The Veterans Administration has been touting its progress in helping reduce the number of veterans disability claims that are pending processing. However, while that may be true, the fact is that there is also a huge backlog of disability claims appeals filed by veterans, who believe that their claims were wrongfully denied.
It is estimated that there are more than 200,000 veterans, who are currently in the process of appealing disability claims. These veterans say that the lengthy waiting times for appeals are unfair to them. In many cases, veterans have been waiting for four years or more for a single ruling.
According to statistics by the Department Of Veterans Affairs, there are approximately 250,651 veterans, who are currently appealing decisions by the Department of Veterans Affairs. That is an increase of approximately 50% since the current administration took over office. The Board of Veterans Appeals also expects the number of pending disability claims appeals to increase over the next four years.
Not surprisingly, feelings of resentment and frustration are high among veterans who believe that they’re being made to wait too long for their cases to be heard. In many of these cases, the decisions on the claims came after months and months of excruciating waiting. According to many insiders, the reason for the backlog in disability claims appeals is the fact that many of the staff members who were earlier entrusted with dealing with disability claims appeals have now been diverted to dealing with reducing the disability claims backlog.
The Veterans Affairs has been under severe criticism because of the size of its disability claims backlog, and many staff members have been diverted towards these activities, leaving appeals hanging.