Sen. Cramer: Massive decrease in VA’s benefits backlog in just one year

WASHINGTON, D.C. (KVRR) — Proposed changes to the Veterans Health Administration could affect veterans in North Dakota and the rest of the nation.

The VA recently announced a plan to reorganize the VHA over the next 18 to 24 months with a goal of reducing bureaucracy and delivering better outcomes for veterans.

Sen. Kevin Cramer is already commending VA Secretary Doug Collins about the massive decrease in VA’s benefits backlog in just one year.

“You could come into this mess right here with 264,000 backlogs and turn that into 105,000 in one year?” asked Cramer.

“When I first came in last year at 264,000 it was also over one million claims in the pipeline. That now numbers closer to 600,000 to 550,000,” VA Secretary Doug Collins responded.

Cramer is backing a bill to allow veterans living in rural areas to seek health care services at local Critical Access Hospitals or Rural Health Clinics if they don’t live near a VA hospital.

“We have all these communities far from a CBOC or a hospital,” added Cramer. “We would, as you know, in our legislation, like to utilize these critical access hospitals in a more efficient way that makes them better and provides better care to that local veteran.” 

Collins said he completely agreed, and VA Under Secretary of Health John Bartrum said he’s asked the team to look at what, if any, restrictions are there for them to do some of our leases with the Community Access Hospitals. Bartrum said he believes “it is a double win because it helps support the facility itself, and then it supports our veterans where they are and partnering with them to be part of our TPA network or our clinical care network.”