For Your Benefit
For and about Hawaii's militaryBy Gregg K. Kakesako
Sunday, January 6, 2002
See also: In The Military
Anthrax scare delays
mail to Washington
VA officesQuestion: I have written several letters to the Department of Veteran Affairs in Washington, D.C., and have not received a reply. What is the problem?
Answer: Anthrax. Veterans who sent applications or letters to Department of Veterans Affairs offices in Washington, D.C., since Oct. 12 should be aware that mail is just now being delivered to VA because of U.S. Postal Service concerns about anthrax. VA offices plan to expedite the processing of requests and responses to letters. VA's Washington offices receive mail through the Brentwood postal facility, which closed Oct. 22. Incoming mail was rerouted to a facility in Ohio for treatment, and that mail began reaching VA recently.
Veterans could be affected by service disruption in several areas. Until the recent resumption of delivery, only 13 percent of normal mail reached the office that handles claims from veterans in metropolitan Washington for compensation and pension. About 2 percent arrived at offices handling all applications for veterans' burial markers and Presidential Memorial Certificates. The memorial programs service normally receives 800 to 900 applications for headstones and markers each business day, so the backlog of mail will mean several extra weeks before veterans' graves are marked.
Veterans with questions about a headstone or marker application sent before Oct. 12 should call 1-800-697-6947 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (Eastern time) Monday through Friday. Veterans who have questions about an application for disability compensation or pension mailed to the Washington regional benefits office should call 1-800-827-1000.
Q: Does the VA sell repossessed homes?
A: Yes. These home are available to both veterans and non-veterans. Contact local real estate agents for available listings or visit VA's home loan guaranty Web site for listings and additional information at www.homeloans.va.gov/pmoffice.htm. You can also call the Spark M. Matsunaga VA Medical and Regional Office Center at 433-1000 and contact the loan guaranty section for more information.
If you have questions about your benefits as a veteran,
call Fred Ballard at the Veterans Affairs at 433-0049
or the Star-Bulletin at 529-4747.Gregg K. Kakesako can be reached by phone at 294-4075
or by e-mail at gkakesako@starbulletin.com.
