"The Veterans Affairs Department said on Wednesday that it has processed less than half of the pending education benefits claims veterans are entitled to under the post 9/11 GI bill claims, and veteran groups expressed serious concerns students will not be able to pay their rent next month and colleges will need to wait for tuition payments," Nextgov reports. "The department has paid more than 61,000 benefits claims totaling $50 million since August, according to a statement. VA also said it processed 503,000 claims totaling $1 billion for other education benefit programs during the same period. But VA told Nextgov that it still must process another 72,329 claims for post-9/11 GI bill benefits, with 60,071 eligibility determinations and 12,258 enrollment certifications. The department has a total of 172,662 education claims pending, which includes the new GI bill claims as well as other education programs. VA said since May it has received 277,000 applications from veterans for certificates of eligibility or school enrollment certifications under the new GI bill."