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Archive for February, 2010
Friday, February 26th, 2010
The city of New Orleans made a pledge to the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). The New Orleans City Planning Commission voted to turn over sections of city streets inside the footprint to the state so a new VA hospital can be built just outside the downtown area.
What the VA is planning on building will actually be a biomedical research corridor and teaching hospital. There are some concerns, however, about the adequacy of previous studies focusing on drainage in the area. Local residents are concerned the site the VA plans on using for its new research corridor will be raised from three to five feet, which makes flooding of surrounding properties an issue.
City officials, however, believe better water management in the new plans will make current conditions better. Further, the plans will boost the quantity of green space in the immediate area.
Overcoming the negative aspects of the possibility of increased traffic and noise in the surrounding neighborhoods, the commission voted to give up the city streets under the auspice of “moving the city forward.” The business community looks at the new VA hospital as an opportunity to build a middle class element in New Orleans.
There are 184 properties in the footprint, on the outskirts of downtown. Approximately half of them are currently occupied. Turning over the streets was only the first step in what will be a very lengthy process that will require several more rounds of city approval. It’s likely construction on the VA medical center will not begin for years, but the government is already buying property in the footprint.
Learn more about the City of New Orleans turning over property to the State.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: VA medical center, Veterans Health Care
Posted in General | No Comments »
Friday, February 26th, 2010
Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki has a bold new vision for the VA. For many years Gulf War veterans have complained about the “Gulf War illness” and that the government has done nothing to help them. There have been thousands of disability claims filed and denied.
But that was all before Eric Shinseki. Now, the VA is going to re-examine disability claims of potentially thousands of Gulf War veterans who claim they are disabled due to their service related Gulf War illness.
According to Shinseki, this change is not only going to affect how VA clinic staff currently work with Gulf War vets, but how the VA will care for future veterans with service-related illnesses. Shinseki also stated he plans on establishing a standard that prevents veterans from waiting for decades to have their service-related illnesses acknowledged and treated.
Gulf War illness has afflicted approximately 175,00 – 210,000 Gulf War veterans. While the source of the illness has been sternly disputed, some symptoms of the illness are:
- Rashes;
- Joint and muscle pain;
- Sleep issues; and
- Gastrointestinal problems.
A 1994 law allows veterans to collect payment from the VA for chronic disabilities the VA could not diagnose. Under this category, 3,400 Gulf War veterans have received benefits to date.
Approximately 300,000 Gulf War veterans submitted claims to the VA. About 14% of these claims were denied and of the claims that were granted, none of them were granted in full. The VA will review how the regulations were written and if there were issues preventing claims from being granted, the VA will give veterans an opportunity to have the VA reconsider denied claims.
Learn more about the VA re-opening Gulf War files.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: denied disability claims, Eric Shinseki, gulf war illness, gulf war veterans, Veterans disability
Posted in Disabled Veterans, Veterans' Disability | No Comments »
Thursday, February 25th, 2010
The Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) announced they were tightening up their current IT goals by implementing a program originally designed to be used as a last-ditch effort. The program was essentially designed for use with IT projects way behind schedule.
The “Program Management and Accountability System” was designed to cover only about 45 underperforming projects but now must be expanded to address every project in the IT department, which currently totals 282 current ventures.
VA Secretary Eric Shinseki’s vision is that the VA will terminate any project not currently working, make the ones that are working more efficient, and therefore realize the maximum value from the programs veterans deserve.
While requesting a budget for 2011, it was discovered many of the current IT programs demonstrated the possibility they could fail. There was no one trait common to all the programs but included the following:
- Significant schedule delays;
- Budget overruns; and
- Poor product quality.
Last June the VA launched a program named PMAS which forced managers in charge of IT projects facing trouble to start delivering partial projects on deadlines and make regular reports on progresses. 45 projects were stopped, including a project in development to help patient scheduling for VA hospitals. That particular project was 8 years and $167 million into development.
The end result of PMAS was a $52 million savings in the fiscal 2010 IT budget and 32 of the projects were eventually restarted. The results were so effective, VA officials have decided that holding every project accountable for delivering regularly scheduled progress is the only way to go to maximize the IT budget.
Learn more about the VA’s plan to streamline their IT projects.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: PMAS, VA IT Department
Posted in General | 1 Comment »
Thursday, February 25th, 2010
On January 4th Ernest Moody wandered away from the Northeast Louisiana War Veteran’s Home in his wheelchair. Mr. Moody left the VA home early in the morning without anybody noticing he was missing.
Mr. Moody was able to make it out of the VA home and across an Interstate where his wheelchair and shoes were found. An employee of a local business attempted to contact the VA home but there was no answer. Finally, the employee went to the VA home where it was discovered that Mr. Moody was indeed missing. Upon returning to his store, the employee found Mr. Moody sitting in a pecan grove.
The temperature that morning was approximately 25 degrees with rain, sleet, and snow. Mr. Moody eventually died on January 6th. Mr. Moody’s two daughters are now suing the VA home.
Mr. Moody was at the VA home for physical therapy. One of the daughters said she visited the home and found Mr. Moody “very soiled.” While she was attempting to tend to him, she stated he was too weak to even get up and walk. The next day Mr. Moody went missing.
VA security cameras show Mr. Moody walking out of the back door of the home. Both daughters allege in their suit they were told there were no cameras. The VA home’s administrator said he was alerted approximately 45 minutes after Mr. Moody was missing and searched the home as well as the pecan grove where Mr. Moody was found.
The daughters are suing for an undisclosed amount of money based on the negligence of the VA home along with several other allegations. The home’s administrator is also a named defendant in the lawsuit.
Learn more about this negligence lawsuit against the Northeast Louisiana War Veteran’s Home.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: VA lawsuit, veterans and their families
Posted in General | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki will not rest. At least not until every last student veteran has taken advantage of their earned education benefit. Over the next two months, the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) will conduct a nationwide campaign designed to enlist both service members and student veterans to apply for the Post 9/11 GI Bill.
Since the Post 9/11 GI Bill has been operational, 209,490 people have taken advantage of the bill to the tune of the VA issuing almost $1.9 billion in benefits. The spring semester numbers from this year show almost 180,000 student veterans enrolled and almost 90% of them have already been paid.
The Post 9/11 GI Bill campaign will tackle many mediums and formats to include:
- Half-page ads in top college publications;
- Online and social media;
- Posters in registrar’s offices, dorms, cafeterias, and student unions;
- Text messaging;
- Print, radio, and outdoor advertising; and
- Public service announcements on college radio stations and local stations with high concentrations of students and military installations.
The goal of this massive campaign is to reach those people that do not understand the GI Bill and how they can take advantage of its benefits. The Post 9/11 GI Bill is the most encompassing educational assistance program since the original GI Bill.
Learn more about how the VA will be attempting to reach student veterans and schools with information about the GI Bill.
Tags: education benefits for veterans, GI Bill benefits, Post-9/11 GI Bill
Posted in Veterans' Benefits | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
The majority of people enrolled in New Mexico’s medical marijuana program suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For many veterans, however, the Albuquerque VA hospital is their primary source of health care but physicians employed there are forbidden from recommending medical marijuana to their patients.
The VA bases their “no medical marijuana” policy on the advice of the Drug Enforcement Agency. Despite New Mexico’s medical marijuana program, marijuana is still classified as an illegal drug. The VA policy works in a twofold manner:
- VA Physicians can recommend treatments outside the VA system; but
- VA physicians are encouraged to counsel patients in alternative treatments to marijuana.
Many veterans complain the standard pills used to control their PTSD symptoms resulted in the veterans feeling as if they were in a “zombie-like” state whereas medical marijuana allows them to lower the amount of prescription pills they take and does not include such severe side effects.
There is some research supporting the idea that marijuana does help veterans suffering from PTSD garner some relief.
The reality of the current situation is that veterans often self-medicate with the most common choices being alcohol or prescription drugs. The VA will help veterans that come off active duty addicted to pain killers, but that veteran will have a real problem if he or she tests positive for marijuana.
Essentially, the VA refuses to help veterans obtain a state license for medical marijuana. If they do, however, obtain a license, the VA may possibly accommodate those veterans in its rehabilitation programs. The Albuquerque VA has not yet said if they will consider a veteran’s positive drug test for marijuana as a relapse if that veteran has a state license.
Learn more about the Albuquerque VA’s policy regarding medical marijuana.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: medical marijuana, PTSD, VA health care
Posted in General | 6 Comments »
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
California has 243,443 veterans receiving monthly disability payments, according to the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). California’s number of combat veterans has increased recently but conversely, the overall number of veterans has declined.
The increased number of veterans returning to California from deployment has launched a push to help disabled veterans get work with focusing on veterans owning or launching small businesses.
California has yet to meet its goal of awarding at least 3% of its contract business to disabled veterans despite the 1,119 businesses owned by disabled veterans and despite the $9 million the state spends every year on contracts and purchasing.
For years there have been financial incentives for state agencies to award contracts to veteran owned businesses. New evolutions in state law provide two new ways to help veterans garner more of the available money.
First, a new law was passed requiring companies to prove they made an effort to use disabled veteran owned business as subcontractors or face penalties. Second, the “good-faith effort” provision, which allowed contractors to simply submit a form stating they attempted to use a disabled veteran owned business, was eliminated.
Many disabled veteran owned businesses immediately saw the benefits of these two improvements in the system with increased number of contracts. While benefits were not seen by every disabled veteran-owned business, this is definitely a step in the right direction.
Learn more about how California is helping disabled veterans find work from state contracts.
Tags: Disabled Veterans, legislation to benefit veterans, work for veterans
Posted in Disabled Veterans, General | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
Many U.S. service members are beginning to show a very disturbing trend: suffering from exotic cancers and rare respiratory complications. Burn pits are coming to the forefront as being responsible for causing these health problems, among others, with U.S. military personnel.
Burn pits are run by private independent contractors. They are large gashes cut into the Earth next to U.S. military installations and used to burn trash. According to many soldiers, however, there is much more than trash being burned in these pits. These pits are apparently being used to burn all types of hazardous and toxic materials:
- Plastics;
- Batteries;
- Old weapons;
- Ruined machinery;
- Rubber; and
- Asbestos.
The burn pits produce large black clouds that would permeate U.S. military installations and cause various symptoms and health issues not only among the troops on base, but the soldiers assigned to work in the burn pits. Symptoms include:
- Constant chronic headaches;
- Fatigue;
- Shortness of Breath;
- Lung problems;
- Memory loss; and
- The “Iraqi crud” (a constant cough producing darkened phlegm and was reported by soldiers in over 100 separate Iraqi and Afghanistan bases).
Many soldiers started to notice strange symptoms and submitted memos and complaints to their superiors focusing on the safety of being around the pits. In 2006, an Air Force bio-engineer filed a report backing up the soldiers’ claims about what had likely been burned in the pit:
- Arsenic;
- Cyanide;
- Freon;
- Formaldehyde;
- Rubber; and
- Benzene (an aircraft fuel known to cause cancer).
Rep. Tim Bishop (D- N.Y.) introduced a bill to create a complete list of burn pits, will register all troops exposed to them, and give those troops specific physical exams. That’s a beginning, but it isn’t enough.
A class action lawsuit was filed in Texas in December of 2008. The plaintiff list includes 300 service members and several contractors alleging the military contractor KBR is the source of their health problems.
While some steps have been taken to deal with the burn pit problem, it remains to be seen how this will end. When these soldiers enlisted in the armed services, it is doubtful this is what they intended when they pledged to give up their life for their country.
Learn more about the Iraqi burn pits and how they’re affecting U.S. troops.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: Burn Pits, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Veterans Health
Posted in Iraq-Afghanistan War | No Comments »
Monday, February 22nd, 2010
Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) have unfortunately become common in veterans returning home from active duty. New technology forces the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) hospitals to change and adapt their procedures in treating veterans diagnosed with a TBI.
Massive or traumatic brain injuries usually occur when the brain is propelled against a hard object, like the inter-surface of the skull. The impact, then, essentially bruises the brain. Normally with an impact like that some bleeding occurs, but in more severe situations, the brain can fracture.
At the Big Springs VA hospital, they’re keeping up with the new demands in treating TBIs. The Big Springs staff recognizes there is no one proven approach to dealing with TBIs so they make sure they follow their patients’ progress and help them through personalized treatment plans. TBI symptoms are not always immediately apparent and there are approximately 18 different symptoms to look for to determine a particular path of treatment.
Technology was not available in the past to treat TBIs as it is now, so we are just starting to learn about common symptoms such as:
- Memory loss;
- Vision impairment; and
- Loss of balance.
The numbers appear to be positive. Approximately 95% of TBIs are mild and recovery is complete within a year. Unfortunately, the five percent needing more advanced testing and treatment is growing. Doctors at the Big Springs VA hospital say they expect the number of veterans they treated last year to jump by 50% from 120.
Learn more about treating traumatic brain injuries.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, contact LaVan & Neidenberg. You may be entitled to certain programs and benefits so contact our veterans disability rights firm today.
Tags: Disabled Veterans, TBI, Traumatic Brain Injury
Posted in Disabled Veterans, General | 1 Comment »
Monday, February 22nd, 2010
One issue plaguing the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) lately is getting effective mental health care to those veterans returning from active duty and living in very remote areas. A new VA study may have found an answer to this problem: videoconferencing. The study suggests technology such as remote videoconferencing can be used to treat anger management just as well as group therapy.
Current estimations hold 40% of current combat veterans hail from remote areas of the U.S. One in six returns following deployment with combat-related post-traumatic disorder (PTSD) or PTSD related issues.
The study lasted four years and included 125 male combat veterans diagnosed with PTSD related anger. Participants were randomly selected to participate in either group sessions or therapy via video. With obvious exceptions of the presence of the counselor, both types of sessions were identical. Both groups were arranged in a circle with the therapist in the same spot, live or over video.
After six months, the end results were that both groups showed similar reductions in anger. The positive results of this study have led researchers to begin to attempt the same type of video therapy to treat PTSD itself, which involves much more complex treatments.
Confidentiality is a major concern with videoconferencing. In order for the videoconferencing to be successful, the technology must not be able to be breached. Three quarters of the participants in the study were Vietnam veterans and it is believed veterans of the current wars will be much more comfortable with such a scenario as they are much more used to technology.
Learn more about how videoconferencing can help veterans get needed mental health treatment.
If you are a veteran and suffering from PTSD and fighting the VA to get disability compensation, contact LaVan & Neidenberg, a veterans law firm located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We represent more than 5000 disability claimants. Our disability attorneys have experience with cross examining agency-appointed medical and vocational experts and take time when speaking with you about your disability claim. Call us today at 1-888-234-5758 for a FREE legal consultation. There is NO OBLIGATION to hire our firm and there are NO FEES unless one of our trained disability lawyers wins your case.
Tags: PTSD, Veterans Health Care, Veterans’ Mental Health, videoconferencing
Posted in Disabled Veterans | No Comments »
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