The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) this week began processing claims under The Sergeant First Class Heath Robison Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act. The law, believed to be the largest health care and benefit expansion in VA history, compensates veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances during military service. Leading up to January 1, VA finalized decisions on PACT Act claims filed by veterans who self-identified as […]

Join the Blinded Veterans Association’s VetTech Team tomorrow (Wednesday, January 4), at 2:00pm Eastern Standard Time. We will welcome Michele Mendez, Director of Sales with OrCam. The OrCam team will explore how to identify products with the OrCam Read and MyEye Pro Attendees of the session will learn: How to recognize products with the OrCam Read. How to recognize products with the OrCam MyEye Pro. Helpful tips for best product recognition results. Don’t miss this […]

VA announced earlier this month an open enrollment period through December 31 for its new life insurance program taking effect January 1, 2023. The program is the first of its kind offered to veterans in more than 50 years, resulting in potential benefits to more veterans and their families than ever before.  Known as VALife, the program will provide up to $40,000 of whole life insurance for all veterans, age 80 or under, with service-connected […]

BVA’s New Jersey Regional Group was instrumental in calling attention to a payment provided to veterans with certain service-connected disabilities that had not seen an increase since 1971. The $62 per month entitlement increased to $150, effective January 1, once state lawmakers learned that the amount had not changed in 51 years although the value of $62 in 1971 is now closer to $400.  The topic of the entitlement came up as members of the […]

BVA agrees with Senator Casey’s findings in the Committee on Aging’s report calling for greater accountability and congressional oversight for federal agencies in their compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. As illustrated in the December 14, 2022, Washington Post article, veterans face access barriers to services and benefits from not only VA but also the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), and other federal agencies.  BVA National Headquarters […]

The results of a report on accessible technology, released December 14 by the Majority Staff of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging chaired by Senator Robert P. Casey (D-PA), formed the basis for separate articles published this week, one by The Washington Post and the other by The Hill Newspaper.  The Committee’s report takes VA to task for neglecting accessibility issues on its webpages that negatively affect veterans with sight loss, the articles say. […]

WMAR-TV News in Baltimore, Maryland, recently beamed a spotlight on Harvey Guary of BVA’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Group as he trains to instruct his fellow veterans with sight loss in self-defense and vision impairment safety. The training program became available to Harvey through STRIVE4You, an organization currently partnering with VA Medical Centers to teach veterans self-defense. The news segment, which aired on November 16, credits VA’s Visual Impairment Services Teams with motivating veterans like Harvey to […]

The future of one of Brighton, England’s most prominent landmarks, the former residential training and rehabilitation center of Blind Veterans UK (previously St Dunstan’s) in the small community of Ovingdean for 83 years, was to be decided on December 8. A developer has hoped to win permission for a revamp of the site into 64 homes with a movie theater, gym, and swimming pool to the tune of 36 million British pounds. Blind Veterans UK […]

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) last week announced open enrollment for its new life insurance program taking effect January 1, 2023. The program is the first of its kind offered to veterans in more than 50 years, resulting in potential benefits to more veterans and their families than ever before. Known as VALife, the program will provide up to $40,000 of whole life insurance for all veterans, age 80 or under, with service-connected disability […]

BVA recently supported and served in a vital advisory role for an accessibility study conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VAOIG). The results of the study, issued in a December 8 report, revealed that the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Compensation Service has not fully complied with Section 504 of The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 in accommodating veterans with visual impairments. The OIG concluded that the Compensation Service’s continued failure to comply […]