Summary: Veterans often wait months for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to decide their compensation and pension claims. In addition, the 40,000 veterans who appeal VA's decisions each year wait much longer---more than two years for a final decision, according to agency officials. GAO found that VA's appeals process is increasingly bogged down, and the outlook for the future is not bright. Legislation and court ruling expanded veterans' rights but also expanded VA's adjudication responsibilities. VA is having difficulty integrating these responsibilities into its already complex and unwieldy adjudication process. Since 1991, the number of appeals awaiting Board action has risen by 175 percent and the average processing time has increased by more than 50 percent. Studies by GAO, VA, and others have recommended the need for autonomous organizations in VA to work together to identify and resolve problems. Yet GAO found that problems continue to go unidentified and unresolved. Unless VA clearly defines its adjudication responsibilities, it will be unable to determine whether it has the resources to meet those responsibilities and whether new solutions may be needed, including laws amending VA's responsibilities or reconfiguring the agency.
