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FACT CHECK: For veterans, disability claims backlog has continued growing under Obama
• WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama paints an encouraging picture of the additional resources his administration has poured into helping veterans get disability benefits and mental health treatment. But he glosses over just how much those problems have grown during his time in office. • Obama spoke Monday to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. His Republican rival for the White House, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, is set to address the same group Tuesday. A look at Obama's assertions about the Veterans Affairs Department's efforts and how they compare with the facts: • ___ • OBAMA: "We've hired thousands of claims processors. We're investing in paperless systems. To their credit, the dedicated folks at the VA are now completing 1 million claims a year, but there's been a tidal wave of new claims." • THE FACTS: Veterans can be eligible for help with conditions caused or aggravated by their military service. The government, however, has long struggled to keep up with the claims, and the backlog has grown worse during the president's term in office as soldiers return from Iraq and Afghanistan. • ___
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