If you follow interesting things related to VA disability that get announced in the Federal Register, you’ll see that periodically throughout the year the Advisory Committee on Disability Compensation (Veterans Benefits Administration) will meet or even advertise for people from the public who are interested in being members of the committee. Most of the meetings are open to the general public and you can listen in online. Since the proposed changes to how the VA rates things like tinnitus, sleep apnea and mental disorders have generated a lot of interest, I felt it might be of interest to people to check out at least some of the meeting. Here is the agenda for the upcoming 6/24/2024 meeting. The 6/25/2024 10:10am to 10:50am time slot might be particularly interesting in relation to the schedule for rating disabilities:
2022 Biennial Report Review &
Discussion on Issue 1: VASRD
Systematic Review and Update
Meeting information from the Federal Register:
The meeting sessions are open to the public.
The purpose of the Committee is to advise the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on the maintenance and periodic readjustment of the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities (VASRD). The Committee is to assemble and review relevant information relating to the nature and character of disabilities arising during service in the Armed Forces, provide an ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of the VASRD, and give advice on the most appropriate means of responding to the needs of Veterans relating to disability compensation in the future.
On Monday, June 24, 2024, through Wednesday, June 26, 2024, the agenda will include overview presentations, updates from various staffs on new and ongoing VA initiatives and priorities, and a review and discussions of the 2022 Biennial Report.
In addition, on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, the public comment period will be open for 30-minutes from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. EST. The public can also submit one-page summaries of their written statements for the Committee’s review. Public comments may be received no later than June 14, 2024, for inclusion in the official meeting record. Please send these comments to Jadine Piper of the Veterans Benefits Administration, Compensation Service, at [email protected].
Members of the public who wish to obtain a copy of the agenda should contact Jadine Piper at [email protected], and provide their name, professional affiliation, email address and phone number. The call-in number (United States, Chicago) for those who would like to attend the meeting is: 872-701-0185; phone conference ID: 170 422 972#. Members of the public may also access the meeting by pasting the following URL into a web browser: https://bit.ly/4aTik69.
It is a bit amusing that the public comment period that occurs during the meeting is only 30 minutes long.