On Monday, US Congressman David Rouzer (NC-7) sent a letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald demanding answers after the Department of Veterans Affairs mistakenly declared two veterans from North Carolina “deceased” resulting in the sudden loss of their benefits.
Both veterans were from Rouzer’s 7th Congressional District, which includes Johnston and 11 other counties. The names and locations of the veterans mistakenly declared deceased were not released by the congressman’s office.
“The 7th district of North Carolina is fortunate to have 60,000 plus veterans call it ‘home.’ As a congressional office helping our veterans through casework assistance, I would like to know the protocols the VA has in place to ensure our veterans’ benefits are not mistakenly terminated in the future,” Rouzer asked in his letter. “I look forward to hearing back from the VA to help gain a better understand of why this situation occurred and the steps the Department are taking to prevent a similar mistake from happening again.”
In the letter, Congressman Rouzer asks the following questions:
- What documentation is required from the Social Security Administration for the DoD to determine the validity of a death notification?
- What policies does the VA have in place to ensure that a veteran’s benefits are not lost immediately due to a clerical error?
- What is the Veterans Administration doing to ensure that this error does not continue to occur?
- If there is policy in place, how are you assuring compliance within the VA Regional Offices?
To read the letter, please click here.
