The Contracting Gold Mine That Hurts Veterans

For years, lawmakers and government watchdogs have raised urgent concerns over the quality and oversight of private Compensation and Pension exams, in which medical staff pore over military health records and conduct tests to understand whether certain injuries are connected to time in the ranks. Roughly 1.4 million C&P exams occur every year, each one potentially vital to the future of a veteran’s claim. A good examiner will provide a patient with adequate medical documentation to win a case. A bad one can lead a veteran to be improperly denied access to the department’s generous care and benefits. Watchdog warnings have become more salient since the 2022 passage of the PACT Act, which opened the VA to millions more veterans sickened by exposures to Agent Orange, burn pits, and other chemicals while in service. 

Amid a corresponding surge in claims, the VA is moving relatively quickly, avoiding a major backlog thanks largely to its private army of examiners. But while efficiency is up, quality is down. “Crap at the speed of light is still crap,” mused Rick Rousseau, an Army JAG turned veterans’ disability lawyer. “It’s pitiful,” added another attorney, Wes McCauley. “The quality of exams is so poor these days, and the taxpayer is paying for all of them.”

 In a new investigation for The American Prospect, VHPI Policy Fellow Jasper Craven digs into the outsourcing of these exams, giving voice to cheated veterans and tracking the major contractors profiting off their pain. Read his entire piece here.