[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 65 (Thursday, April 30, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4967-S4969]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FEINGOLD:
  S. 944. A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to require the 
Secretaries of the military departments to give wounded members of the 
reserve components of the Armed Forces the option of remaining on 
active duty during the transition process in order to continue to 
receive military pay and allowances, to authorize members to reside at 
their permanent places of residence during the process, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Armed Services.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, the Armed Forces have come a long way in 
addressing the bureaucratic hurdles that have long plagued wounded 
service members transitioning out of the Services. However, much more 
remains to be done to ensure that wounded service members do not go 
without income, due to injuries sustained in the line of duty. 
Currently, many are going without compensation of any kind because they 
are never told about the patchwork of programs designed to care for 
them as they transition back to civilian life and into the VA. This has 
been an issue of particular concern for members of the Reserve 
Components. Therefore, Sen. Murkowski and I are introducing the Wounded 
Warrior Transition Assistance Act to help ensure that wounded 
reservists and members of the Guard are informed of the various 
programs to compensate them for their injuries before they separate

[[Page S4969]]

from the military and to guarantee that there is no gap in income as 
they transition into the VA.
  This bill was inspired by a young soldier from Wisconsin who came to 
me for assistance when he returned from Iraq with serious wounds. He 
had been separated from the Army without going through the medical 
discharge process even though he had sustained a serious injury that 
impaired his ability to work. No one had informed him that he may have 
been entitled to medical retirement, temporary disability retirement, 
combat-related special compensation or incapacitation pay due to the 
extent of his injuries. After his separation, it took several months 
for the VA to review all of his claims and begin compensating him for 
his injuries during which time his family struggled to get by. Now, 
nearly a year since he first contacted me, the Army has recognized its 
mistake and plans to evaluate him for medical retirement or placement 
on the temporary disability retirement list.
  Unfortunately, this is a systemic issue. The Wisconsin National Guard 
has estimated that, in Wisconsin alone, there have been a dozen cases 
of wounded service members who were eligible for military compensation 
for their injuries who never received it and were instead sent home 
with nothing only to have to wait for the VA to process their claims. 
This has compromised their ability to focus on their recovery.
  Members of my staff have been told by several officials within the 
Defense Department that they continue to see members of the Reserve 
Components given disparate and unequal treatment with regard to the 
medical discharge process. This legislation is urgently needed to 
ensure that wounded service members receive counseling about these 
issues before discharge so that they can make an educated decision 
about their treatment. Congress must act to convey the importance of 
this issue and to set a floor for how the Department will handle 
wounded members of the Reserve Components.
  This bill would prohibit the discharge of wounded members of the 
Reserve Components until they have been evaluated for their eligibility 
for the various programs to assist wounded service members. The service 
member may elect to separate from the Armed Services after consulting 
with a JAG attorney. For those undergoing evaluation, the bill would 
ensure that they are returned to their home, if medically feasible, 
during the process. The Services currently have community-based wounded 
transition units established for this purpose.
  If someone was prematurely discharged and cannot work due to his or 
her injury, the bill would require the relevant Service to return him 
or her to active duty, if the service member chooses to do so. It would 
also ensure that the Reserve Components have access to Defense Health 
Program funds. These measures will help ensure that future service 
members will not face the gap in income that created such a hardship 
for my constituent and his family. It is the least we can do.
  In addition, this bill would ensure that wounded service members have 
trained advocates to help them navigate the entire medical discharge 
process. The fiscal year 2008 National Defense Authorization Act 
required the Defense Department to, among other things, provide service 
members with legal counsel during the physical disability evaluation 
process. In September 2008, the Government Accountability Office, GAO, 
found that only 5 of 35 Army treatment facilities had legal personnel 
dedicated to providing assistance during the disability evaluations 
process.
  In addition, GAO has reported that there are still insufficient JAG 
attorneys to provide comprehensive legal support early in the 
evaluation process. According to Army staff, if attorneys counseled 
service members earlier in the discharge process, starting with the 
medical evaluation board process, service members could have a better 
understanding of what steps to take to ensure that they receive any 
compensation to which they may be entitled. Early outreach could also 
help to make the disability evaluation process proceed faster and more 
efficiently. This bill would require the Armed Services to hire 
sufficient personnel to provide comprehensive legal support early in 
the evaluation process.
  At the same time, we should do everything possible to take advantage 
of veteran service officers who offer this counseling free of charge 
and at no cost to the federal government. Federal law requires 
commanders to make space available on base for chartered veteran 
service organizations that provide counseling to wounded service 
members. Therefore, I was extremely troubled to learn last year that 
several veteran service organizations that provide assistance to 
wounded service members, free of charge, including the Disabled 
American Veterans, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Paralyzed Veterans 
of America and the National Veterans Legal Services Project, were all 
having trouble accessing U.S. bases for the purpose of providing 
counseling to wounded service members.
  This bill would reiterate that the Armed Services are required by law 
to provide the space needed for wounded service members to receive 
counseling from trained advocates, especially during this time of war 
when so many are returning with serious wounds. Furthermore, it 
requires the Services to broadly disseminate information on the 
existence of the Wounded Warrior Resource Center, which, among other 
things, provides legal referrals.
  This bill should not be costly. The Army has requested about 20 
additional attorneys. The vast majority of the wounded service members 
will be medically discharged with retirement pay or other compensation 
and will not be in need of the assistance provided by this bill. 
Furthermore, the requirement that the Services retain wounded service 
members until they have been evaluated will sunset after five years, at 
which time it is my hope that the rate of deployments and subsequent 
injuries will be vastly lower.
  Nonetheless, I have provided an ample offset to cover the costs of 
the bill. According to the Office of Management and Budget, the Defense 
Department recovered over $600 million in overpayments to contractors 
over the last 4 years. The Department identified but did not recover an 
additional $273 million. The funds needed to provide for these wounded 
service members during the evaluation process would come from the 
recoupment of these overpayments.
  The National Guard Bureau has informed me that this legislation would 
go a long way to closing one of the remaining gaps in care for those 
transitioning from the Armed Forces to the VA. I am pleased that the 
legislation has been endorsed by the Disabled American Veterans, the 
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Military Officers Association 
of America, the National Guard Association of the U.S. and the enlisted 
National Guard Association of the U.S.
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