IDVA presents biannual report; county VSO Nina Padilla progressing through accreditation steps

A district service officer from the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs briefed the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 10 about new accreditation standards and reporting requirements under changes to Indiana Code 10-17-1.

"The purpose of my appearance is due to changes that were made last year to Indiana code 10 17 dash 1, requiring biannual reports to county executives from the IDVA," the presenter said, explaining the statute requires IDVA to provide information on outstanding claims and to answer veterans’ questions. He distributed finalized service officer accreditation standards adopted by the Indiana Veterans Affairs Commission and described training, technology and claims-management requirements.

The presenter, who identified himself as Mark Orley, said the county's new veteran service officer, Nina Padilla, is progressing through required training, including VA claims-preparation training and an American Legion Service Officer 101 course, and will next pursue a PIV access card for direct access to VA systems. He told the board the state funds one Vetrespect (claims-management software provided by Tyler Technologies) subscription/account per county; additional user accounts would be a county expense. Orley said the IDVA's implementation deadline for full compliance with the new standards is June 30.

Commissioners thanked the presenter and said they look forward to the next biannual update.