VA hiring more personnel to cut Florida guardianship backlogs

VA hiring more personnel to cut Florida guardianship backlogs

By William R. Levesque, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Thursday, January 19, 2012

The Department of Veterans Affairs is hiring 10 additional case managers in Florida to eliminate a backlog in a program providing financial guardians for veterans.

VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said in a Jan. 12 letter to U.S. Rep. Richard Nugent, R-Brooksville, that about 1,100 Florida veterans await initial appointments necessary to appoint a guardian and the average wait time is 75 days.

Nugent had complained to Shinseki in December after hearing from constituents facing long delays in getting guardians appointed. Nugent said some of the veterans his office worked with had waited more than 100 days for an appointment.

When his staff intervenes, the appointments are promptly scheduled by the VA, Nugent said.

"But for the untold numbers of veterans and families who didn't think to call their member of Congress, the situation was totally unacceptable," Nugent said in a statement.
read more here