700 + days and waiting on NOD

[Navyguy2013]

I have a question on the best path forward for a NOD I filed over 700 days ago.

I filed the NOD in response to several disability claims that were denied for failure to show up for my C&P exams. I never received notification of any exams so, I did not show up. I filed a NOD contesting the above information within the required time-frame.

Ebenifits shows no change in the last 700+ days on my NOD. My calls to the VA's 1800# have yielded no results, they say they have no estimated time-frame for completion, and no updates on the NOD's progression. Just stand by to standby is the response from the VA. NOTE: I did get notification for C&P exams for my disability exams associated with my NOD in JAN2017, I did go to these exams.

So it appears that something is happening with my NOD, but Ebenifits and the VA 1800# show no changes in the last 700+ days. (I just got off the phone with the VA again this morning)

What should I do, stand by, if so for how long? Or should I contact someone, if so who, and what method of communication should I use?

I thank everyone for all of the help you provide to all of us, hopefully, one of these days I can provide assistance to people on this site, so far I am just stumbling around the VA process.

[Buck52]

Navyguy2013

Valuable Wonderful & Sweet Lady  Passed Away Sat Nov 14th  sudden and unexpected Cardiac Arrest (In Memory) of Member Ms Carlie Cash was very good at CUE Claims And very wonderful all around Adjudicator , she love helping veteran and would fight for there benefits she was a wonderful person to know  and a great Asset  to Hadtit  it was her calling and she was good at writing letters  one of her last letters she wrote to the VA Secretary was about the VA Was  making her take an Exam  , after she had her conditions over 10 years rated chronic and no future exams scheduled and she was over age 55   she wrote a letter to the VA  Secretary  and it was a great letter the way she wrote it up and was to the point but fairly short letter, I tried to find that letter here on hadit archives  but I could not find it.  It was a great letter.

Maybe Ms berta can find this particular post from Ms Carlie?

Ms Carlie Is Greatly Missed

Ms Carlie  had Helped countess Veterans  & she is dearly missed .

Here is a link  about how some veterans emails to  the VA Secretary about their claims

 This link may give you an ideal how to write yours.

https://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/2016/04/emails-to-robert-a-mcdonald-secretary-of-veterans-affairs/

Edited March 4, 2017 by Buck52

[Palma114]

On 3/3/2017 at 10:57 AM, vern2 said:

This is just wrong, 700 plus days. I realize you have called, but what about IRIS email?  Please keep record of all phone calls and the response.It only took me 10+ years to get my claims settled. Good luck. I would not use VSO, useless in my opinion.

I agree with you about VSO, even the very few that try, can only take you so far in your claim and appeal process and get you the benefits you deserve!

[Victor Ray]

On Friday, March 03, 2017 at 7:40 PM, flores97 said:

The VA Secretary's email address is David.Shulkin@va.gov. I emailed him myself recently and my NOD was completed five weeks later. I agree with Buck,  email him asap and you will receive some movement on your NOD,  over 700 days is way too long.  Good luck to you. 

flores97.

I emailed that address last week, and I have a notice that it didn't go through, but didn't get it for a couple days after it was sent. I believe it did go through, but will hopefully hear something soon. I watched the townhall meeting in Bucks link, and there is a veteran that has had a NOD in the works for over 30 years. 30 Years? Now, if he knows about this, and is telling the world that the vet is still waiting for a decision 30 years later, something is wrong. Something smells bad with this. Shulkin said Everytime a veteran submits a new piece of evidence, the process starts all over again. Another way of punishing the Veteran? Someone else will get the claim so that a whole new set of excuses can be used, and others blamed for incompetence. I do not believe a word about these phony backlogs and delays. They are false, purposely created, and mistakes and errors intentionally pushed into the dead file room.I'm glad you got yours in 5 weeks, but I have been waiting a year as of last Jan 19 2016, so I have to go hmm mm. Bob McDonald never responded to emails or phone calls. Some of us are placed on the "let die" list because they don't want to touch Agent Orange claims, especially when filed in the 1980s.

Victor Ray

 

[Buck52]

I think the problem is  when a rater or VSR that get the claim/NOD they look at it and decide and then it goes to his supervisor to recheck it and that's when the damn wait times began, the supervisor probably has several claims on his desk and get mixed up or lost...on e benefits if there's no movement  then they have that set as to where it changes the status of your claim automatically, until some one sees your unattended claim it could be a while.....so when we email the big boys they email or call your RO and then they all of a sudden find your claim and you should hear from them soon.

if your rep can't help or don't seem to help   then emailing the big boys is our only option  other than email your congressman  but why not start at the heart of the problem  your R.O. and no better way than e mailing your VA Secretary. 

Sometimes a veterans claim is lost and they can't find it any where...in this case if they let the veteran know, the veteran can send in all his/her evidence that he/she sent in and say here is again it was sent 1-3-1997 so please go back to that date  to the present for my EED this is what I sent in 20 years ago please don't lose it....this is why its crucial a veteran makes copies of everything and ALL contact from the VA.

[Navyguy2013]

Buck52,

I am sorry to hear about Ms Carlie Cash, she sounds like she was a wonderful person.

Thanks for the link to those emails to the VA Secretary, I am going to use those as a starting point for my email. Hopefully  he responds and this achieves a favorable response from the VA.

[Buck52]

Navyguy

Yes Ms Carlie was Tops There's not a Member that didn't like her  she was outstanding in CUE Claims and when you communicated with her she made sure you understood what and why she told you what to do  she explained the claims process very well and 9 x's out of 10  what she said was right on.

She helped me tremendously and countless other veterans & I love her for that and she loved what she did...she was a long time Hadit elder member and Administrator here on Hadit  Ms T birds right hand and dear friend. Actually everyone on Hadit loved this special woman.

 

This  emailing the VA Sec has worked for several hadit members that have emailed the Secretary of VA Office!

It got the claim moving and usually with favorable results.

We can't say it will be favorable for your claim  but if you have all your evidence and ducks in a row   its hard for them to deny...The thing is   it gets them off their ASS and start looking at your claim.