Durbin Calls on VA Secretary to Meet With Chicago Vetrans Regarding Disparity in Disability Benifits
DURBIN CALLS ON VA SECRETARY TO MEET WITH CHICAGO VETERANS REGARDING DISPARITY IN DISABILITY BENEFITS
Friday, December 3, 2004
[CHICAGO, IL] -- U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), today urged U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi to come to Chicago to meet with veterans organizations regarding alarming disparities in veterans benefits. He has also asked Principi to brief members of the Illinois Congressional as early as next week on the same subject.
According to a news report in the Chicago Sun-Times, disabled Illinois veterans receive far lower disability benefits than veterans from most other states. The Sun-Times cited Veterans Affairs data showing that Illinois veterans receive about $6,802 in benefits-making our state 50th in the nation and significantly lower than veterans in other parts of the U.S.
In the letter which Durbin co-authored with Congressmen Lane Evans and Luis Gutierrez, both of whom are members of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, he wrote: "Since veterans benefits should be uniformly administered across the nation, this finding is deeply troubling to every Illinoisan, veteran and non-veteran. We request that you meet with us and other members of the Illinois Congressional delegation early next week when Congress reconvenes to discuss this distressing situation. Following that meeting, we urge that you come to Chicago as soon as you possibly can to meet with veterans organizations and explain this disparity. . . Our veterans all served under the same red, white and blue standard and their disability claims should be
measured by a single, fair standard as well."
The Sun-Times article notes that veterans in New Mexico, Maine, and Arkansas receive, on average, $3,000 to $4,000 more than Illinois veterans. Even veterans just across the state line in Wisconsin receive nearly $1,000 more per year than their Illinois counterparts. Durbin said that he stands ready to work with the Bush Administration and other members of Congress to make whatever changes are necessary to ensure that veterans in Illinois and other states can expect equal consideration.
"It is unacceptable that disabled veterans in Illinois rank at the bottom of the list when it comes to disability pay. We owe our disabled veterans more than speeches, parades and monuments. They risked their lives for America; they will carry their wounds and scars for a lifetime," said Durbin. "We are calling on Secretary Principi to come to Chicago and meet with the disabled vets and explain the delays, the red tape and the stark disparities in the help they are given by our government."