VA Backlog of new Claims Down, but Appeals worse

VA Backlog as of September 22, 2014
• 259,889 – The number of claims over 125 days being processed by VA. That’s less than half of what the numbers were one year ago. 
• 534,365 – The total inventory of backlog claims; three years ago, the backlog was on pace to break one million. 
• 5,344 – The number of cases going out-the-door each day. That ‘production’ number fluctuates 
from as low as 4,500 to as high as 7,000 cases per day. 

This report was from the VBA last week and only covers new claims that have never been decided. If you have ever filed an appeal, you are not in the above group. What it fails to mention is that by eliminating the backlog of new claims appeals are becoming more backlogged. In Baltimore it takes 617 to have a notice of disagreement worked on, which is only the first step in an appeal to the BVA.