Despite efforts to speed up the claims process, the backlog remains at about the same number now, VA officials said.
To make matters worse, the Department of Defense and the VA have lagged at making the transition to civilian life easy for soldiers.
According to a report issued in April by the Government Accountability Office, the departments still haven't developed a "one-stop shopping process" for soldiers that would provide standard discharge examinations, help with filing discharge claims, and assurances that vets don't get lost in a sea of paperwork.
The departments also don't have a joint system to make it easier to keep track of soldiers' medical histories. The system, the report said, was supposed to have been in place three years ago.
"They've treated our veterans like stepchildren," said U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, who in 2006 became the first Iraq veteran elected to Congress.
"Our best and brightest are out there fighting for us, and they should be taken care of. But the way they were cared for ticked me off, and it's one of the reasons I ran for Congress in the first place."
A number of legislative and bureaucratic steps have been taken to improve the transition process: The VA announced an effort this year to track down 550,000 veterans and remind them of the benefits to which they are entitled, and Murphy helped pass legislation that allowed the VA to add 1,800 disability-claims processors.
But more needs to be done, he said.
"We had to change the philosophy first and start making our vets a real priority," Murphy said.
Diverse needs
As of last fall, about 300,000 veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) had used VA health services, according to VA officials.
Little attention has been paid, though, to the size and scope of their needs.
Some soldiers have come home with minor knee and back pain.
