Every day in Arizona, thousands of veterans are waiting for much-needed benefits as a nationwide backlog has caused some cases to be on hold for years. "23 years I've been dealing with this. That is the better part of half my life that I've been dealing with this," a U.S. Army veteran said.
Last year, the pandemic forced the cancellation of Memorial Day events at all the 155 national memorial cemeteries, even the 624-acre National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.