Legal Help for Veterans blog.
May
28

The Brutal Legacy of War Left on Military Members

Medical Issues / Disability, Mental Health, News and Press, PTSD

A new study released Thursday has started to unveil the brutal legacy that has been left on members of the U.S military and its veterans after more than a decade of war. The study found that over the past year, on average, each service member visited the doctor more than once a month. This marks […]

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May
26

150 years of Arlington

News and Press

May of 2014 marks the 150th year of the Arlington National Cemetery. Along with Mill Springs National Cemetery, Arlington has the distinction of being the oldest military burial ground in the United States. The military cemetery is located in Arlington, Virginia, across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial. In May of1864 the first military […]

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May
22

Military Sexual Assault Reports Up 50%, Officials Seek to Increase Awareness

News and Press

Reports of sexual assaults by members of the military shot-up 50% in the past year, according to the Pentagon’s annual report released last week. But that sharp increase could be a result of a vigorous campaign to make victims feel more comfortable to come forward about being sexually assaulted, officials say. “There is no indication […]

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May
09

Gulf War Syndrome is going to be for us what Agent Orange was for the Vietnam Veterans

Medical Issues / Disability, News and Press

Thousands of veterans who served during the Gulf War in the 1990s continue to report mysterious symptoms, especially short-term memory loss and debilitating fatigue, over 20 years later. The collection of ailments that active duty soldiers and veterans reported after the operation to oust Saddam Hussein from Kuwait ended in 1991 were known as Gulf […]

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May
01

Homelessness Dogs Disproportionate Number of Michigan Veterans

News and Press

Between 2011 and 2012, the Michigan homeless population dropped modestly from 94,033 to 93,619. But during the same year-to-year period, the trend among homeless veterans moved in the opposite direction, increasing from 4,073 to 4,243 individuals. And there is reason to believe that veterans’ greater tendency to fall into social isolation has helped deteriorate figures […]

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Apr
29

An Absolute Disgrace: Veterans Dying on VA Hospital’s Secret List

Claims Processing, Medical Issues / Disability, News and Press

Kristina Derro Veteran Advocate  This is just disgraceful.  CNN has been reporting for months on the extended delays for health care appointments suffered by veterans across the country and who died while waiting.  However, new revelations of secret lists and shredded evidence show that long-waits could be just the tip of the iceberg. At least […]

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Apr
28

VA Hits Important Benchmark, but Problem Far from Solved

Claims Processing, Medical Issues / Disability, News and Press

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) took a step forward toward alleviating the backlog of disability claims, but that problem is still far from solved. For the first time since February 2011, the number of backlogged disability claims dropped below the 350,000 mark. That’s a decrease of more than 250,000 cases in the past year, […]

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Apr
21

Vietnam Vets file lawsuit against US military for discharge upgrades

News and Press

  Jim Fausone, Esq. Veteran Disability Lawyer Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a widely accepted disability today and I have been writing on the topic frequently. It was not always so. Now the condition is at the center of a lawsuit against the US Military. The lawsuit, which seeks class action status, could ultimately affect […]

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Apr
17

Social Security Launches Expedited Veteran Disability Process

News and Press

  Kristina Derro, Esq. Veterans Disability Lawyer The government has launched a new process to expedite Social Security disability claims for a special category of veterans, the Social Security Administration announced Tuesday, March 18. Under the new process, Social Security claims from veterans with a Veterans Affairs Department disability compensation rating of 100 percent Permanent […]

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Apr
14

Veterans going through VA appeals process wait an average of over 900 days

News and Press

  Kristina Derro, Esq. The Department of Veterans Affairs’s (VA) “appeals resolution time” shot up to 923 days in fiscal year 2013 – that’s up 37% from 675 in the previous year, according to the department’s annual performance report. The appeals resolution time is the average time it takes for a denied claim to work […]

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