| It is no secret that there needs to quite a bit of reform | | | | service members who are disabled have been through |
| in the disability rating system for the Department of | | | | the DES pilot, and it is estimated that nearly 700 |
| Defense and Veterans' Affairs (VA). At present, there | | | | disabled service members a month will be able to go |
| is no transparency in the process. The Department of | | | | through the system when it reaches 22 military bases. |
| Defense (DoD) conducts their own disability | | | | While nearly everything about the pilot seems |
| evaluations, the VA conducts their own disability | | | | wonderful and successful, some are worried about |
| evaluations, separate systems cause confusion, and | | | | expanding the disability evaluation program too quickly |
| the process is extremely timely and divided. | | | | without hiring and training additional staff for advocacy |
| To help remedy this situation, there is a new pilot being | | | | counseling. The pilot will also create a very heavy |
| tested called the disability evaluation system (DES) that | | | | workload on Physical Evaluation Board Liaison Officers |
| consists of a single disability evaluation that is used to | | | | (PEBLOs) and case managers. It has been said that |
| diagnose, rate, and compensate disabled members by | | | | PEBLO is not an advocate of this pilot being pushed |
| both the DoD and the VA. The pilot was developed | | | | into the system so quickly, without the necessary new |
| jointly between the DoD and VA to help ill or injured | | | | hires and trainings needed, especially at the larger |
| service members obtain higher disability ratings, move | | | | military bases. |
| along quickly in the process, and start receiving their | | | | In the end, the consensus is that 'you have to start |
| payments faster. The pilot programis also aimed at | | | | somewhere'. Putting the new DES pilot into place and |
| providing more transparency in the process, which | | | | moving ill and injured service members through the |
| helps service members get taken care of more | | | | system at a quicker rate (with less work) will |
| quickly and leaves them feeling fairly treated. | | | | eventually show results and the initial reviews of the |
| The pilot is currently in five military bases and is set to | | | | pilot are encouraging. |
| open in 17 more bases by May 2009. Nearly 900 | | | | |