Contrary to a law passed in 1996, the VA has been withholding disability and pension checks issued during the month of a veteran’s death even as the law stated these checks where to be treated "as being payable to a surviving spouse."
AP via StarTribune.com: VA to repay up to millions in wrongfully denied benefits to surviving spouses of war veterans
WASHINGTON - Surviving spouses of war veterans have been wrongfully denied up to millions of dollars in government benefits over the past 12 years due to computer glitches that often resulted in money being seized from the elderly survivors' bank accounts.
The Veterans Affairs Department said Saturday it wasn't fully aware of the problem. It pledged to work quickly to give back the pension and disability checks — ranging from $100 to more than $2,500 — that hundreds of thousands of widows or widowers should have received during the month of their spouse's death.
The department indicated in an "action plan" provided to The Associated Press that up to millions of dollars in back payments could be given to the surviving spouses sometime after next February, once it can identify them.
To expedite matters, the VA said those who believe they were wrongfully denied payments can call its help line at 1-800-827-1000. Read On...
CQ Politics: VA Slammed for Recovering Benefits From Widows
Sen. Daniel K. Akaka , D-Hawaii, the chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, confronted the department last week about the problem, which has resulted in hundreds of thousands of senior citizens losing pension and disability money received during the month of their spouse’s death.
"This flawed practice has caused serious hardship for many widows," Akaka said. "I suspect that the improper procedures have harmed thousands of widows and widowers over the last 12 years."
Congress granted veterans’ spouses the right to keep their partner’s final month of benefits when it passed the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996. The law instructed the department to treat disability and pension checks issued during the month of a veteran’s death "as being payable to a surviving spouse."
But the department never adjusted its systems to follow the law. As a result, the department has routinely either refused to send checks or taken active measures to retrieve money already sent, including collection actions. Read on...