[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 78 (Wednesday, June 5, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               VA BACKLOG

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                        HON. DAVID N. CICILLINE

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 5, 2013

  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, America's veterans deserve better.
  Right now there are more than 865,000 claims pending before the 
Veterans Administration, and, of these, more than 575,000 have remained 
unresolved for 125 days or more.
  It is completely unacceptable that the brave men and women who have 
served our nation in uniform should have to wait months, or even years, 
before they receive the benefits they have earned.
  That's why I'm proud to join my colleagues in supporting a package of 
ten bills that would help clear the existing backlog and fix the flaws 
in the current system.
  The VA Claims, Operations and Records Efficiency Act, H.R. 1729, 
would help to reduce the amount of time spent waiting for the 
Department of Defense to provide information in a more timely manner.
  The Claims Adjudication Centers of Excellence, H.R. 2088, would 
establish a pilot program to help expedite the adjudication of the most 
difficult medical conditions afflicting American veterans.
  There are eight other bills that would help remedy a range of 
problems and enable policymakers to get more definitive information to 
solve this problem. I encourage my colleagues to join us in this 
important effort.

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