Ohio Department Of Veterans
Services
April 14, 2010
County Veterans
Service Offices
County Veterans Service
Offices / Commission
• Mission – To provide assistance to veterans and
their family members.
• Guidelines for assistance and operations are
defined by each Veterans Service Commission
(VSC) within the provisions of the ORC 5901.
• Policy and procedures for daily operations are
determined by the VSC.
County Veterans Service
Offices / Commission
• Generally Five Member VSC.
• Members are Selected from Local Veteran
Organization’s Recommendations.
• American Legion, AMVETS, Veterans of Foreign
Wars, Disabled American Veterans, and one at
large veterans organization.
• Judge Appoints each VSC for a Five Year Term.
County Veterans Service
Offices / Commission
• Locations – At least one office in all 88 Ohio
Counties.
• Funding – Based on .5 of a mill per dollar on the
assessed value of the property of the county.
– Available funds significantly vary by county (Cuyahoga
County $16 Million Vs Vinton County $76,000 in 2009)
• Local staff size and level of support also vary
significantly.
County Veterans Service
Offices
• Number 1 Resource for Local Veterans Needs
• VA Disability Claims and Pensions.
– Appeal VA Claims.
– Claims Follow-up
• Application for Federal Veterans Benefits
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Medical Care
Burial Benefits
Survivor Benefits
Home Loan Guaranty
Education Benefits - Montgomery GI Bill
County Veterans Service
Offices
• Transportation to VA Medical Appointments
• Financial Assistance Program
• Linkage to State Veterans Benefits
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Employment Training
Ohio War Orphans Scholarship
KIA Service Member Spouse Tuition Waiver
Hunting / Fishing / Boating License
Special License Plates
High School Diploma Program
County Veterans Service
Offices
• Veterans Referral Support
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Ohio Cares (Mental Health)
Vet Centers (Mental Health)
Inter Service Family Support
Educational Assistance
Employment (Local and Ohio Job Family Services)
Medical Assistance
Homeless Programs
Local Veterans Organizations
Ohio Veterans Home
County Veterans Service
Offices
• Military Discharge Appeals
• Request for Military Records.
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National Archives
Ohio Department of Veterans Services.
Federal Department of Veterans Affairs
Ohio National Guard Library
Various Other Military Records Depositories
• Military Awards
Basic Statistics &
Measures
Ohio Currently has the 6th Largest Veterans Population in the Nation.
Rate of Increase
06 – 07 405 Million
07 – 08 533 Million
08 – 09 874 Million
What Makes Up The 4.3 Billion
How Does Ohio Stack Up – (2009)
Total VA Expenditure Per Veteran
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
West Virginia$9,375
South Dakota
Arkansas
Oklahoma
New Mexico
Mississippi
Nebraska
Maine
Alabama
Kentucky
11. Ohio
Mid West
$5,995
$5,835
$5,672
$5,436
$5,272
$5,184
$4,940
$4,809
$4,806
$4,794
32.
44.
47.
50.
Wisconsin
Illinois
Indiana
Michigan
Large States
40. Pennsylvania
30. California
23. New York
21. Florida
12. Texas
Rate of Increase
07 – 08 151 Million
08 – 09 251 Million
Rate of Increase
06 – 07 65 Million
07 – 08 144 Million
08 – 09 170 Million
How Does Ohio Stack Up?
Pension
Vets Per Pension Claim
2006
66.88
2007
63.18
2008
59.71
2009
58.49
National Rank
19th
17th
11th
10th
Dollars Per Pension Claim
2006
$8,670
2007
$9,186
2008
$9,635
2009
$10,461
National Rank
9th
11th
6th
6th
How Does Ohio Stack Up?
Compensation
Vets Per Compensation Claim
2006
11.83
2007
10.95
2008
10.42
2009
9.88
National Rank
46th
45th
46th
46th
Dollars Per Compensation Claim
2006
$8,090
2007
$8,547
2008
$9,047
2009
$9,830
National Rank
49th
49th
48th
45th
Local Economic
Stimulus
• Compensation and Pension $1.3 Billion
– Tax Dollars (How Many Times Do They Flip?)
• Medical Care $1.6 Billion
– Mental Health Services (Vets and Family)
– Jobs ?
• Education and VOC Rehabilitation $111 Million
– Federally Funded
• Home Loans
• Small Business Incentives
Lake County
Pop
Budget
Spent
Comp &
Pension
Education Insurance Medical
& Voc
& Indem Care
Rehab
Total VA
Expenditure
2006 21,963 $1,155,114
$15,588,000 $1,404,000
$1,409,000
$19,871,000
$38,272,000
2007 21,026 $1,201,189
$16,757,000 $1,652,000
$1,546,000
$22,893,000
$42,848,000
2008 20,471 $1,269,563
$19,439,000 $1,446,000
$1,481,000
$24,814,000
$47,181,000
2009 19,912 $1,265,097
$22,435,000 $2,698,000
$1,545,000
$28,336,000
$55,013,000
$16.7 Mil
Dollars Invested
2009
$1,265,097
Dollars Returned
$55,013,000 =
43 to 1 Return
Ohio Department Of Veterans
Services
Our Mission
“To Actively Identify,
Connect With, and
Advocate for Veterans and
Their Families”
Enhanced Partnerships
• Cleveland VA Regional Office
• VA Healthcare System Network VISN 10 & 11
• Ohio State Association of County Veterans Service Officers
• Ohio State Association of Veterans Service Commissioners
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Various State Departments
State and Federal Legislators
Veterans Service Organizations
County Commissioners Association of Ohio
Plus Many Others..
Direct Marketing / Outreach
“Wouldn’t it be nice if we had the
name and address of every veteran
living in the State of Ohio.”
Direct Marketing / Outreach
• Over 400,000 Ohio Vets located as of 1 March 2010
• Adding approximately 20,000 new Vets a month
• Primary Data Sources
• Sharing Agreements BMV / ODJFS
• Scanning DD 214s
• Continuing to Expand Sources
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ODVS Website
Veterans Organizations
State Agencies
Plus Many More
Indirect Marketing
• Created in conjunction with
the Ohio Department of
Development.
• County Veteran Services
Network
• Standard Message
• State Wide Phone Number
Early Poster Distribution
• County Veterans Service Offices
• All Public Colleges and Universities
• State Government
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Ohio Dept. of Job and Family Services
Ohio Dept. of Agriculture
Ohio Dept. of Rehab and Corrections
Plus Others
• County Commissioners Association of
Ohio
• Ohio Association of Police Chiefs
• County Auditors Association of Ohio
• Ohio Fire Chiefs Association
• Ohio Association of Career Colleges and
Schools
Early E-Poster Distribution
• County Commissioners Association of Ohio, Ohio
Recorders Association, Ohio Library Council, Ohio Assoc.
of Community Action Agencies, Ohio United Way,
Coalition of Homeless and Housing in Ohio, Ohio Assoc.
of Second Harvest Food Banks, Ohio Township
Association, Ohio Association of Police Chiefs, Ohio Fire
Chiefs Association, Ohio Chief Probation Officers
Association, Assoc. of Independent Colleges and
Universities of Ohio, County Auditors Association of Ohio,
County Engineers Association of Ohio, Ohio Association
of Municipal/County Court Clerks, Ohio Municipal League,
Ohio Association of Community Colleges, Ohio Assoc. for
Adult and Continuing Education, Ohio Assoc. of Career
Colleges and Schools
Early Returns
1-877 Ohio Vet
2X
February
March
Table Top Display
Cards
Drop Box Postcard
• Postage Paid Post Card
• E-mail Address
• Branch of Service
• Ideal for..
• County Fairs
• Doctor Offices
• Any Place People Wait
• Works with Table Top Display Cards / Poster
The Ohio Council of
Retail Merchants
• Working To Formalize A Relationship
• Drop Box Postcard
• Over 25 Companies Have Expressed an Interest in
Working With ODVS.
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Wal-Mart
Target
Best Buy
Giant Eagle
Kroger
Lowes
Plus Many More…
Tracking and Measuring
• 1 (877) Ohio Vet Phone Number
• By County Tracking
• Ohio Department of Veterans Service Web Site
• By County Tracking
• County Self Reporting
• Drop Box Post Cards
In The Works!!
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Web Site Redesign (Job Posted)
Large County Coordination Meeting (April 16th)
Ohio OIF / OEF Bonus Outreach
Public Service Ads
Facebook Page
Ongoing Networking
• ALS /Parkinson’s / Cancer
US.
Department of
Veterans
Affairs Claims
Process
CVSO
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Veteran
Communication Challenge
Service
Org’s
VA
Development
VA
Rater
VA Phone
Center
Rating
Decision
What Are the Issues ……
- No Overall System for Feedback
- All CVSOs Do Not Get Rating Decisions
- No Quick Corrections of Claims
- No Feedback for Training – Training Focus
- Lack of Best Practices – ID Common Errors
- VA / VSO may Not be Legally Allowed to Communicate with CVSO
- Access to the Phone Room or IT Alternative
- Overall Breakdown of the Communication (VARO/VSO/CVSO)
CVSO
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Communication Challenge
Service
Org’s
VA Phone
Center
VA
Development
VA
Rater
ODVS
Liaison
Rating
Decision
Veteran
What We Are Working On……
- Open the Lines of Communication
- Expedite the Corrections of Claims
- Improve Claims Input Quality (Feedback & Training)
- Establish Best Practices – ID Common Errors
- Accredit CVSOs with Veteran Organizations
- Provide Rating Decisions Directly to CVSO
- Improve Access to the Phone Room or IT Alternative
Cleveland VARO
Compensation Checklist
For Fully Developed Claims
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Reduce Claims Preparation Errors.
Links Claims Preparer to Claim.
Expedites the Compensation Claims Processing.
Quick Claims Corrections Process.
Claims Quality Feedback to ODVS.
Allows ODVS to Provide Rating to preparer
Encourages preparer to provide a higher quality of
input.
Training Improvement
Committee
• Formed to Conduct a Formal Review of CVSO
and VSC Training Programs.
• OSAVSC, OSACVSO, and ODVS.
• Multiple Meetings over 4 Months. (Jul – Oct)
• The New 2010 Training Policy.
• A Policy is a Policy.
County Veterans Service
Office Accreditation
• ODVS Certification and Training
– American Legion
– VFW
– AMVETS
– VVA
• Working with Other Vet Service Organizations
• National CVSO
– Highly Recommended
– Accreditations Course In Ohio - May 2010
– Continuing Education Credits
County Veterans Service
Office Staff Training
• Mandatory CVSO Testing Every Five Years.
• Established Mandatory Training Subjects
• Replaced District with Regional Training
Format.
• Eliminated Alternate Training Credit.
• Increased New Commissioners Training.
• Annual Training Strategic Planning Session.
• ODVS Training Position.
• Enforcement of Standards.