A Warren County veteran has waited more than a thousand days with no further answer, he says, regarding an appeal claim he filed with the Department of Veterans Affairs tied to injuries sustained during training while serving in the United States Marine Corps.
“That was for orthopedic and PTSD,” said Joshua Kaiman. “Basically, I fell from a training tower at Quantico. This was in 1982. And as a result of that, I've had hip and knee problems.”
Kaiman said since he filed in February 2021 the status hasn’t changed on his appeal and he has no better idea where he stands compared to one year ago. Kaiman said he recognizes there are thousands of other claimants, but the VA’s own online portal for veterans to check their status doesn’t provide helpful information that can pinpoint a timeline.
“I’m at the most frustrating part,” Kaiman said. “The VA refuses to give me my place in line. You know, it can't tell me how many other people are in front of me. I've had U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown. Congressman Greg Landsman also contacted the VA and they can't get an answer either.”
WCPO reached out to Democrat Rep. Greg Landsman regarding the veteran’s frustrations. He said hearing that veterans are frustrated when interacting with an agency designed to serve them makes him angry.
“It's beyond frustration that anyone is treated that way — certainly, our veterans,” Landsman said.
He, like the majority of members of Congress, has people in his office who help veterans navigate the system, educating them on the policies and procedures of the VA. Landsman said changes to better serve veterans need to be implemented.
”It is something that many of us have pushed on, we're going to continue to push on as a member of the Veterans Committee,” Landsman said. ”It's something that I come back to with the VA on a regular basis.”
WCPO reached out to the Department of Veterans Affairs regarding Kaiman’s claim. The VA responded with the following statement:
“Mr. Kaiman’s 2021 appeal for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, right knee fracture, and right hip is currently pending with The Board of Veterans’ Appeals, awaiting a virtual hearing. The Board received the Veteran’s AMA appeal on February 11, 2021. The Board, as required by law, will consider the appeal according to its place on the docket (when it was initially filed) with The Board. The Board is unable to provide an exact queue position or date when an appeal will be addressed.”
Republican Rep. Brad Wenstrup, a veteran himself, says the current VA system is working much better than it did years ago, but change is still needed.
“It would be nice if people could get a status report on their claim giving them timeframes — you’re pending, but it will be six months or it's awaiting a final review right now. Something like that so at least you know someone knows you're out there,” Wenstrup said.
WCPO asked the VA how many appeal judges are serving and ruling on the backlogged cases. The VA responded with the following statement:
“President Biden appointed 50 Veterans Law Judges to increase the overall number of VLJs to 134 — a 33% net increase at VA. This was the largest expansion of judges in the Board’s 90-year history and is especially significant because Board decisions are typically decided by a single judge rather than a panel. Each of the VLJs is assigned a team of decision-drafting attorneys who review claims files and draft decisions that are then reviewed and adjudicated by the assigned VLJ. During Fiscal Year 2023 (October 2022 to September 2023), the Board issued 103,245 appeals decisions, a record number since the Board’s creation in 1933.”
There are three ways a veteran can file their appeal review: directly, through evidence submission or through a hearing. Joshua Kaiman chose a hearing, which the VA says does have the longest wait time. Right now, according to the VA, the average wait time for a hearing is 927 days, nearly three months over their own target timeline.
“One person from the VA Intake Center in Janesville, Wisconsin told me this could be another seven years,” Kaiman said. “I don't even know if I'll be alive in seven years.”
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