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Washington, DC -- Congressman John Sarbanes introduced the Benefit Rating Acceleration for Veterans Entitlement (BRAVE) Act, which will help disabled Veterans cut through the red tape and access federal benefits.
Richard Vander Vlis, a Veteran of the first Gulf War and a resident of Maryland’s Third Congressional District, had been certified 100 percent disabled by the Veterans Administration but had been unable to receive the same certification from the Social Security Administration. Because the Social Security Administration failed to process Vander Vlis’s claim, he was incapable of receiving Social Security Disability benefits for an injury that rendered him unable to work.
Vander Vlis approached Congressman Sarbanes’ staff for assistance and, in addition to finally receiving his own Social Security Disability benefits, inspired the Congressman to introduce the BRAVE Act on behalf of other disabled veterans.
“The BRAVE Act makes a common sense change to a process that is burdensome on our disabled veterans,” said Congressman John Sarbanes. “It’s not right to force a veteran to defend their disability rating twice, once is more than enough.”
The BRAVE Act will allow a veteran who receives a 100 percent disability rating from the VA – if his or her disability resulted in a total impairment of earning capacity – to receive Social Security benefits quicker than the pro-longed wait period currently in place.
The BRAVE Act was introduced with 37 original co-sponsors and significant bi-partisan support. Maryland co-sponsors include Congressmen Cummings, Ruppersberger and Van Hollen.
Veteran Service Organizations representing Veterans across the country have endorsed the BRAVE Act, including the American Legion and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
To learn more about the Third Congressional District and to sign up for Congressman John Sarbanes’ e-newsletter visit www.sarbanes.house.gov
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