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Archive for August, 2011
Friday, August 12th, 2011
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) blamed the VA for failing to control outside contractor access to secure files. Failed oversight of the VA’s cybersecurity protocols granted a private contractor improper access to electronic health records (EHRs), possibly affecting veterans’ disability claims.
The OIG’s report was filed July 27 and detailed the extent of the contractor’s entry into the VA’s system. The contractor was able to access the portion of the VA’s IT system veterans use to:
- refill prescriptions over the telephone;
- schedule appointments;
- review balances due; and
- check lab results.
During their inspection, auditors found some “corporate officers” utilized other employee’s user accounts to unlawfully access the VA network. According to the contractor, that was done in order to “conduct maintenance and monitor contractor systems.” This is not the fist time the VA has failed to control its security protocols.
That explanation was not readily accepted by the OIG, as their investigation revealed “sensitive VA data” on unencrypted memory devices in the contractor’s offices. Contractors have their own system within the VA medical facilities, and those systems are not always firewall protected. Vendor systems usually contain unsupported software, which leaves their system with inadequate protection against viruses and malware.
The VA clearly failed to perform “effective oversight of contractor practices,” according to the OIG report. That failure means contractors are not meeting VA security standards at medical facilities and vendor locations.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, a South Florida disability attorney from LaVan & Neidenberg is ready to help. To learn if you are entitled to certain programs and benefits contact our veterans disability rights firm today – 1-888-234-5758.
Tags: Electronic Health Record (EHR), Health Care Records, Veterans disability
Posted in General, VA News, Veterans' Benefits | No Comments »
Thursday, August 11th, 2011
The health care problems facing active-duty soldiers and returning veterans have been well-documented over the last few years. Soldiers and veterans are facing one problem, however, that can likely be controlled before it is too late. Both active-duty soldiers and veterans are abusing prescription drugs at unprecedented levels.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), prescription drug abuse has already reached epidemic levels. That assessment of the situation is not surprising given the general attitude toward treating injured troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for the last 10 years. The military’s health care system was recently described as being “awash in prescription drugs.”
According to representatives from the Obama administration, the use of prescription medication must be monitored. This monitoring must not only be a national system, but also include the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as there are so many veterans abusing prescription drugs. Over the next 5 years, the administration seeks to reduce such drug abuse by 15%.
The administration plans on meeting that goal by using prescription drug monitoring programs. These programs allow doctors to quickly search a national database to ensure their patient is not “doctor shopping.” A previous decision by the VA General Counsel does not allow VA hospitals to participate in these programs. There is legislation currently being considered that would allow VA medical centers to actively take part in such programs.
Both the VA and the Department of Defense have conducted drug surveys confirming the unfortunate extent of the problem of soldiers and veterans self-medicating with prescription drugs. According to officials, there are more fatal overdoses from prescription drugs than from heroin and cocaine combined.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, a South Florida disability attorney from LaVan & Neidenberg is ready to help. To learn if you are entitled to certain programs and benefits contact our veterans disability rights firm today – 1-888-234-5758.
Tags: Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs, Veterans disability
Posted in General, Veterans' Disability | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, August 10th, 2011
Mental health workers who work with soldiers and veterans believe those two groups run higher risks for suicide than the civilian population. They refer to their risk as “significantly greater” and stress the need to identify those in need of help as soon as possible. According to clinicians, help must include early detection of suicidal thoughts and ultimately prevention of the suicidal act itself.
Anywhere between 30,000 and 32,000 Americans take their own lives every year. This rate has remained essentially unchanged since 1950, despite many changes in the mental health field.
Approximately 1 in every 5 Americans who take their own lives is a veteran, which means 18 veterans kill themselves, on average, every day.
Active duty soldiers face a particularly lethal combination of stressors. Many find themselves with access to firearms and a toxic mix of “rage, guilt, and despair” with which to cope.
Many veterans face “survivor’s guilt,” which they often couple with anger. The veterans’ emotional responses to the “bad things” they experienced in combat creates sorrow and anguish in the veterans. The resulting distress often serves as a platform for the veterans’ path to suicide.
Even within the veteran population, there are veterans more at risk than others. Recent data reflects those veterans between 20 and 29 years of age, those veterans over 39 years of age, and female veterans of all ages present higher risks of suicide than all other groups of veterans.
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: Active Duty Soldiers, Veterans disability, Veterans’ Mental Health
Posted in General | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently launched an internal audit into their veteran-owned (VOSB) and service-disabled veteran-owned (SDVOSB) small business programs.
The point of the investigation was to ensure those businesses claiming VOSB and SDVOSB status in order to take advantage of benefits like set-aside contract met the requirements for VOSB and SDVOSB eligibility. VOSB and SDVOSB programs create business opportunities for those veteran-owned businesses. The VA directed almost 25% of all their procurement spending in 2010 to these businesses.
Of all the businesses claiming VOSB and SDVOSB status, 76% failed to meet the VA’s eligibility standards to receive funding. This equals out to at least 1,400 businesses defrauding the VA by fraudulently accepting money. Funding those deceptive companies has totaled more than $500 million according to the VA.
Not surprisingly, the lynchpin for eligibility lies in the businesses being owned and operated by veterans. A vast majority of the businesses claiming VOSB and SDVOSB status, however, have non-veterans running their day-to-day operations. When this happens, the owner becomes the “figurehead” and is not eligible to draw VA benefits.
The benefits are available to help veterans launch and grow their businesses, according to VA Sec. Eric Shinseki. To have non-veterans take work earmarked specifically for VOSB and SDVOSB is fraudulent and the VA hopes to implement better controls so as to stop such abuse in the future.
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: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Veteran-Owned Small Business (VSOB), Veterans disability
Posted in Disabled Veterans | 1 Comment »
Friday, August 5th, 2011
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and VA Sec. Eric Shinseki vowed to eliminate homelessness among veterans by 2015. According to a recent VA report, however, the number of homeless veterans from the Iraqi and Afghanistan Wars has increased.
The most recent figures indicate more than 10,000 Iraqi and Afghan veterans are either currently homeless or enrolled in programs for homeless veterans. This recent increase is somewhat discouraging in the face of the VA’s 2015 goal. The overall number of homeless veterans, however, has decreased to 135,000 from 2004, where the number was closer to 400,000.
The 10,000-plus veterans cited in the VA’s report are either homeless, living in temporary housing, or using housing vouchers to rent apartments. Approximately 13% of these veterans are female. Returning to civilian life is always somewhat difficult for veterans, but the current economy makes this transition even more difficult.
Approximately 70% of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan have been exposed to combat. For many that means they’re suffering from varying psychological problems because of that combat exposure. This can complicate an already stressful situation, particularly when disabled veterans have difficulty gaining access to programs that would help them to address their challenges.
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: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), homeless veterans, VA Sec. Eric Shinseki, Veterans disability
Posted in Veterans' Disability | No Comments »
Thursday, August 4th, 2011
Homelessness affects not only veterans, but their families as well. The struggle for veterans to find work and prevent themselves and their families from becoming homeless is getting harder by the day, and the number of homeless veterans in the US is growing.
Although there is some temporary housing available in Palm Beach County, FL it isn’t always the best situation for a family. The West Palm Beach Housing Authority is taking part in a federal housing voucher program to provide more permanent housing for some of the 2,000 currently homeless veterans in West Palm Beach.
The U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s Veterans Affairs Supporting Housing Program (HUD-VASH) is providing the Housing Authority the vouchers. The program is nationwide and will supply $5 million in vouchers. Veterans taking part in the program will be responsible for paying approximately 30% of their rent, but that number will fluctuate based on their monthly income. Those vouchers will cover the difference in the rent.
Any veteran signed up with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system qualifies for the program. The vouchers given to Palm Beach veterans will provide housing for approximately 240 veterans and their families. Although resources are not available for every veteran in need, this is a step in the right direction.
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: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Health Care System, homeless veterans, U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s Veterans Affairs Supporting Housing Program (HUD-VASH), Veterans disability
Posted in Veterans' Dependents, Veterans' Resources | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011
The Veterans Benefits Training Improvement Act of 2011 (HR 2349) was written with the hope it could improve the work done by Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability claims processors. The bill’s passage, however, was postponed by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee’s Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Panel.
The legislation would require remedial training and a second round of testing for anyone receiving a “less than satisfactory” on a standard competency test. The test would be given once a year to all VA employees and managers responsible for processing pension and benefit claims.
The House subcommittee felt the time it would take to administer the test, the training, and the re-test would do nothing but add to the “already considerable backlog of claims.”
Any employee or manager receiving remedial training twice and cannot move past a less than satisfactory score would face “appropriate personnel action.”
The majority of the objections to the bill came from Democrats who argued the bill did not provide any source of funding to pay for the annual testing. Because of the potentially serious consequences of not performing well on the tests, there was also concern claims processing would slow as more workers take time off to study for the competency test.
If you are a disabled veteran who has been denied disability compensation or have not yet applied for benefits from the VA, a South Florida disability attorney from LaVan & Neidenberg is ready to help. To learn if you are entitled to certain programs and benefits contact our veterans disability rights firm today – 1-888-234-5758.
Tags: Claims Processing, House Veterans’ Affairs Committee’s Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Panel, The Veterans Benefits Training Improvement Act of 2011 (HR 2349), Veterans disability
Posted in US Military Legislation, VA News | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
It appears suffering traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) may increase an injured veteran’s risk of suffering dementia. A recent Department of Defense (DoD) funded study of 28,000 veterans found TBIs may double the risk of dementia later in life.
Over a 7-year span, 4,902 veterans diagnosed with a TBI were shown to have a 15.3% risk of developing dementia. Conversely, researchers found the risk rate was only 6.8% for those veterans not diagnosed with a TBI.
Researchers accounted for multiple types of TBIs. A statistical difference was noted between varying types of TBIs:
- intercranial injuries (the most common);
- head fractures;
- concussion;
- post-concussion syndrome; and
- head injuries remaining unspecified.
The good news is that the research seems to indicate TBI diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation could possibly help “ward off dementia.” This is an important note as TBIs are becoming so common among our soldiers and veterans. TBIs quickly became dubbed the “signature wound” of Iraq and Afghanistan. Currently, TBIs cause 22% of all casualties and almost 60% of “blast-related injuries.”
The relationship between TBIs and “symptomatic dementia” has been studied before. The majority of the research indicates TBIs can result in long-term, late-life consequences. According to the study, almost 33% of TBIs patients who die from their TBIs show similar types of brain damage as Alzheimer’s patients.
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.
Posted in Disabled Veterans | 1 Comment »
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