Gulf War Illness: Improvements Needed for VA to Better Understand, Process, and Communicate Decisions on Claims
Abstract
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) completed processing about 11,400 Gulf War Illness (GWI) claims in fiscal year 2015, which was more than double the 4,800 claims processed in fiscal year 2010. GWI is a collective term for certain medical conditions among veterans who have served in Southwest Asia since 1990. Symptoms of GWI can include joint pain, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, and neurological problems. On average, GWI claims have twice as many medical issues per claim as other disability claims, and take 4 months longer to complete. During fiscal years 2010 through 2015, the most recent data available at the time of our review, approval rates for GWI claims were about three times lower than for all other claimed disabilities. Several factors may contribute to lower approval rates, including thataccording to VAGWI claims are not always well understood by VA staff and veterans sometimes file for benefits without medical records to adequately support their claim.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1152104
Entities
People
- Daniel Bertoni
- John Lack
- Kaitlan M Doying
- Martin E. Scire
- Melissa Emrey-arras
- Nora Boretti
- Nyree M Ryder Tee
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office