DRO Review

[Runrdud3]

October 2015, I filed for a DRO review at my local VA Regional Office. 

Contention: Increase rating for Menieres Disease exceeding 30%

I received the SOC in late Jan, 2016 stating that I was denied due to no evidence of Cerebellar Gait (Gait abnormality) which is a part of the requirements for an increase. I gathered new evidence of cerebellar gait from my ENT and private physician stating that i do indeed suffer from that as well.

On Feb 1, I met with my rep at the DAV who called the DRO to his office to speak with me and I turned over the additional evidence directly to the DRO. The DRO stated she would work on it as soon as she could.

Has anyone ever had a re-look after an SOC was issued? Reason I ask is I have word for word medical documentation that is exactly why the SOC was denied. Do you think this is still doable?

 

 

[63SIERRA]

you can request a hearing at any time, submit evidence and they are supposed to consider it. As long as it is at RO land and hasnt been shipped off to the board of veterans appeals, they can award you. The problem though, is instead of trying to find ways to service connect, they look for ways to deny.

I  wish the VA were required to copy and attach any  and all evidence submitted by the veteran to the SOC, and or SSOC.

When the SOC is very vague and they seem to have left key evidence out  that would award your claim, they know what they are doing.  They will try to make you focus on fighting them on a contention they know you cant win, meanwhile the one you can win, they will try to let turn to dust and bones. The regional offices will try to say as little as possible because sometimes a verifyable lie, is just as good or better than an admission .

This way once the claim finally does go to the board of vet  appeals, the RO s will  really look like asses for denying the claim.

Before the claim is completed to be sent to appeals, the veteran should have an opportunity to review the file, and make sure all evidence is inclusive..

[Chuck75]

5 hours ago, 63SIERRA said:

you can request a hearing at any time, submit evidence and they are supposed to consider it. As long as it is at RO land and hasnt been shipped off to the board of veterans appeals, they can award you. The problem though, is instead of trying to find ways to service connect, they look for ways to deny.

I  wish the VA were required to copy and attach any  and all evidence submitted by the veteran to the SOC, and or SSOC.

When the SOC is very vague and they seem to have left key evidence out  that would award your claim, they know what they are doing.  They will try to make you focus on fighting them on a contention they know you cant win, meanwhile the one you can win, they will try to let turn to dust and bones. The regional offices will try to say as little as possible because sometimes a verifyable lie, is just as good or better than an admission .

This way once the claim finally does go to the board of vet  appeals, the RO s will  really look like asses for denying the claim.

Before the claim is completed to be sent to appeals, the veteran should have an opportunity to review the file, and make sure all evidence is inclusive..

"This way once the claim finally does go to the board of vet  appeals, the RO s will  really look like asses for denying the claim.

Before the claim is completed to be sent to appeals, the veteran should have an opportunity to review the file, and make sure all evidence is inclusive.."

My experience was that the VA tries to evade actually having the veteran or his/her lawyer actually looking at the "real" claims file.

A Nehmer ruling of several years ago that I read basically, in very restrained language, told the RO that the claims file had enough evidence to award a direct connection, and the RO should have done so. Then Nehmer awarded most of the conditions in question as presumptive. Things really got strange when you compared the Nehmer ruling and award with the VARO ruling and award that was driven by the Nehmer award.  

[Runrdud3]

15 hours ago, 63SIERRA said:

 

Thanks for the info! I am already service connected for Meniere's Disease at 30% so this is an increase to a higher percent. I had new evidence supporting only half of what was needed to win the appeal and overlooked evidence of problems with gait. (It is confusing to know everything the VA needs). When I received the initial SOC it stated 5 times at the end of the doc that I had no evidence of cerebellar gait, so I went back to two specialists and performed gait testing where both agreed and documented that my gait was indeed affected. I had both doctors put word for word the exact reason for denial that was listed on the SOC. My DAV rep knew a DRO and called her to the office where I got to explain the denial and gave her the new evidence. So it's been a week and I am waiting for a re-look. In my opinion, I have everything needed to win, but I don't count on anything until its official.

Edited February 5, 2016 by Runrdud3

[63SIERRA]

On 2/5/2016 at 2:09 AM, Chuck75 said:

"This way once the claim finally does go to the board of vet  appeals, the RO s will  really look like asses for denying the claim.

Before the claim is completed to be sent to appeals, the veteran should have an opportunity to review the file, and make sure all evidence is inclusive.."

My experience was that the VA tries to evade actually having the veteran or his/her lawyer actually looking at the "real" claims file.

A Nehmer ruling of several years ago that I read basically, in very restrained language, told the RO that the claims file had enough evidence to award a direct connection, and the RO should have done so. Then Nehmer awarded most of the conditions in question as presumptive. Things really got strange when you compared the Nehmer ruling and award with the VARO ruling and award that was driven by the Nehmer award.  

VA law  HEAVILY favors the veteran.. in layman speak, it almost says... if theres any way possible to service connect the veteran, make the leap, build a nexus, believe the witnesses, lather the skids, and let the sled slide.

what happens in the RO that causes them to lie, fabricate, omit,  downplay, stall, decieve, and  deny claims is a mystery to me.

[FormerMember]

It's simple with the new system. You input everything as data. Yes/No. When? Where? Cause? LOD? y/n . Everyone enters something along the production line. VHA supplies records. NPRC docs, At the end, a VA examiner looks at the oldest C&P first because that is the first one that pops up on the .pdf when it opens. They rate from that. The military presumption that you are guilty until proven innocent is for application. If even one date doesn't agree with any lay testimony, you are deemed an unreliable witness and they get to 86 all your lay testimony. Since it's a production line of 20 raters contributing, no one sees the finale but the SVR or RVSR. They have to sign the ratings form. That is your nemisis. They, too, are trained to come at it as a denial looking for a win to happen. In the old days, it was one rater who assembled the whole enchilada and you could go down there and talk to him about it. They didn't hide behind a mail drop in Wisconsin.

It took me literally 22 years and counting to win. They still have a effective date of rating of 2012 wrong which allows it to be "reviewed" again before five years is up. It should be 1994 and 20 year protected. That is the VA you are dealing with. So I filed a NOD and beat them to the inevitable punch in 2017. Statistically, if represented by a VSO, your best odds of winning are 15% unless you got blown up by an IED and have a Purple Heart to prove it.

22% win at the BVA.

65% win at the CAVC