Claims Processing Act
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to plan and implement certain technological improvements to its systems, particularly in relation to the processing of claims and benefits.
First, the bill requires the VA to submit to Congress its plan to make available an automation tool for processing claims. Such tool must automate the retrieval of the records of the veteran, compile evidence relevant to the determination of the claim, provide automated decision support relevant to the determination, automate information sharing between federal agencies, and assist in generating correspondence regarding the claim.
Within one year of submitting this plan, the VA must ensure that each VA program office responsible for processing claims for pension or survivor benefits has an automation tool that at least assists in generating correspondence regarding the claim.
The VA must also implement policies, processes, and technological capabilities to ensure that a claims processor is made aware of and assigned to address situations when (1) there is an increase in the amount of dependency compensation paid to a beneficiary for a child, and (2) any educational assistance is paid to the child of a veteran.
Finally, the VA must submit a plan to Congress to ensure documents in the Veterans Benefits Management System are correctly labeled when uploaded.
