Veterans Wait for Their Education Benefits
Thousands of veterans who risked their lives battling insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan are still waiting on the Department of Veterans Affairs to deliver the Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits they were promised, the Associated Press reports.
Under the new GI Bill—the most significant expansion of education benefits since the original 1944 bill—eligible students receive funding for college tuition, housing, and textbooks. But the VA has been slow to distribute this money, leaving veterans like 27-year-old father and Purple Heart recipient Brandon Thomas scrambling to borrow from family members or take out loans to pay their bills.
The VA only began making payments in August, and some 70,000 eligible veterans who filed claims for this school year are still waiting for their first checks. More than 275,000 claims for benefits have been filed so far, the VA says.
Military men and women have been trained to be patient, says Thomas, because patience often means success on the battlefield. But, he says, "Patience only goes so long."
Read more about this issue here.
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Reader Comments
Hi from untrodden consociate
I enjoyed reading your blog, you have a wonderful delivery style! I have forwarded a link to my bro, and will surely be returning for more reading.
Hi each
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AGREE
This is absolutely annoying, the VA has no clue what we service members have gone through and when we have the chance to further our education they take there sweet time. I have been waiting since June for this post 9/11 gi bill paper work to be filed; it's now November and still no word. Plus they have lost my paperwork twice, and have asked me to re-submit.This needs to be further investigated and reveled to the American people what the VA is doing to their service members.
PO2 David Hillman
US NAVY
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