VCC Magazine Fall 2019

V irginia C apitol C onnections , F all 2019 24 Virginia is home to over 700,000 military veterans. In fact, 1 in every 12Virginian wore the uniform of our country. Making sure these veterans are aware of and have access to the benefits they earned through their service is our goal at theVirginia Department of Veterans Services (DVS). I am a veteran myself, having served twenty years on active duty in the U.S. Air Force. I am also the spouse of a veteran. I began my career working with the maintenance teams for F-16 and F-117 fighter aircraft and later served with the Air Force Recruiting Service. This has given me a strong personal commitment to ensure that veterans are aware of their veterans benefits when they leave active duty. To help connect transitioning service members, veterans, and families to the benefits they have earned, DVS operates 34 state veterans offices across the Commonwealth. Services are provided at no cost. Most of theVeterans Service Representatives (VSRs) who work at these offices are also veterans or veterans’ spouses. Each one of us cares about our fellow veterans and strives to help them understand their benefits. We are here to assist them in tackling complex federal laws and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) regulations. At DVS, our VSRs receive ongoing training on the benefits claims process, allowing them to make the path to earning potential benefits much smoother. While this may mean providing information on educational, medical, and financial opportunities, our main job is helping veterans file claims and receive compensation for their service-connected disabilities and pensions.We act as the facilitator to develop and submit their claims to the VA for adjudication. In state fiscal year 2019, our DVS Benefits Program had more than 224,000 contacts with Virginia veterans and/or family members. This number shows the need is there! What is more astounding is that DVS submitted nearly 19,000 individual claims to the VA during that same period. We are especially proud of achieving an 86% approval rate on our claims, resulting in almost $200 million in federal veterans benefits paid directly to our veterans, which also helps the Virginia economy. The VA may deny a claim for various reasons. When this happens, DVS works with veterans to appeal their claim. Our team of seven attorneys and appeal specialists represent veterans to appeal the denied claim to the VA’s Board of Veterans Appeals. Our team has a very impressive track record—more than 70% of the claims we appeal are granted outright or remanded back to theVA for additional work, which usually results in the approval of the claim. These services, and, indeed, for all our services, are provided free of charge to any Virginia veteran or family member. With such a large population of service members, veterans, and family members, it is important to have a DVS office within easy driving distance throughout the Commonwealth. Additional funding approved by Governor Ralph Northam and the Virginia General Assembly allowed us to open new state veterans offices in August on Fort Belvoir in Fairfax County and near Naval Air Station Oceana in the City of Virginia Beach. These two offices join other newoffices opened in the past five years in areas with high veteran populations, such as in Loudoun and Prince William counties in NorthernVirginia;Williamsburg and Chesapeake in Hampton Roads; and in Fredericksburg and Petersburg. A major push for DVS has been to locate state veterans offices on, in, or near major military installations. The new Fort Belvoir and Virginia Beach offices join other recently-opened offices on Fort Lee and in the Pentagon. We also operate offices in the Portsmouth Naval Hospital and on Marine Corps Base Quantico. Our VSRs work one-on-one with each veteran and family member. It is important to give each client the time and consideration he or she needs and deserves. We want to make their wait time as short as possible. No matter where aVirginia veteran lives—from the Southwest to Southside, from the Eastern Shore to the Shenandoah Valley, from NorthernVirginia to Hampton Roads—there is a DVS office nearby. We are proud of Virginia’s recognition as the #1 state for veterans in America. At DVS, our goal is to sustain our Number 1 status by providing the best service possible every day. DonnaWilliams is Director of Benefits for the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (DVS) She may be reached at donna.williams@dvs. virginia.gov . For more information on DVS, including a directory of state veterans offices, visit www.dvs.virginia.gov . State Offices Help Veterans and Families By Donna Williams All DVS statewide benefits team members. V