Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel Holds Hearing on Compensation for Disabled Veterans

COLLINS:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Secretary Abell, without meaning to put you further on the spot, I'm going to follow-up on what Senator Nelson just asked you about because I was going to give exactly the same scenario only I was going to use two soldiers who had entered the service at the same time.

ABELL:

You can be bipartisan...

COLLINS:

That's right. But, it is troubling that if you had two soldiers who entered the service at the same time, went through the same training, same deployment, were injured in the same way and one solider retires and goes—one soldier stays in the military for a career and the other leaves and goes into the private sector, that they're treated different when it comes to retirement. And I guess my—and that troubles me as a matter of fairness, but I'd like to ask you a question about it from a different perspective. And that is is the current ban on concurrent—on full concurrent receipt a disincentive for members of our armed forces to remain in the military if they are injured early in their careers, but not injured to the point where they would have to have a medical discharge?

ABELL:

Ma'am, we've looked at this a number of different of ways and I can find no evidence that an injury would make—or the future compensation for an injury would influence the stay or go decision of a soldier or sailor or airmen or marine. In fact, I don't know whether you saw it this morning, three marine and two soldiers who had been injured in Iraq were interviewed by the press at Lawstoll (ph) Army Hospital.

One of the questions they asked them was are you going to stay in or get out? One Army sergeant who had served twelve years said that he was going to get out, but he quickly said, my wife and I made that decision before I was ever deployed.

So, I'm going to get out. Both of the other two hoped that they would be allowed to stay in. That they wanted to serve even though they had injuries, both of which were potentially disabling. One had severe hand injury and the other had a severe foot injury. But, they recognize that—they said they recognized that they not be able to perform the same duties, but they both wanted to serve, all three examples of great young Americans.

But, the point is that that's three anecdotes that reflect what I think we found in our review is in that most of these folks want to stay as long as they can. And their injury, notwithstanding they stay, they're not looking for future compensation for those at the time they make those decisions.

COLLINS:

As you know and as Secretary Cooper knows, concurrent receipt is a top priority of our veterans' services organizations. In fact, every year when our VFW and our American Legion and our Disabled Vets organizations come to Washington that's always on the top of their list. Have you opened a dialogue with the advocacy groups for veterans to see if there is another approach to this issue or a different way to work it that would satisfy their concerns for fairness and yet address your understandable concerns about the impact on the budget?

ABELL:

I think it's fair to say that over the years we've tried to engage in that dialogue and find some sort of middle ground on which we could both agree and the situation is that we've agreed to disagree I think.

COLLINS:

Secretary Cooper, any better luck on the VA side?

COOPER:

No.

COLLINS:

OK. Well, thought I'd ask.

Secretary Cooper, do you believe that the eligible veterans are aware of the new compensation that we authorized last year?

COOPER:

I believe the veterans' services organizations have done an awful lot in trying to make them aware. It is occasionally difficult to figure out across the total population, all the benefits of which they might be aware. And, so, I'd be very weary of judging that. But, I will say I think the veterans' service organizations have done a tremendous job in trying to get that information out.

COLLINS:

Is the VA embarking upon any sort of campaign to try to reach veterans who might be eligible?

COOPER:

We will be doing that as soon as we and DOD decide on exactly what the process is. We have informed our regional offices so they are aware and ready for when something happens. But, right now we've made them aware of exactly what the rules are right now. That people are waiting to see what the application process is. I have not noted specifically any increase in claims coming to us because of the possibility of the CRCS.

COLLINS:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And, let me take the opportunity to thank you for your leadership in this area, for holding this hearing. And, since I am going to leave to catch a plane to Maine, I would ask unanimous consent that a statement that I had be put in the record.