Dear Friend,

Last week I had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Wichita. I left the meeting with dozens of in-depth charts and graphs, many of which my office is still reviewing and processing. I also learned of a few tips I could immediately pass on to anyone in the beginning stages of filing a claim with the VA. These suggestions may help to speed up the process a bit.

The first step in filing a claim is to contact a service organization. There are many from which to choose. If you are unsure who to call, my office can help provide you with contact information. A service officer receives specialized training throughout the year that everyone should feel comfortable relying on. In fact, VA representatives even say the VA would come to a complete halt if not for the expert opinions and advice from service officers. Once you have contacted a service organization, a whole team of people begins work to adjudicate your claim, especially if it becomes necessary to file an appeal.

After you meet with a service officer, it is important to get as much of the information together as possible and send the information together in one packet. Sending information incrementally is one of the most common claim processing delays. Of course, if you do get new information, forward it to your service officer for guidance. In general, though, sending information in bits and pieces causes processors to pull your file so they can again review it to determine how the new evidence impacts the current position of the claim.

The Department of Veterans Affairs must act in accordance with the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000. This act requires the VA to make reasonable efforts to assist veterans in attempts to obtain all supporting evidence, such as federal and non-federal records. The Act also requires the VA to keep veterans informed throughout the claims process. In accordance with this and other regulations, the VA is required to allow certain periods of time of between one and two months for you, or another agency, to gather requested information for a claim. If you get the information to the VA faster than the allowable period, the VA is still required to keep your claim in a holding pattern to ensure that all known and needed information is reviewed for the claim. After consulting with your service officer, you should also consider the possibility of waiving this period. It may save you a couple weeks at a time. This could potentially add up to months of more expedient processing!

Many people in the Second District have written me about the lengthy periods of time it takes to process their claims. By following the above advice, you may be able to avoid some of the delays. If you do encounter problems in the adjudication of your claim, please contact my office. (Click here) We are here for you!

With warm regards, 

Nancy Boyda
Member of Congress