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Va Is Trying To Hoodwink Me

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lamontino

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Hi there I probably have one of the most complex case(well VA made it complex)ever. At the rip age of 14 I went to an doctors appointment to try to figure out why my legs was hurting, the doctor said that I was having pain in my back or that where i was getting the pain from, I told him that my back didnt hurt at all(which is documented in that report) just my legs. Instead the doctor did x rays on my back(which the films are not available and the doctor is decease as of this date) revealing that I had bilateral spondylolysis at the L5 and minimal Grade I anterior spondylolisthesis L5 S1 no acute injury or other abnormalities are recognized. I was give Mortin 800 and sent on my way in life under the understanding that I could do anything or be anything I wanted to be in life. I later went to job corp and recieved a state high school diploma. I went in the military in May of 1986, fresh out of job corps and eager to get started with my new potential found career in the military(11 Bravo 10th Mountain Div. I did the entry exam, medical exam etc.... to past and get accepted in the military at that time I also disclosed to the examing doctor that I had previous had a leg problem assoiciated with my back which I took mortin 800(which is documented in that report). The medical exam ask if my back or legs was still bothering me? I told him no. And than did a physical exam of my back etc......He cleared me to go in the army.

Two weeks into basic training I fell off a wall that had a bottom pedastel on the bottom(like a wall with a patform at the bottom, I went to sick call there I was exam dianoise as having tender points at L2 and L5. I was given meds(800mg of mortin)and a rectal exam and release back to basic training. A couple of days later I twisted my back out of place by repeating standing up and down at a rapid speed(just before that my unit was low crawling with backpack on and marching). I than went to sick call again where I was seen no through xray was done again and sent back out to basic training. As we where bidwacking in the field I became sick with pain now in my legs, back,and stomach. I went to sick call where they but me in the hospital for a two days. I was release again this time I got only a culture of my stomach which revealed that I had esophastis and gastrisis and given a appointment to see the otho doctor at army martin hospital and sent back out to basic training again.

At the doctors office, at army martin hospial I seen a otho doctor whom dianoise me as having "chronic mechincal low back pain and giving me a permanent L3 Profile with no running or lifting". Diagnosis of Lumbosacral spine with bilateral spondylolysis L5.

I got a honorable discharge with a reenlistment code of RE-3. I tried to fight from being discharge without getting some type of disability through the IG office and met with a person whom never got back with me on the issues that I was trying to address.

I continue to have severe back pain and proceeded to my local VA office for further care. I did disclose to the doctor at local VA hospital of the condition in the military and prior to me being in the military. There I was given a c&p exam. I was given an exam of my back which the radiologic report now says "No evidence of spondylolysis or spondylolisthesis apophyseal and sacroiliac joints are unremarkable no fracture or dislocation(basically alot of the paperwork on that date of exam which was a month later after i was discharge wasnt done).

During my life at that time I didnt have a place to stationary live my life so I was basically homeless. I never heard back from the rating peoples about how, what, and if I was going to recieve anything from this injury. Until years later when I requested documents of my complete file.

Which claim they wanted me to come in for a RHEUM EXAM(once I found out that i was wondering why would they schedule me for a rheumary arthisis exam if they didnt find anything on the radiologic report revealing anything inreference to my back).

I tried for years to get benefits from the VA but was denied each time because they say that I had a diease prior to service and that through my life as of today I had two previous auto accident(which in those reports I never had injuried my back which is well documented)and the new doctor exam says that his etiology say that it is the natural course of the diease as to why I still in pain.

I did apply for SSI and SSA which I did get approved(which social securtiy only pays for one year prior to your filing of your claim meaning they dont go back to the orgin of the time you was injury or permenantly disabled)but in those reports The ALJ for got to put in about the onset of the injury I got in the military. BUt I know for certain it was discuss at my finally hearing on that tape record statement of the onset, in reference to my back.

Through the years my back condition worsen developing to fibermyloa as well as other delvelopments including depression. As of today I about to go to a travel broad hearing. Wondering if I could get some advice on what is what. Thanks for your help

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  • HadIt.com Elder

lamontino,

It sounds like you are ready for a fight. Do you have a Service Officer? You really need one.

These are some questions I have and the SO might be able to get these answers. Some SO's do not always do their job. If you were only in the service for a couple months any body in this system can have a hidden bias against you. This includes SO's, doctors, adjudicators etc. I have found that some military folks have a bias against people who did not finish a tour of duty.

I worked at a job for only a couple months and wound up with a permanent back disability under labor law. My diagnosis was chronic lumbar/sacral strain. I was awarded a 20% disability under workers compensation. Thus, I know that a back condition can develop in a short period of time. I have battled more pain than I would even like to admit from this back condition all my life. Also, I was discharged with an orthopedic condition that was not sufficient for a profile. Yet, the VA service connected me at 0% upon my first request for a rating. I am now rated by the VA at 10% for this orthopedic condition.

It would help if you knew what the diagnosis was for the profile and to get a specific answer to the question as to why it was not rated at 0% upon discharge or at the first time you requested a rating. Did they ever claim that your back condition existed prior to entry and thus was not service connectable? The SMR would only show the acronym EPTE on the discharge exam. There would be no detailed decision. Are, they saying that you did not have a disability at the time you requested a rating? This would include the possibility that they are trying to say that you do not have a disability at this time.

I have seen the BVA reverse the RO when the RO tried to claim that the condition resolved after discharge and the current condition is due to a post service accident. The BVA did this when the doctors did not show any evidence as to when and how the condition that justified the profile resolved. When you read BVA cases you will find that the BVA will award service condition for chronic conditions in the military unless there is medical evidence that the in service condition resolved. I would argue that a permanent profile is indicative of a chronic condition and there is no evidence the in-service condition resolved..

My position on your claim is that you had a chronic condition in the military and there is no evidence that the condition resolved. Additionally, the condition should have been rated and was not rated because the C&P examiner did not do the proper tests to establish the specifics that meet the requirements of the rating schedule. You need to have a disability that meets the requirements of the rating schedule.

It is possible that the RO could be saying that the car accidents are confusing the diagnostic picture at this time. In cases where service connection had not been established prior to the car accidents then the VA weighs the evidence for and against the possibility that the current condition is caused by the military. If the evidence is greater or equal that the current condition is related to military service, they will service connect. Had the condition been service connected prior to the car accidents then the VA is required to show clear evidence the car accidents are causing the current condition. This is a situation that I have not ran into before. You have a case of a permanent condition in the military that appears to have not been of sufficient disability to be rated. Now, The condition has become worse.

If the VA is taking the position that the car accidents have confused the diagnostic picture and they are using the evidentiary standard of equal or greater rather than clear evidence of a post service injury, then I would argue that a chronic condition that is known to exist in the military, would meet the requirement for denial only when there is clear evidence of a post service incurrence. This would be justified by an interpretation of the law that equates a known chronic condition in the military to a condition that has already been service connected.

But then who am I. I am not an SO. I am not an attorney. This is just my opinion. I have read hundreds of BVA cases and had the VA used every trick in the book to deny my claims. Including, inventing false evidence and citing standards of law that did not exist. And of course the routine tricks such as saying I was not treated in the military for conditions that were written up in black and white in my SMR. I was mis diagnosed by military doctors and had military doctors say I had conditions that existed prior to entry when there was no conceivable way that such a determination was plausible. I was thrown out of the offices of a large VSO organization by a couple of idiots who said I was wasting their time. I had VA primary care doctors illegally re-diagnose my in service conditions without any objective evidence because they were to lazy to help me with a nexus letter. I found a good SO and we a took all their BS and threw it back in their face. I was discharged with four conditions that should have been service connected and received connection for none of them. After reading 100's of BVA decisions, the M21 from cover to cover and plenty of case law, I now have four service connected conditions.

KEEP UP THE FIGHT

Edited by Hoppy
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"Permanet no running or lifting" and "chronic mechanical low back pain" those are what I was dianosis in the military. The saying that I had a chronic back condition prior to service. BUt there is NO evidence saying it from any of my previous doctors prior to service the only thing my prior to service doctor said was "acute, no injury no abnormalities"

I got an video conference schedule in aug of this year. Is the video good? How are the BVA? Are they worster than these local decisionmakers. I mean it just seem that I am being done wrong. Regardless as what evindence I got. And my SO seem as if he isnt doing anything to help my case. Merely just there taking all the credit. IM doing all the foot work and paperwork and hes doing nothing.

lamontino,

It sounds like you are ready for a fight. Do you have a Service Officer? You really need one.

These are some questions I have and the SO might be able to get these answers. Some SO's do not always do their job. If you were only in the service for a couple months any body in this system can have a hidden bias against you. This includes SO's, doctors, adjudicators etc. I have found that some military folks have a bias against people who did not finish a tour of duty.

I worked at a job for only a couple months and wound up with a permanent back disability under labor law. My diagnosis was chronic lumbar/sacral strain. I was awarded a 20% disability under workers compensation. Thus, I know that a back condition can develop in a short period of time. I have battled more pain than I would even like to admit from this back condition all my life. Also, I was discharged with an orthopedic condition that was not sufficient for a profile. Yet, the VA service connected me at 0% upon my first request for a rating. I am now rated by the VA at 10% for this orthopedic condition.

It would help if you knew what the diagnosis was for the profile and to get a specific answer to the question as to why it was not rated at 0% upon discharge or at the first time you requested a rating. Did they ever claim that your back condition existed prior to entry and thus was not service connectable? The SMR would only show the acronym EPTE on the discharge exam. There would be no detailed decision. Are, they saying that you did not have a disability at the time you requested a rating? This would include the possibility that they are trying to say that you do not have a disability at this time.

I have seen the BVA reverse the RO when the RO tried to claim that the condition resolved after discharge and the current condition is due to a post service accident. The BVA did this when the doctors did not show any evidence as to when and how the condition that justified the profile resolved. When you read BVA cases you will find that the BVA will award service condition for chronic conditions in the military unless there is medical evidence that the in service condition resolved. I would argue that a permanent profile is indicative of a chronic condition and there is no evidence the in-service condition resolved..

My position on your claim is that you had a chronic condition in the military and there is no evidence that the condition resolved. Additionally, the condition should have been rated and was not rated because the C&P examiner did not do the proper tests to establish the specifics that meet the requirements of the rating schedule. You need to have a disability that meets the requirements of the rating schedule.

It is possible that the RO could be saying that the car accidents are confusing the diagnostic picture at this time. In cases where service connection had not been established prior to the car accidents then the VA weighs the evidence for and against the possibility that the current condition is caused by the military. If the evidence is greater or equal that the current condition is related to military service, they will service connect. Had the condition been service connected prior to the car accidents then the VA is required to show clear evidence the car accidents are causing the current condition. This is a situation that I have not ran into before. You have a case of a permanent condition in the military that appears to have not been of sufficient disability to be rated. Now, The condition has become worse.

If the VA is taking the position that the car accidents have confused the diagnostic picture and they are using the evidentiary standard of equal or greater rather than clear evidence of a post service injury, then I would argue that a chronic condition that is known to exist in the military, would meet the requirement for denial only when there is clear evidence of a post service incurrence. This would be justified by an interpretation of the law that equates a known chronic condition in the military to a condition that has already been service connected.

But then who am I. I am not an SO. I am not an attorney. This is just my opinion. I have read hundreds of BVA cases and had the VA used every trick in the book to deny my claims. Including, inventing false evidence and citing standards of law that did not exist. And of course the routine tricks such as saying I was not treated in the military for conditions that were written up in black and white in my SMR. I was mis diagnosed by military doctors and had military doctors say I had conditions that existed prior to entry when there was no conceivable way that such a determination was plausible. I was thrown out of the offices of a large VSO organization by a couple of idiots who said I was wasting their time. I had VA primary care doctors illegally re-diagnose my in service conditions without any objective evidence because they were to lazy to help me with a nexus letter. I found a good SO and we a took all their BS and threw it back in their face. I was discharged with four conditions that should have been service connected and received connection for none of them. After reading 100's of BVA decisions, the M21 from cover to cover and plenty of case law, I now have four service connected conditions.

KEEP UP THE FIGHT

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  • HadIt.com Elder

It is my opinion that you get a better workup on appeal, be it a DRO or the BVA. I had a face to face conference with the DRO who awarded my claim. Medical evidence wins claims. I am not sure how much help the conferences really are.

When doing that foot work get a doctors statement that shows more likely than not to rebut the doctor who is on file. If you don't get this then the only way the claim will stay alive is if the BVA remands it for more medical opinions. Things go faster if you get strong medical evidence on you own rather than rely on BVA remands.

Get the statement from a VA doctor or an IMO. This will be complex because of the complexities of your claim. Ask your SO to help you get the report in the right format for the VA. It was a real hassel for me to get this type of report from VA doctors. They did not want to get involved.

The medical opinion saying the current condition is more likely than not related to the military is necessary for the claim to be awarded. From what you are saying it sounds like the pre-service condition being called chronic will be over-ruled. The burden of proving you have a preservice condition is on the VA. The burden of proving more likely than not that the current condition is related to service is on you. The VA C&P process and remand does not always work. Getiing a treating physician or IMO to write a nexus letter and having it submitted in the right format is the best way to go in my opinion. Talk to your So about this.

Edited by Hoppy
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Here's some information that should be helpful to your claim.

This something NEW I wouldnt think it would apply to anyone or anything from the past............................................

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Yes, sir. I was thinking of the same thing. Plus, when I did. The entry exam I was give an xray of my back and phyiscal. My thinking someone or thing dont like me and trying to make me not get anything

This something NEW I wouldnt think it would apply to anyone or anything from the past............................................
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You keep talking about retro to 1986. Did you file a claim in 1986? If not when was the claim filed. They do not pay retro prior to the filing of a claim. The only exception is that they can pay 1 year in advance of the filing date if you told a doctor that you planned to file a claim and he reported it in a medical note. If you did file a claim in 1986 what does the VA computer say was done on that claim. Did you find out what the VA computer says the date of the claim is and whether or not it is a re-opened claim:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Goodmorning all, in responces to this,I first open a claim right after, I was discharge from the service(infact about a week and a half later). That report mysteriously dont even say I suffer from any back condition at all! So, as I said before, I thought it was all over and I was only 17 years old. I didnt even have a place to live or a permaneted address. So, to get someone what stable I went to the job corps. I never heard back from the military until around 1990. Even during that intermission time I was seen repeated times in the ER for the same condition(also, develop esophagistis and gastagitis which I was hosptalize in the the military with I was dianosis with both but they was acute) through the years.

That 1986 c&p exam was not even throughly done. I have those medical report as well merely alot of initals where the c&p examintor was exactly suppose to put his dianosis in and answer the question. He didnt do anything. Mysterious thourgh down the line the VA said that I was suppose to get a REUM exam in addition to the back exam. But in the report done by that examintor, it only says "REUM FTR" which I thought was some type of code not for me to do anything. And like I said previously, I didnt have a stable place to live. Nor did the VA notified me at the last known address of me being scheudule for an addition examanation until 1997 at another address. I tried to tell them I knew nothing about an reumology exam in addition to the back. And as far as I knew, the exam at that time told me there was nothing else to do. Because they didnt even find on the "x-ray anything wrong with my back meaning no back trouble what so ever". I said to myself and to the doctor than why did they let me out the military?

The x-ray report states as such: "Lumbosacral spine: Vertebral bodies are normal in height,contour and alignment. Disk spaces are well maintained. No evidence of spondylolysis or spondylolisthesis. Apophyseal and sacroiliac joints are unremarkable. No fracture or dislocation". Than its signed and dated by the radiologist. Which is another perfect example of why also didnt know, was told, and alleged that I didnt have anything wrong with me(which I fought for years of me being let out of the military without an condition)

Its strange though. I was let out of the military with a permanent profile of no running or lifting and chronic low back pain(which I say again prior to me going in the service my doctor said "no acute injury or abnormilis") put was given a reentry into the military code of RE-3 which meaning able to go in the military with a waiver in two years.

I tried to work and apply for ssa benefit in and around that time but was denied ssa benefits at that time and didnt get approved for ssa benefits until 2004. I did my best at my age and education levels at that time.

In the prievious doctor report prior to me going in the military. I had "rightside bileral spondylolsis" but in the military it says "mild paturtlat tenderness L4-L5 L+R side with palpation spasm and fuslation" among other things they put in that report which I cant dictate quite. There in itself tells that "my back injury was made worst because now its on both sides".

I never had to file a appeal to reopen my claim, I just did an online applaction for benefits and they reopen the claim without any issues.

It is my opinion that you get a better workup on appeal, be it a DRO or the BVA. I had a face to face conference with the DRO who awarded my claim. Medical evidence wins claims. I am not sure how much help the conferences really are.

When doing that foot work get a doctors statement that shows more likely than not to rebut the doctor who is on file. If you don't get this then the only way the claim will stay alive is if the BVA remands it for more medical opinions. Things go faster if you get strong medical evidence on you own rather than rely on BVA remands.

Get the statement from a VA doctor or an IMO. This will be complex because of the complexities of your claim. Ask your SO to help you get the report in the right format for the VA. It was a real hassel for me to get this type of report from VA doctors. They did not want to get involved.

The medical opinion saying the current condition is more likely than not related to the military is necessary for the claim to be awarded. From what you are saying it sounds like the pre-service condition being called chronic will be over-ruled. The burden of proving you have a preservice condition is on the VA. The burden of proving more likely than not that the current condition is related to service is on you. The VA C&P process and remand does not always work. Getiing a treating physician or IMO to write a nexus letter and having it submitted in the right format is the best way to go in my opinion. Talk to your So about this.

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