Concurrent Receipt Update from DAV

[MORTARDUDE]

Senate Veterans? Affairs Committee Chairman Arlen Specter held an emergency hearing on September 24, 2003, to hear testimony regarding the House majority leadership plan to discontinue granting service connection for all disabilities except those that directly result from the performance of job-related tasks of a servicemember?s military occupation. All the veterans? service organizations testifying strongly and uniformly opposed such change in benefit eligibility.



Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi testified that VA estimates approximately two-thirds of all current service-connected disabled veterans would not be eligible for service connection if this proposed new standard were applied to them. The plan by the House majority leadership would make the new restrictions on service connection apply to all new claims for service connection and all claims for increased compensation, including all claims for increased compensation by veterans currently service connected. The House majority leadership proposed this plan as a way to drastically reduce spending on compensation and other benefits provided to veterans on account of service-connected disabilities to use the savings to pay for legislation authorizing concurrent receipt of military retired pay and disability compensation. All the veterans? organizations testified in full support of concurrent receipt but condemned this plan to pay for it by denying any increase in disability benefits to the majority of today?s veterans and by denying all benefits for service connection to the majority of tomorrow?s veterans.



Unfortunately, we have seen correspondence from some in military associations who vocally support trading away the rights of two-thirds of tomorrow?s veterans in exchange for concurrent receipt. Such divisive self-serving moves endanger the unity of the military and veterans? communities and threaten to reduce our combined lobbying strength. In addition, those who support the sacrifice of benefits of two-thirds of tomorrow?s veterans for concurrent receipt for today?s military retirees do not seem to understand that two-thirds of today?s military retirees who do not already receive the maximum compensation available under law would also be adversely affected in that they could not get increased disability evaluations if less than 100% and, even if already 100%, could not get compensation in addition to the 100% rating under special statutory awards for such things as service-connected anatomical loss or loss of use of extremities, blindness, housebound status, and need of aid and attendance, etc. These disabled military retirees would also be denied such ancillary VA benefits as the automobile allowance, specially adapted housing, and nursing home care, etc., unless they could prove that their service-connected disabilities were caused by the direct performance of military duties. In addition, two-thirds of our sons and daughters who will be tomorrow?s military retirees will also be denied all these service-connected benefits. The DAV supports ending the unjust prohibition against concurrent receipt for all disabled military longevity retirees, but we adamantly oppose trading away the benefits of two-thirds of our disabled veterans and military retirees for concurrent receipt. The DAV works to build better lives for all disabled veterans and their families.



Please click here: http://www.dav.org/voters/statement_surratt_092303.html to read DAV?s September 23, 2003, testimony before the Senate Veterans? Affairs Committee. We urge you to continue your grassroots efforts to defeat this proposal to greatly limit service connection and to get legislation authorizing concurrent receipt of military retired pay and disability compensati