Thousands of Disabled Veterans Eligible For Better Care

(This article/video appeared on the 9news web site 2011-08-11). Please let any disabled vet you know about this information!  Here is the link to the video which most likely only be available for a short time:

http://www.9news.com/news/article/212912/339/Thousands-of-veterans-eligible-for-better-care-

DENVER - Nearly 75,000 veterans across the U.S. - 1,500 in Colorado alone - are eligible to receive a thorough review of their disability ratings. The review could make the difference between a one-time severance check and a lifetime of benefits for the veterans involved.

The only problem, as Michael LoGrande sees it, is that so far, only a small fraction of those eligible have bothered to look into it.The president of the Physical Disability Board of Review came to Colorado from Washington D.C. in order to try to get the word out.

"The government is simply trying to make sure that it got it right," LoGrande said on Wednesday.

The PDBR was created in 2008 by Congress and started reviewing cases in 2009. To date, less than 5 percent of those eligible have asked for a review.

To be eligible, a veteran, according to the board's policy, "must have been medically separated between Sept. 11, 2001, and Dec. 31, 2009, with a combined disability rating of 20 percent or less, and not have been found eligible for retirement.

"Since the board started reviewing cases, it has upgraded the ratings for veterans more than 50 percent of the time. Once veterans are deemed to be 30 percent or more disabled, they are eligible to receive monthly payments as well as medical insurance. The reviews came about, according to LoGrande, because of a feeling that the various military branches had been unable to come up with a uniform standard for disability ratings.

It can take upwards of a year to go through the review process, but LoGrande believes the process to be not only worth it but incredibly fair as well.

For more information on the PDBR head to:
http://www.health.mil/About_MHS/Organizations/MHS_Offices_and_Programs/PDBR.aspx