{"id":46165,"date":"2022-03-23T16:56:01","date_gmt":"2022-03-23T16:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T08:45:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T08:45:20","slug":"va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/","title":{"rendered":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2021\/09\/16\/veterans-disability-claims-backlog-expected-to-grow-in-coming-months\/\" target=\"_blank\">spike in backlog numbers<\/a> in recent years, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2021\/10\/13\/va-to-hire-2000-new-processors-to-help-with-looming-spike-in-claims-backlog\/#:~:text=Veterans-,VA%20to%20hire%202%2C000%20new%20processors%20to,looming%20spike%20in%20claims%20backlog&#038;text=Veterans%20Affairs%20leaders%20are%20bringing,highest%20level%20in%20seven%20years.\" target=\"_blank\">Veterans Affairs officials<\/a> have seen a steady decrease in the number of overdue disability claims in their benefits system over the last five months, officials said this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But they still expect it will take a while before the case numbers return to pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As of this week, the number of first-time claims that were considered backlogged \u2014 pending for more than four months \u2014 was about 244,000. That\u2019s down about 8% from October 2021, when the figure reached about 264,000.<\/p>\n\n\n<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link smg-interstitial-link--fallback wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2021\/10\/13\/va-to-hire-2000-new-processors-to-help-with-looming-spike-in-claims-backlog\/#:~:text=Veterans-,VA%20to%20hire%202%2C000%20new%20processors%20to,looming%20spike%20in%20claims%20backlog&#038;text=Veterans%20Affairs%20leaders%20are%20bringing,highest%20level%20in%20seven%20years.\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__fallback-link\">VA to hire 2,000 new processors to help with looming spike in claims backlog<\/a><\/aside>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Veterans who file a disability claim can receive payouts backdated to their date of initial filing, meaning that the slower processing times do not technically cost veterans any of their disability payouts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the backlog means more veterans are delayed in getting those payouts to start, in some cases leaving veterans\u2019 finances in disarray for months longer than they anticipated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The claims backlog became a national scandal in 2013 when the total reached more than 610,000 cases, as a flood of new claims related to new presumptive conditions linked to Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam overwhelmed the system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In ensuing years, department officials digitized their records and claims system and hired more staffers to bring down those totals. As of early 2020, the backlog figure hovered around 70,000 cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But delays in medical exams and issues with accessing military medical records related to the coronavirus pandemic led to a significant increase in processing time for new claims. When additional Agent Orange presumptives and new burn pit illness claims were added last year, the backlog total grew even higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Department staffers have processed more than 760,000 cases since Oct. 1, the largest workload in VA history at this point in the fiscal year.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2022\/03\/22\/plan-to-drop-thousands-of-caregivers-from-veterans-affairs-support-program-put-on-hold\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Presser1.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Plan to drop thousands of caregivers from Veterans Affairs program put on hold<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The move is a stunning turnaround for the department, which for months has maintained the moves are necessary.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA Secretary Denis McDonough called the figures encouraging but stopped short of celebrating the progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re a little ahead of targets, but it\u2019s hard to call any of this an improvement because we need to get this backlog down further,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last fall, McDonough announced plans to hire about 2,000 more processors to help with the backlog problem. On Tuesday, he said about three-quarters of that total have been hired already.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those workers have begun training that is expected to take several more months before they take on a full workload. VA officials have said it could take until 2024 before the backlog falls below 100,000 cases again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, that projection does not take into account any significant new increases in the claims filings. Several Republican lawmakers have voiced concerns about pending legislation to increase benefits for victims of military toxic exposure incidents, saying it could lead to a flood of new cases and even longer wait times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":47265,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":19,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,93,12,25,67,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3226],"class_list":["post-46165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress","category-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"NHV54XQAIJDWZCWQRMCV2I4IJE","arc_canonical_url":"\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels - Marine Corps Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Marine Corps Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 451,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Middle Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Pentagon &amp; Congress\",\n\t                \"Veterans\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels - Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/2022\\\/03\\\/23\\\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Veterans\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/veterans\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"veterans\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Marine Corps Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels - Marine Corps Times","description":"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels","og_description":"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/","og_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","article_published_time":"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00","author":"Leo Shane III","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Leo Shane III","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels","datePublished":"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/"},"wordCount":451,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Middle Column","News","Newsletters","Pentagon &amp; Congress","Veterans"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/","name":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels - Marine Corps Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2022-03-23T16:56:01+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T08:45:20+00:00","description":"The claims backlog is nearly three times higher than in early 2020.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2022\/03\/23\/va-claims-backlog-improves-but-still-sits-far-above-pre-pandemic-levels\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Veterans","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/","ad_zone":"veterans"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"VA claims backlog improves, but still sits far above pre-pandemic levels"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","name":"Marine Corps Times","description":"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization","name":"Marine Corps Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","caption":"Marine Corps Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP17147488608597.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46165"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87788,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46165\/revisions\/87788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46165"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=46165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}