RESUMO
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is issuing this interim final rule to amend its adjudication regulations regarding compensation for disabilities resulting from undiagnosed illnesses suffered by veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War. This amendment is necessary to extend the presumptive period for qualifying chronic disabilities resulting from undiagnosed illnesses that must become manifest to a compensable degree in order that entitlement for compensation be established. The intended effect of this amendment is to provide consistency in VA adjudication policy and preserve certain rights afforded to Persian Gulf War veterans and ensure fairness for current and future Persian Gulf War veterans.
Assuntos
Compensação e Reparação/legislação & jurisprudência , Pessoas com Deficiência/legislação & jurisprudência , Síndrome do Golfo Pérsico/economia , Saúde dos Veteranos/legislação & jurisprudência , Veteranos/legislação & jurisprudência , Guerra do Golfo , Humanos , Estados UnidosRESUMO
Measures of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression were used to predict Veterans Affairs outpatient treatment costs among Persian Gulf War veterans with medically unexplained physical symptoms. Patients (N = 206) enrolled in a Veterans Affairs primary care clinic for Persian Gulf War veterans completed study assessments at the initial appointment or at a proximal follow-up visit. Costs of care for mental health, medical, and pharmacy services for these veterans were computed for the subsequent 6-month period. Depression and PTSD symptoms explained a significant share of variance in costs of mental health care and pharmacy services, after adjustment for covariates. None of the mental status measures was significantly related to costs of medical care. Models using global measures of mental health status were as robust as models using disorder-specific measures of PTSD and depression in predicting mental health care and pharmacy costs. The implications of these findings for anticipating costs of care for Persian Gulf War veterans are discussed.
Assuntos
Transtorno Depressivo/economia , Hospitais de Veteranos/economia , Síndrome do Golfo Pérsico/economia , Transtornos Psicofisiológicos/economia , Transtornos de Estresse Pós-Traumáticos/economia , Veteranos/psicologia , Adulto , Feminino , Custos de Cuidados de Saúde , Hospitais de Veteranos/estatística & dados numéricos , Humanos , Masculino , Serviços de Saúde Mental/economia , Serviços de Saúde Mental/estatística & dados numéricos , Estudos Prospectivos , Estados Unidos , United States Department of Veterans Affairs , WashingtonRESUMO
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is amending its adjudication regulations regarding compensation for disabilities resulting from undiagnosed illnesses suffered by Persian Gulf War veterans. This amendment is necessary to extend the period within which such disabilities must become manifest to a compensable degree in order for entitlement for compensation to be established. The intended effect of this amendment is to ensure that veterans with compensable disabilities due to undiagnosed illnesses that may be related to active service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War may qualify for benefits.
Assuntos
Síndrome do Golfo Pérsico/economia , United States Department of Veterans Affairs , Ajuda a Veteranos de Guerra com Deficiência/legislação & jurisprudência , Avaliação da Deficiência , Humanos , Fatores de Tempo , Estados UnidosRESUMO
This document adopts as a final rule the provisions of an interim final rule which amended the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) adjudication regulations regarding compensation for disabilities resulting from undiagnosed illnesses suffered by Persian Gulf Veterans. This amendment is necessary to expand the period within which such disabilities must become manifest to a compensable degree in order for entitlement for compensation to be established. The intended effect of this amendment is to ensure that veterans with compensable disabilities due to undiagnosed illnesses that may be related to active service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War may qualify for benefits.
