Personnel handling post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) claims at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) would receive improved training to handle their duties under a bipartisan bill recently introduced by U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD).
“Nearly 16 percent of veterans’ PTSD claims were incorrectly processed by the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) in fiscal year 2019,” Sen. Rounds said on Wednesday. “This kind of error rate is unacceptable. The quality of life of our veterans is seriously impacted when these claims are improperly processed.”
Sen. Rounds on May 17 introduced the VA Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Processing Claims Improvement Act of 2023, S. 1635, with bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) to improve training for VA personnel who are responsible for processing disability claims to ensure certain benefits are being correctly determined so veterans experiencing PTSD are able to access the health care, treatment and compensation they need, according to a bill summary provided by the senators’ offices.
“Our men and women in uniform have sacrificed so much to protect our freedom,” said Sen. Rounds. “This bipartisan legislation would establish and require a national training program for VBA claims processors to eliminate costly processing errors so our veterans receive the quality, timely care they have earned.”
Specifically, S. 1635 would require the VBA Compensation Service to update its ongoing national training program for claims processors who review PTSD disability benefits claims and to standardize station-selected training at regional offices, among other provisions.
If enacted, the bill also would establish a formal process to annually analyze training needs based on identified processing error trends and to conduct studies on military PTSD stressors and decision-making claims for claims processors to help guide the national training program, the summary says.
“The VA estimates that nearly 16 percent of all Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been diagnosed with PTSD, making it all the more essential that we process PTSD claims efficiently and connect veterans with the care they have earned and deserve,” said Sen. Klobuchar.