On August 5, 2021, the Department of Veterans Affairs issued a regulation creating a new presumption for service connection for chronic respiratory conditions as a result of particulate matter exposure associated with active military service in the Southwest Asia theatre of operations. The Southwest Asia theater of operations refers to […]
Concerns over an already unreliable VA system grew in July 2020 when VA proposed to modify its character of discharge regulations, specifying reasons for discharge that it would consider “dishonorable” and ineligible for VA benefits. VA’s AQ95 Proposed Rule aims to “update and clarify regulatory bars to benefits based on […]
On August 26, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) delivered a landmark decision – Larson v. McDonough, 10 F.4th 1325 (Fed. Cir. 2021) – determining that obesity can be a service-connected disability if it results in functional impairment of earning capacity. What Happened in Larson v. […]
Veterans exposed to contaminated water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune face some significant challenges when it comes to collecting the disability benefits they deserve. Our military supplied up to one million Veterans, National Guard, and Reserve members with drinking water containing highly toxic organic compounds between 1953 and 1987. […]
Recently, the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims issued its Annual Report for the Fiscal Year 2020, which ran from October 1, 2019, to September 30, 2020. The report paints a discouraging picture of a court stretched to its limits, where appellants face long wait times for dispositions […]
On May 27, 2021, the Veterans’ Administration announced important expansions of eligibility for disability benefits related to Agent Orange exposure during the Vietnam War, and hinted at future expansions for conditions related to burn pits employed in southwest Asia during the Persian Gulf War and Afghan conflict. The changes pertain […]
Medicare fraud involving care provided to veterans is rampant. Since late 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Veterans Affairs have collaborated to stop fraud by exchanging Medicare sanctions data. Though the initiative has helped prevent some bad providers from participating in federal healthcare […]
Veteran victims of military rape achieved a huge win Thursday in a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that a statute of limitations will not protect military members charged with rape. The unanimous ruling reinstated the military rape convictions of Lt. Col. Michael Briggs and two other Air Force members, Master Sgt. […]
The Inspector General for the Department of Veterans Affairs is currently investigating claims that Robert Wilkie tried to discredit Andrea Goldstein, a Navy veteran and congressional staffer, who reported she was sexually assaulted at a VA facility. The VA Secretary allegedly sought “damaging information” about Goldstein after she reported the […]
Rep. Jack Bergman (R-Michigan) recently asked the Government Accountability Office (“GAO” – the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of Congress) to investigate whether the health of disabled veterans is improving with VA care. In January 2020, GAO published its findings, stating that “more than half of the veterans receiving disability […]
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