Legal Help for Veterans blog.
News and Press
With the fast-spread of virus COVID-19, a new coronavirus, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) says it is adequately prepared and confident in its ability to handle it. The agency refused extra government funds at this time and is focusing on strengthening its supply chains and testing its processes, said Department Secretary Robert Wilkie. However, […]
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The Department of Veterans Affairs has undergone a dramatic modernization in recent years, as it has been updating several of its technologies in clinics and hospitals. Many of these changes have increased patient engagement and, in the case of telehealth, have modeled effective new trends in care all over the country. Telehealth and telemedicine are […]
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According to a lawsuit filed in federal court in Virginia by the National Veterans Legal Services Program, the Department of Defense is violating the law by no longer sharing information that helps veterans overturn less-than-honorable discharges from the military. The group says it no longer has access to military review board decisions on requests to […]
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VA benefit eligibility for veterans exposed to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War was expanded by the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019, which went into effect on January 1, 2020. Previously, only veterans who were serving on the ground in Vietnam were eligible for VA benefits for Agent Orange exposure-related disability. Now, […]
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The Department of Veterans Affairs will move to a new review structure for its healthcare facilities, doing away with the star rating system. This will increase transparency and allow veterans to more easily compare VA and non-VA hospitals and facilities in the same area. According to VA officials, the star-based rating system was implemented only […]
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For veterans who suffer from chronic pain, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or other afflictions commonly affecting servicemen and women, it can be difficult to find successful and safe treatment options. These conditions affect day to day life and relief is often elusive. Considering this, it makes sense that most veterans — 83 percent — support […]
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A group of veterans who claim that they have been denied their rightful benefits have added more plaintiffs to the $500 million lawsuit against the Department of Defense they filed in August. There are 18 total veterans involved in the lawsuit so far. The group is suing the secretaries of the United States Army, Navy, […]
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A Marine veteran who served two tours in Iraq faces deportation to El Salvador, from which he emigrated when he was three years old. Jose Segovia Benitez was a legal permanent resident when he enlisted in the Marines and served for five years before he was honorably discharged in 2004. While in Iraq, Benitez suffered […]
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A new report from the Office of the Inspector General determined that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) mishandled sensitive data about veterans and potentially left them vulnerable to fraud and identity theft. Personal information about veterans were stored on two shared network drives and could have been remotely accessible by anyone with authorization to […]
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The Department of Veterans Affairs recently embraced the use of video games in therapies for disabled veterans suffering from a variety of physical, mental and emotional problems. The VA has partnered with Microsoft to develop specially made adaptive controllers which allow those with limited mobility a way to more comfortably play video games. Gaming will […]
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