Hey, How About a Smartphone App to Track Vet Benefits?

I sometimes wonder what century the Veterans Affairs Department leadership operates in considering things like this recent notice calling on industry help to develop a smartphone app so veterans can easily check their benefits anywhere, anytime.

VA said it is “seeking innovative and creative solutions that provide interactive, Veteran-facing mobile applications that offer access to services and information related to benefits with content, formats, and user engagement models that leverage the full capability of current mobile devices.”

These apps, in turn, VA said “can empower veterans with personalized and customized tools that allow them to access the information and services they need, regardless of time and location. This includes both access to information such as benefit descriptions and claim status as well as services such as online courses and benefit applications.”

I bet that in the time to took to write the above -- and run it through several layers of approval and the lawyers -- your average young tech savvy vet could have written an app and had it ready for use long before VA ever receives a high-priced response from a vendor looking to make some bucks.