June 13, 2007 - WASHINGTON — Responding to shabby treatment of wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, a group of senators moved on Wednesday to boost disability pay to those hurt in combat and improve care for brain injury.

The 93-page measure, introduced by 30 senators from both parties, also would expand medical care and counseling to family members and require better cooperation to end red tape for disabled service members moving from Pentagon to Veterans Affairs care.

The bill would affect some of the more than 25,000 U.S. service members wounded in hostile action since military operations began in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The nation's shock and dismay at the deplorable conditions unveiled at Walter Reed reflected our people's support, respect and gratitude for the men and women who put on our nation's uniform," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

"They deserve the best care and support we can muster, not shoddy medical care and bureaucratic snafus," he said.

Since disclosures in February of poor outpatient care at Walter Reed, the Army has taken steps to clear out mold, repaint walls and install plasma screen TVs in rooms. A presidential task force chaired by VA Secretary Jim Nicholson also urged better coordination among government agencies.

But veterans groups have long said that more serious problems remain involving an unwieldy disability ratings system. Earlier this year, retired Lt. Gen. James Terry Scott, chairman of the federal Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission, suggested to Congress there could be a systematic effort to underrate disabilities to lower benefits and keep military costs down.

A preliminary review by Scott's group found the Army was much more likely than the other active forces to assign a disability rating of less than 30 percent _ the typical cutoff to determine whether a person can get lifetime retirement payments and health care.

The legislation, which is on an expedited track for consideration Thursday before Levin's committee, would require Defense Secretary Robert Gates to establish a special board to independently review the military disability ratings decisions since 2001. The review would involve cases in which disability rates of 20 percent of less were awarded to determine if soldiers were shortchanged.

The measure would boost military severance pay for those rated with less than 30 percent disability and eliminate the current requirement that severance pay be deducted from disability pay.

And it would set up Pentagon pilot programs that would give the VA a greater role in the evaluation system, a major shift in how benefits are administered. Both critics and supporters acknowledge it would likely add significantly to costs since the VA takes into account all the disabilities a soldier has _ not just one.

In a statement, the Disabled American Veterans group said it appreciated the efforts to improve care for veterans. But it expressed concern the measure might be too narrowly defining who constitutes a "veteran" by granting benefits only to those who are injured in combat, rather than those who are hurt anytime while serving in uniform.

"We at DAV do not value one kind of injury of illness in military services as more worthy of federal benefits than another, and we believe Congress should not make that distinction in law," said Joseph Violante, national legislative director for DAV.

The bill also would:

_Provide $50 million for improved diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of veterans with traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder.

_Require the VA secretary and Defense secretary to develop a joint comprehensive plan for care by Jan. 1, 2008, so injured troops don't slip through the cracks. The two departments would also have to create an interagency office to develop a joint system for electronic health records.

_Allow military and VA health care providers to provide urgent medical care and counseling to family members of those injured in combat.

_Require the Defense secretary to establish standards for housing for military outpatients and for military hospitals and clinics.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon said it created a new Web site to help veterans who face difficulty returning to their old jobs or finding new ones after deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Michael Dominguez, principal deputy under secretary of Defense, said the program, dubbed TurboTAP, seeks to improve on its current Transition Assistance Program by letting National Guard and Reserve service members get job information, build a resume online and do a job search all in one place.

In addition, veterans would be able to create a customized transition plan from military to civilian life. They also would be able to access "helpful checklists" regarding key things they should be doing after leaving the military.

The Web site is http://www.turbotap.org.