Rep. Barry Moore, colleagues demand committee briefing to address VA’s growing backlog

Washington, D.C.— Rep. Barry Moore, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity on the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs joined Reps. James Comer, Ranking Member of the Committee of Oversight and Reform, and Mike Bost, Ranking Member of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs in sending a letter to the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration requesting a committee level briefing to address the VA’s current backlog:

“The VA’s growing backlog is unacceptable and raises serious doubt about the government’s ability to care for our nation’s heroes, and it’s inexcusable that many of their lives have been put on hold as they wait to access their records in order to receive financial compensation or care,” said Rep. Moore. “I am proud to join my colleagues to demand transparency and answers so that our veterans receive the care they deserve.”

Background:

In March of 2021, Archivist of the U.S. David Ferriero reported that the Veterans Affairs (VA) current backlog of 482,000 requests comes from individual Veterans, which would take an estimated 18-24 months to resolve. Although the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) and VA have taken steps to address the backlog in VA requests, it is clear that the NPRC must take additional measures to prevent the backlog from increasing. This letter requests a committee level briefing, to better understand what steps NPRC is taking to get employees back to work, remediate the backlog, and ensure that all veterans have access to their records.

Read the full letter HERE.

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