mmiddaugh
commented
4 months ago CONSIDER: opportunity to connect to new "Find a VA accredited representative or VSO" tool
Open davidmpickett opened 1 year ago
mmiddaugh
commented
4 months ago CONSIDER: opportunity to connect to new "Find a VA accredited representative or VSO" tool
Which Taxonomy is this term for?
VA services taxonomy
Proposed term name/label
Rationale for adding this term
The term Veteran connections is a blobby term, that may need to be split into 2 or more separate terms.
From an order of operations standpoint, we could:
Conversation from #11267
@mmiddaugh said > **Existing service: Veteran connections** > - Vet Center service description: We can help connect you to VA and community resources that will support you in achieving your goals. > > **Proposed service: State and local benefits** > - Proposed VBA description: We can help you find and understand the various benefits and services that states and local governments offer Veterans, family members, caregivers, and survivors. And we can help you access those benefits and services. > > **Proposed service: Veterans service organizations** > - Proposed VBA description: We can connect you with a VA-recognized Veterans Service Organization who can file a claim, decision review, or appeal on your behalf and find state and local facilities and programs. > > Vet Center editors enter details about Veteran services organizations and local/state specific resources into their "Veteran connections" local descriptions. @davidmpickett said > Great question. My understanding of "State and Local benefits" vs "Veterans service organizations" is coming from the public contact research where they were described as fundamentally two different types of service. > > **State and Local benefits** = Benefits/programs the public contact staff at the regional office _routinely_ help Veterans understand/apply for. Here's a list of benefits in this category that were mentioned in the research. > - annuity > - compensation (state) | chapter 115 > - driver's license > - hunting & fishing license > - license plate > - public transit benefits > - reduced taxes (property, home sale) > - toll road pass > - welcome home bonus > > **Veterans service organizations** = [accredited representatives](https://www.va.gov/disability/get-help-filing-claim/) who help Veterans and beneficiaries apply for benefits and can advocate for them / give them advice in ways the staff in the Regional Office cannot. They often have offices in the same building as the regional office, but are not VA staff. Having a separate service where ROs could list out the contact information and clarify that Veterans/beneficiaries need to contact those organizations directly/separately. (Might also be a place to link to the [VSO search tool](https://www.ebenefits.va.gov/ebenefits/vso-search)) > > **Veteran connections** = Feels blobby. Sounds like it that might have been sufficient for Vet Centers, but I do not think it is a fit for what we know about VBA. > > All that being said, seems like there may be more conversation to have about these two and they drop out of the first bucket into one of the others. @mmiddaugh said > Thank you for that thorough explanation and context. > > The intended meaning/purpose for **Veteran connections** has felt nebulous to editors - at least in name. It is also categorized as a _referral service_ - much like **Veterans service organizations**. This might be the opportunity to either evolve that particular service or to allow non-VBA editors to leverage new services.Have you drafted content for all the relevant subfields?
Acceptance Criteria