Money, Insurance - Air Force Times

Payments ease burden for injured troops

When Ed Salau got his traumatic injury insurance payment of $50,000 in late December 2005, the first thing he did was pay off his credit card debt. After he lost his left leg in Iraq in November 2004, he racked up $3,500 in hotel bills so his wife could stay nearby during his recuperation.

Once the Army declared that he was able to be independent, meaning that his wife's presence was not necessary for his recuperation, they had to bear the cost of her hotel bill.

He said he hopes the new insurance payments will ease the financial stresses for others in their first months of recuperation, perhaps avoiding some of the credit card bills he was forced to accumulate.

Salau got his insurance payment under the federal Traumatic Injury Protection program, which became effective Dec. 1, 2005, but is retroactive for service members who suffered qualifying losses between Oct. 7, 2001, and Dec. 1, 2005, that directly resulted from a traumatic event in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Retroactive payments will be made regardless of whether service members had Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance at the time of their injury.

For those injured since Dec. 1, payments are not limited to injuries incurred only in the war zones, as they are in the retroactive part of the program.

As of Jan. 25, 2006, insurance officials had paid 927 retroactive claims worth $66.7 million, said Stephen Wurtz, deputy director for insurance for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Another 274 claims are pending, worth an estimated $16.3 million, he said.

Since Dec. 1, some 15 claims worth $1.1 million have been paid; another 10 claims worth an estimated $500,000 are pending, Wurtz said.

One claim was paid on behalf of a deceased service member, Wurtz said. If troops die of their wounds, their families also may qualify for payments, in addition to other death benefits, if the member survives for at least seven days after the traumatic event.

Getting the word out

Anyone who has SGLI coverage is also insured automatically for traumatic injury, at an extra premium cost of $1 per month. Those who have SGLI cannot decline the injury coverage.

The coverage applies to traumatic injuries regardless of where the injury occurs, on or off the job -- even mowing the grass at home. Active-duty, National Guard and reserve members who have SGLI and meet other eligibility criteria are eligible.

Payments are tax-free. Troops still on active duty, as well as those who have left service, can qualify for the payment, which is paid on top of any other VA disability or pension benefits.

Payments range from $25,000 to $100,000 for various injuries, with most toward the higher end of that range. Wurtz said most payouts are $50,000 or $100,000.

Officials initially estimated that about 3,150 troops would qualify for retroactive payments. By the end of last year they had increased the estimate to 5,000, Wurtz said.

But with retroactive claims paid or pending so far totaling only about a third of that estimate, officials are wondering where the rest might be.

"Is word getting out? We're still trying to increase the outreach effort," Wurtz said.

Some wounded troops have said their service branches contacted them in early December about the program. Insurance officials are in contact with military and VA hospital staffs as one of a number of efforts to get the word out.

Wurtz said insurance officials are comparing their list of people who have received payments with VA databases of disabled veterans, and contacting veterans who may qualify but have not filed claims.

Jeremy Chwat, national policy director for the Wounded Warrior Project, said retired Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Kelly approached the organization in mid-2004 to let them know that wounded troops at Walter Reed were struggling with finances. Kelly had been injured in Iraq and later testified before Congress about the need to help the troops.

"They were stressed out over money, and it hindered their recuperation," Chwat said. "There needed to be some way to have some money to draw on." And troops needed access to it quickly after returning stateside to offset immediate travel bills for family members and other expenses.

Chwat said he's hearing that troops are receiving their payments under the new program within seven to 10 days after submitting claims.

The new insurance coverage does not replace, and has no link to, the VA disability compensation program, Wurtz said. Rather, it is modeled after accidental death and dismemberment policies in the private sector, adapted to meet congressional requirements and military circumstances.

Salau, who was medically retired as a first lieutenant in April 2005, said his life would be "a whole lot worse" if he did not have the $50,000 he received under the program.

Salau was able to use the money to pay off his credit card bills and have enough left to fund his children's education.

Paying the monthly premium of $1 is a small expense compared to the potential benefit, he said.

"No one is immune to the possibility this could happen," said Salau, who has returned to his career as an occupational safety and health specialist for the Navy.

For more information, call the VA at (800) 419-1473, or visit www.insurance.va.gov.