wants to restore veterans’ confidence in the specialized care they have earned through their military service.

The Legion is rolling out these town hall meetings and command centers across the nation. So far this is the only one scheduled for West Virginia.

The town hall meeting is scheduled for 7:00 Monday evening at the American Legion Post 31 in Shinnston. It’s open to the public and they encourage local veterans – especially ones who have experienced any wait-time delays – to attend. Information will be presented, but there will also be opportunity for the public to comment.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Legion will operate a Veterans Crisis Command Center at Post 31. Legion and VA staff, along with local Legionnaires and volunteers from other organizations will be available to help veterans with VA scheduling, grief counseling, benefit claims and enrollment in the VA health care system.

The Veterans Crisis Command Center will operate:

Tuesday, August 5, 2014: Noon to 8:00 p.m.

Wednesday, August 6, 2014: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Veterans Crisis Center Coming to Clarksburg

The long delays for veterans seeking medical care at VA hospitals have prompted The American Legion to plan a short-term crisis center in Clarksburg.

The veterans’ organization will open a “crisis command center” at the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center on Aug. 5 and 6. A town hall meeting is set for Aug. 4 at American Legion Post 31 in Shinnston.

The organization made earlier stops in St. Louis, El Paso, Texas; Fayetteville, North Carolina; and Phoenix.

A federal audit found that the average wait time at the Clarksburg VA Center is 54 for new patients seeking a primary care doctor, 86 days for a specialist and 96 days for mental health services.

Medical center director Beth Brown has said her data showed waiting periods far below those figures.

Wait Time at Clarksburg VA Averages 54 Days

The wait time for new patients seeking a primary care doctor at the VA Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia, is 54 days – nearly four times what the Department of Veterans Affairs had set as a goal.

VA guidelines, since abandoned, said veterans should be seen within 14 days of their desired date for a primary care appointment. The department has since said meeting that target was unattainable given existing resources and growing demand.

Other VA facilities in West Virginia also are exceeding that goal. Martinsburg’s wait time is 47 days; Beckley’s is 39 days; Huntington’s is just under 29 days.

The numbers were released Monday by the Department of Veterans Affairs as part of a national audit.

W.Va. Man Charged with Scamming Veterans Administration for Drugs

  A Bridgeport man has been charged with falsifying documents to inflate his Veterans Administration disability benefits and with fraudulently obtaining drugs from the VA.

U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced the 10-count indictment against 65-year-old Thomas Cueto on Tuesday. If convicted, Cueto faces up to 10 years in prison on one count and four years each on the remaining nine charges. Federal prosecutors are also seeking to recover $480,000 in VA benefits they claim Cueto has collected since 1999.

According to prosecutors, Cueto served in the Army from 1969 to 1972 and was awarded disability benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder. They claim Cueto lied about his service awards and received narcotics from VA medical personnel after falsely stating that he was not receiving drugs from any private providers.

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