Some veterans now working as government contractors struggle to get their Department of Veterans Affairs benefits abroad that's because VA services simply don't reliably reach into areas of U.S. military conflict such as Afghanistan and Iraq.
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, said he heard firsthand from veterans working as contractors in Afghanistan during a visit over Thanksgiving break.
“As a country, we made a promise to honor our veterans’ sacrifices by ensuring they have access to benefits and care following their service,” Allred said. “I hope we can work together to eliminate this barrier to receiving their benefits. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee to fulfill our promise and ensure veterans can easily access the benefits they have earned.”
Allred and other Democrat members sent a letter to the secretaries of Defense, State and the VA, asking that they work together within their agencies to ensure those veterans working as contractors get the benefits they earned during their service.
"They described the difficulty they experienced navigating the VA disability claims process while abroad," the members wrote of the veterans they spoke to in Afghanistan. "These veterans are unable to attend a stateside VA disability examination, leading to delays and denials of benefits. Through no fault of their own, these veterans are often unable to access benefits."
VA already uses contracted medical providers to conduct disability exams for veterans living in the U.S. and overseas, but veterans "working as government contractors in areas of military conflict are excluded from those resources," members wrote.
The Congress members suggested they expand that same program to reach more veterans abroad and set a deadline of before Feb. 1, 2020.
VA spokesman Mike Richman told Connecting Vets the department planned to "respond to the lawmakers directly."
