My letter. Dear Leanna, While no one can predict with certainty how or when the current government-wide shutdown will be resolved, each day it continues results in growing hardships for veterans and their loved ones. A government shutdown hurts wounded and injured veterans and their families. Unless a resolution to the current stalemate is reached, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will close public contact offices at VA Regional Offices and furlough thousands of employees, interrupting multiple programs and further delaying claims processing. If the shutdown lasts, VA disability compensation, pension, education and survivor benefits checks will not be paid on November 1. Lack of payments will bring major consequences to veterans nationwide. Each day that the government is closed valuable services and benefits will be delayed, or denied, to injured, and ill veterans, and to their families and survivors. DAV (Disabled American Veterans) believes veterans deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, even in this type of outrageous stalemate in Washington. The current shutdown will delay more than 250,000 appeals from veterans who are awaiting VA’s resolution; disability compensation, pension and education benefits are in jeopardy of not being paid in November; VA Vocational Rehabilitation offices are working with reduced staffs and soon will close; and the Department of Labor Veterans Employment and Training Service programs, and federal employment “OneStop” centers, are closed. These shutdowns bring real damage directly to veterans and their families, many of whom are struggling to find jobs in their transitions to civilian life from recent military deployments in combat zones. DAV believes it’s important that Congress hear from you as a constituent how this shutdown is affecting you personally, or might affect you if it isn’t resolved soon. You may be a veteran who relies on your monthly VA compensation to pay your bills and maintain your quality of life. You may be a veteran who relies solely on your VA disability compensation to provide for yourself and your family; you may be a student veteran struggling to complete your education under the GI Bill or through VA vocational rehabilitation who will lose your housing without VA’s November payment; you may be the caregiver of a severely injured veteran, or the surviving spouse of one, with VA compensation, caregiver stipend or dependency and indemnity compensation as your sole income; or, you may be a veteran awaiting your claim or appeal decision at the VA. Please act now and use the form provided to personally describe to your Senators and Representative the real impact this shutdown will have on you and your family. Your voice can be the key to resolving the current impasse and keeping your VA benefits and services safe. Thank you for your advocacy on behalf of DAV, and for your support for our nation’s heroes and their families. J. Marc Burgess DAV National Adjutant/CEO
Posted on: Sat, 05 Oct 2013 12:10:19 +0000
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