HISTORIC LAWSUIT
BENEFITS DELAYED ARE BENEFITS DENIED
VVA and VMW Continue Fight Against Excessive Delays in VA Benefits Decisions January Court Date to Be Set
WASHINGTON, DC (December 23, 2008) – U.S. District Court Judge Reggie Walton held a hearing on December 17, 2008, to address the request for a Preliminary Injunction on behalf of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) and Veterans of Modern Warfare (VMW). The veterans groups asked the Court to require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to meet firm deadlines when determining whether veterans were entitled to disability benefits. The two groups are suing VA on behalf of their more than60,000 membersto end the extraordinary delays America’s heroes currently face when applying for benefits associated with disabilities suffered when serving their country. The VVA and VMW asked the Court to impose a 90-day deadline for decisions on initial claims for disability benefits, and resolve appeals of those decisions within 180 days, as a way to force the VA to act promptly. If the VA fails to meet these standards, the VVA and VMW requested that the Judge order the VA to provide interim monetary payments equivalent to a disability rating of 30 percent to those veterans whose claims have been delayed as a minimal lifeline of support when it is most needed.
Judge Walton expressed concern at theoutset of the hearing that, while he was very sympathetic to the plight of veterans whose benefits were being delayed, he was uncomfortable in taking the extraordinary measure of granting a preliminary injunction – which in essence would have decided the case in favor of VVA and VMW without any evidence being taken. Instead, he indicated that he would set a hearing sometime in January for argument on the Government’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. He also suggested that Congress’ recent passage of legislation providing part of what VVA and VMW are asking for in this case may tie his hands with respect to going beyond what Congress has legislated.
"Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another, is the motto we live by at the VVA. We continue to press our case in the Court and Congress because our members, and all of America’s veterans, aren’t getting the support they need from the VA," said John Rowan, National President, Vietnam Veterans of America. "America’s veterans deserve more. Our guys are hurting and need some help. We are asking the Court to deliver a remedy that expedites compensation claims for the brave men and women who have defended and served."
"The need for disability benefits is particularly acute for our most recent veterans, the men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Donald Overton, Executive Director, Veterans of Modern Warfare. "The VA’s prompt assistance is essential in enabling these service members to successfully transition to civilian during a recessionary economy with record unemployment rates. Any delays in the delivery of these benefits can cause serious and irreparable harm to the veteran, their families and ultimately their communities."
"The VA is arguing that it can delay claims in violation of the law and veterans still have no recourse outside of the VA’s system, even though both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit have said the VA should not be immune if it violates veterans’ rights," saidRobert Cattanach, Partner, Dorsey & Whitney. "While we obviously would have preferred that the Judge grant an immediate injunction to stop the damage being done to our veterans, we’re looking forward to our full day in court on behalf of America’s veterans. Congress may have applied a Band-Aid last session, but that should not give the VA a free pass."
More than 600,000 American veterans are waiting for decisions from the VA on disability benefit applications, and this backlog will only increase as the more than 1.7 million Americans that served in Iraq and Afghanistan become eligible for benefits. While the VA claims it is making progress, it acknowledges that it takes an average of at least six months to reach an initial decision on an average benefits claim; the actual delay is closer to a year. Of those initial decisions that are appealed, more than 50 percent are reversed. On average, these appeals take more thanfouryears to resolve, with some stretching 10 years or more.
Delays in awarding benefits to America’s veterans increase the suffering of individuals already struggling with an inability to cope, as the seemingly endless wait for the VA to make a final decision on a claim magnifies the alienation and anxiety they experience. The inability to provide basic subsistence support significantly impacts a veteran’s ability to maintain economic stability, seek and gain employment, provide and sustain a home, or care for a family. As a consequence, there is a substantial increase in the number of broken families, cases of homelessness and depression caused by the failure to provide disability benefits on a timely basis.
Lawsuit Timeline
- On November 10, 2008, the VVA and VMW filed their Complaint with theU.S. District Court for the District of Columbia requesting a preliminary injunction to provide immediate action to prevent further irreparable harm to our nation’s veterans.
- On December 4, 2008, the U.S. Government filed its response to the VVA and VMW lawsuit and sought outright dismissal of the lawsuit. The Government's response was aimed at evading rather than embracing its legal responsibilities and does not contest that the VA takes many, many months, and often years, to reach decisions that have critical consequences for our nation's disabled veterans. Instead, it launched a barrage of legal arguments, many already rejected by numerous courts, about why the VA should not be held accountable. The VA’s claims about the adverse consequences of a court order that forces it to do its job rang particularly hollow, given the agency's repeated admissions that it has all the resources it needs to do its job – Congress gave the VA a larger budget than it asked for during the past few years.
Most alarmingly, the Government argued that the public interest supports the denial, rather than grant, of the injunction that the plaintiffs seek. It claims that Congress, after careful balancing, has determined that the VA’s (broken) system is simply the one with which disabled veterans must live, and that it should not be held accountable for its failures. - No date for the argument on the Government’s motion to dismiss the case has been set. While the Courts are understandably reluctant to second guess Congress on what is a "reasonable" time for the VA to decide benefit claims, at some point everyone agrees that benefits delayed are virtually the same as benefits denied.
Visit www.veteransnewsroom.com for additional information about the lawsuit or how to get involved.
Vietnam Veterans of America
Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) is the nation's only congressionally chartered veterans service organization dedicated to the needs of Vietnam-era veteransfamilies, as well as to the needs of other veterans and their families. VVA's founding principle is "Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another." Visit the VVA online at http://www.vva.org/.
Veterans of Modern Warfare
Veterans of Modern Warfare (VMW) is a veterans service organization dedicated to serving our nation's most recent war veterans. Our purpose is to support veterans and their families by providing education and information about the benefits America’s veterans have earned, assistance in obtaining benefits, advocacy in issues important to our generation, and camaraderie through locally based, national chapters. Visit the VMW online at http://vmwusa.org.
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
Clients have relied on Dorsey & Whitney (www.dorsey.com) since 1912 to protect their interests. With 650 lawyers in 18 locations in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia, Dorsey provides a comprehensive approach to its clients' legal and business needs. Dorsey represents a number of the world's most successful Fortune 500 companies.
Dorsey and its individual lawyers have a long history of public service. The firm dedicates substantial resources, on a pro bono basis, to serve the unmet legal needs of disadvantaged individuals and of organizations who cannot afford to pay for legal services.
