WASHINGTON \u2014 Months after Veterans Affairs officials dropped plans for a controversial benefits cut, the families of those who would have been affected still fear they could lose thousands in monthly payouts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Confusion over the short-lived plan this week forced department leaders to issue a letter to veterans groups clarifying they will not change the Individual Unemployability program in fiscal 2018, and are looking for other cost-saving solutions in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe department does not support a termination of [the program],\u201d VA Secretary David Shulkin wrote in a letter to veterans groups Thursday. \u201cWe are committed to finding ways that empower disabled veterans through vocational rehabilitation and employment opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Advocates praised the move, noting they have been inundated with questions about the potential cut, even months after Shulkin said the department was abandoning the proposal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At issue is a provision in the federal budget plan unveiled by the White House last spring. Included in plans for a $186.5 billion VA budget for fiscal 2018 was a provision to dramatically change eligibility rules for the IU program, which awards payouts at the 100-percent disabled rate to veterans who cannot find work due to service-connected injuries, even if their actual rating decision is less than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The program is essentially an unemployment benefit for veterans not officially labeled as unable to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Administration officials had considered stopping those payouts once veterans become eligible for Social Security retirement benefits, arguing that retirement-age individuals should no longer qualify for unemployment payouts. Veterans ineligible for Social Security would be exempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The move would have saved $3.2 billion next year alone. But it also would have taken away thousands of dollars annually from up to 210,000 veterans over the age of 60, a move which veterans groups decried as devastating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After a public outcry, Shulkin publicly dropped the idea in June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe budget is a process, and it became clear this [plan] would hurt some veterans,\u201d he told lawmakers during a Senate hearing. \u201cI\u2019m not going to support policies that hurt veterans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But concerns about a potential cut have lingered. Leaders from veterans groups said they have received numerous letters and calls in recent months from veterans who still believe the cuts are under consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shulkin\u2019s latest letter is designed to end that speculation. In it, he promises to continue working with veterans groups on future changes to the program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Administration officials have said they want to re-examine the IU program in the future but don\u2019t want that debate to take away from other budget priorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The federal government is currently operating under a three-month extension of the fiscal 2017 budget. Congress must find a long-term solution or a short-term fix for the funding fight by mid-December, or trigger a partial government shutdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n