Often, those who need to file a disability claim expect the process to be slow. What they do not expect is an almost 5-year delay in some cases. It was revealed recently that roughly 32,000 veterans’ disability claims were delayed due to a technology flaw in the federal filing systems. Some claims were deferred for as long as five years. The department currently also has about a four-month or longer backlog for 270,000 first-time claims.

There have been over 7 million claims filed since 2018, but some have only just recently been processed. Veterans Affairs (VA) labeled the disconcerting discovery as a slipup, promising to award back pay when the files have been processed.

Apparently, the software and other technical issues with the new e-health records system have been ongoing for several years. The system was earmarked as a 10-year, $16 billion project that frequently encountered delays due to software problems. The faults were only discovered in February, but the resolution only took place recently. Disability claims may range from several hundred dollars to more than $4,000.

At the core of this latest issue was the discovery that 32,000 delayed compensation claims filed online, had not be properly routed to processing staffers.This meant the files were not opened and remained dormant. The problems were said to have begun in early 2018 but that was not identified until later in the process.

According to VA staff members, the issues likely started when they switched from legacy claims processing systems to the VA.gov portal. Veterans whose claims were filed in 2018 could end up getting more than $240,000 in back pay. Although the claims are being handled, there is no set time frame for when they may be completed.