Few Veterans Seek Review Of Disability Rating, Panel Finds

“Only a small fraction of wounded veterans who could get better benefits have applied in the two years since Congress, acting on concerns the military was cutting costs by downplaying injuries, ordered the Pentagon to review disputed claims,” The Associated Press reports…

Shinseki Tries To Squelch Rumors About Health Reform And Vets

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Erik Shinseki “addressed fears that some veterans have expressed that their health care and, specifically, their TRICARE medical coverage will be adversely affected by the health-reform legislation,” according to the Providence Journal. “Shinseki pointed out that President Obama has strongly supported veterans and their needs. …

Health Debate Travails Boost Lobbying Firms

Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., won an upset election last month that has reshaped the health debate and that new dynamic could be a boon for lobbying firms, The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Law Review columnist writes. “The thousands of lobbyists on and off Capitol Hill who labor on behalf of health-industry clients can now count on at least a few more monthly retainers. …

Senate Approves Budget For Veterans Programs

“The Senate on Tuesday adopted the latest in a continuing series of major budget increases to provide medical care for veterans. The move came as the Senate passed, by a rare 100-0 vote, a $134 billion spending bill for veterans programs and military construction projects” the Associated Press reports.

Tentative Agreement Reached With Oklahoma Lawmaker Stalling Veterans’ Health Bill

Congressional Quarterly: “Senate Democratic leaders reached a tentative agreement with Tom Coburn, R-Okla., on Tuesday night that averted the necessity of filing cloture on a veterans’ health care omnibus measure and could lead to passage of the bill early next week. … On Monday, Coburn said he objected to the bill because its five-year, $3.7 billion cost was not offset” (Oliveri, 11/10).

1.46 Million Working-Age Vets Lacked Health Coverage Last Year, Increasing Their Death Rate, Harvard Researchers Say

A research team at Harvard Medical School estimates 2,266 U.S. military veterans under the age of 65 died last year because they lacked health insurance and thus had reduced access to care. That figure is more than 14 times the number of deaths (155) suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2008, and more than twice as many as have died (911 as of Oct. 31) since the war began in 2001.

New Law Speeds Up VA’s Beleaguered Budget Process

President Obama signed a law Thursday to grease the Veterans Affairs Department’s troubled budgeting process by changing the schedule to allocate funds a year in advance, the Washington Post reports. The Veterans Health Care and Budget Reform and Transparency Act “means timely, sufficient and predictable funding from year to year.