Shutdown Affects Some Services for Braintree Veterans

Veterans in Braintree who sought to file a new claim Tuesday would have been thwarted by the federal shutdown that began at midnight.

Veteran's Agent Richard Walsh said he cannot process claims for items like long-term medical assistance while Congress is stalled on a budget bill and much of the federal government is on pause.

Other affected areas include claim appeal decisions, Freedom of Information Act requests to Veterans Affairs, website maintenance and recruiting and hiring of veterans, except in health care posts. Veteran internments and vocational rehabilitation are on reduced schedules.

However, in the short-term, Braintree veterans will not see a deluge of changes, primarily because Walsh said he works through the state on many issues and health care is largely exempt.

"It really is not too bad," Walsh said.

VA medical care, outpatient visits, prescriptions, nursing home care and similar programs are not affected by the shutdown.

A transit police academy ongoing since this summer at the National Guard Armory on Union Street will not be affected, MBTA Police Superintendent-in-Chief Joseph O'Connor said in an email.


Programs like that – hosted at a facility run by active duty military personnel – are escaping the shutdown's reach, Walsh said.

The post office is open and Social Security checks are covered, but other federal programs, such as the National Park Service, have been halted while members of Congress work out legislation to fund the government in this new fiscal year.