‘It’s so inaccurate’—How the VA Is Failing to Track Veterans Burn Pit Claims
By Kelly KennedyWar-Horse-Logo-300x119 | August 31, 2020
Just 10,588 burn-pit claims have been filed since Sept. 11, 2001, Veterans Affairs said in response to a Freedom of Information Act request from a veterans advocacy group.
But that’s only a fraction of what veterans advocates say they expected to see. Veterans have filed 98,017 claims for “environmental claims” since 9/11, and at least 200,000 people have signed up for VA’s burn-pit registry, according to VA. That means burn-pit claims make up slightly less than 10% of VA’s total number of environmental exposure claims for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
That makes it difficult for experts and researchers to track veterans to look for trends, for legislators to watch so they can properly fund VA and provide legislation for benefits, and for veterans service organizations to learn from as they determine how best to help veterans file claims.
https://coffeeordie.com/va-burn-pit-claims/
