marinevet61 Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 First I want to thank everyone for their help and encouragement when I needed answers and suggestions.Thank you tbird for this site. I filed a FDC claim inMay 2015. Did a lot of research before sending this claim in. IN September had a Real C&P exam with va appointed Dr. October I received the famous BrownEnvelope stating that I was Service Connected for 2 conditions. This was a great day in my life. After i calmed down i read a sentence that upset me. Va hasProposed that i am incompetent due to a doctor statement. I do have Aphasia not dementia. The aphasia is due to brain tumor surgery in 2013. Granted iCan not remember Everthing, this is no reason for an appointed representaive. Can anyone offer any info about this. Can i get this incompetent labelRemoved. Also i currently have an appeal for a claim that i filed in 2014. Waiting for the va to decide the Camp Lejeune claim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 "Proposed that i am incompetent due to a doctor statement. I do have Aphasia not dementia. The aphasia is due to brain tumor surgery in 2013. "Aphasia alone is sure not enough to render one as incompetent...unless it also involves inability to understand communication or is so severe it couldpreclude employment.I found some incompetent vet claims at the BVA whereby the vet had aphasia but it was due to a catastrophic stroke, and part of why VA declared them incompetent..However, I had an Army husband rendered incompetent after brain surgery due to the fact that the surgery itself was brain damage to the extent that he never recovered.And also my Marine Corp husband had ratings on a stroke, rated at 100% P & T by VA, under 1151,yet VA never declared him incompetent in his lifetime but SSA did due to the specific areas of brain damage he had from multiple ischemic attacks as well as the full blown stroke.My point is that there could well be findings from an MRI that would indicate this surgery affected your cognitive abilities as well as physical abilities, and that the aphasia is severe.There is a lot to the causes of aphasia :http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/Aphasia/ Are you able to scan and attach here the actual statement by the doctor and any MRI findings they listed as evidence as well as how they rated the brain surgery residuals?You certainly should ask for a hearing within the time frame they gave you on the proposed reduction. They need to have more evidence, in my opinion, then just the fact that you have aphasia.The only reason VA never declared my husband incompetent in his lifetime is that he died with this claim pending, and because multiple tests the VA did to separate his 100% PTSD from the affects of his 100% Stroke revealed he also had dementia, not long before he died..Is the Camp LeJeune claim related at all to this past brain tumor and did they defer that claim in the decision you got?"Did a lot of research before sending this claim in"GOOD FOR YOU! That is what it takes and you did very well so far. Incompetent my Butt!However, VA doesn't care what I think and they might very well have a strong medical reason for these proposed findings.If you do end up needing a fiduciary, do you have a wife?if not can you prove you pay your bills yourself and can definitely handle your money?Most of the incompetence stuff from VA is BS in my opinion, but then again there are vets who definitely do need fiduciaries, but which takes time and holds up the retro..And it is just incompetence for VA purposes....Do you also get SSDI for the brain residuals?If so, did SSA deem you as incompetent? If not, that is a good point to argument this proposal on. Buck52 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy04 Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 I am 33 and was found not able to manage life and finances, and no weapons for rest of life. Does not bother me one bit, I have a great wife and daughters that will take care of me just fine. I don't get why so many Vets feel it is the end of the world if the VA or SSA finds us unfit for finances. Whatever it takes for you to get the Benefits you deserved bud. Congrats on the good news Buck52, Andyman73 and flores97 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator broncovet Posted November 7, 2015 Moderator Share Posted November 7, 2015 If the VA based your incompetency on medical evidence of a doctor who said you were incompetent, then the first thing you need to do is read that doctors statement. Did he really say that? 1. Yes. You probably need an IMO/IME to refute the medical evidence. 2. No. Then you need to allege a Colvin Derwinski violation where the VA substituted their own unsubstianted opinion for that of a medical doc, or, that they did not give a reasons and bases as to why other docs opined positively as far as your competency is concerned. Buck52 and flores97 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marinevet61 Posted November 9, 2015 Author Share Posted November 9, 2015 Berta I do not have a copy of the Drs letter from the c&p exam in September 2015. I checked my Health evetand could not find anything about the exam. I am married and my wife is my total caregiver. Yes the aphasia isa residual from the brain tumor surgery in 2013. I have balance issues and speech issues plus a DVT in left legalso a residual from the brain surgery according to my doctors. The camp lejeune claim was filed in 2014 anddenied. I currently have an appeal going on to dispute the decision due to a pcp in Asheville NC doing a c&pexam without notification or not having all my evidence at the time of the exam. Examiner was not an oncologisttoxicologist or hematologist. This was unjust and unfair. Just waiting now for decision on the appeal. Ebenefitsstates under review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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