ptsd My Reply From Iris.....

[tagandbag]

We show an appeal for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was filed on June 18, 2008. We are still working on that appeal. We received an appeal on October 23, 2008. We are still working on establishing that appeal. You should be receiving a letter regarding that appeal shortly. WE show no other appeals, or current claims.

If you submitted an application or other supporting evidence between April 14, 2007 and October 14, 2008, and you believe VA does not have the document, you should submit a request for consideration under 'VA's Special Claims Handling Procedures for Missing Documents'. Your request should be made in writing and sent to your local Regional Office or through your Veterans Service Officer.

Your request should include the date the document was originally submitted to VA. To support your statement, please include copies of any of the missing documents, if available, such as a copy of your application form, a dated transmittal or cover sheet from your Veterans Service Officer, or confirmation from the mail deliverer.

Thank you for contacting us. If you have questions or need additional help with the information in our reply, please respond to this message or see our other contact information below.

I got this reply from VA a couple hours after I wrote them for update on several NODS i submitted. More smoke?

[poolguy11550]

Did the R/O list all your evidence in your decision letter? Chances are the they did not. Blow the smoke back into the R/O and state that they did not have all your evidence because they lost it or it was lost at the time the decision was made. Make them go back and list every piece correctly- maybe you will win because they have to actually consider it this time. Anyway, it is a free shot in the rating process. Be sure to list every piece of evidence and reference VA fast letter 08-41. The R/O I work at and others were I know folks have put together "tiger teams" of there most expirenced personal to handle this. Beats having a rater with less a year on the job handling it or the former mail room clerk (OJT ing it) for that matter. Just my opinion.

[danang_1969]

Did the R/O list all your evidence in your decision letter? Chances are the they did not. Blow the smoke back into the R/O and state that they did not have all your evidence because they lost it or it was lost at the time the decision was made. Make them go back and list every piece correctly- maybe you will win because they have to actually consider it this time. Anyway, it is a free shot in the rating process. Be sure to list every piece of evidence and reference VA fast letter 08-41. The R/O I work at and others were I know folks have put together "tiger teams" of there most experienced personal to handle this. Beats having a rater with less a year on the job handling it or the former mail room clerk (OJT ing it) for that matter. Just my opinion.

The more times we have to communicate on a claim, the better chance they deny have to deny the claim the greater the water gets muddied and the more tangled the web gets weaved. My file is about 4 inches thick now. It would take me a week to dig up a sheet with on all my evidence on it that I have submitted. Often they will take a statement made we make in a claim on the supplemental evident form and add another item or aspect that is totally a different claim. One that you haven't actually submitted yet, but plan to. They do this I think to confuse and delay the claim longer. Each time they add any item, it gives them 30 mores days with the alibi they are waiting on your evidence on the new item before they can work it.

[danang_1969]

Did the R/O list all your evidence in your decision letter? Chances are the they did not. Blow the smoke back into the R/O and state that they did not have all your evidence because they lost it or it was lost at the time the decision was made. Make them go back and list every piece correctly- maybe you will win because they have to actually consider it this time. Anyway, it is a free shot in the rating process. Be sure to list every piece of evidence and reference VA fast letter 08-41. The R/O I work at and others were I know folks have put together "tiger teams" of there most experienced personal to handle this. Beats having a rater with less a year on the job handling it or the former mail room clerk (OJT ing it) for that matter. Just my opinion.

The more times we have to communicate on a claim, the better chance they deny have to deny the claim ...and the greater the water gets muddied and.... the more tangled the web gets weaved. My file is about 4 inches thick now. It would take me a week to dig up a sheet with on all my evidence on it that I have submitted. Often they will take a statement in a claim that we made on the supplemental evidence form and add another item or aspect from that statement that is totally a different claim. A claim that you purposely haven't actually submitted yet, but plan to. They do this I think to confuse and delay the claim longer. Each time they add any item, it gives them 30 mores days with the alibi they are waiting on your evidence on the new item before they can work any of it. Unless you have all the evidence which most of the time you do not, You then must send the form back signed saying I have no more evidence to prevent the delay. They do this especially on a claim with terminally ill people.

Edited December 3, 2008 by danang_1969

[poolguy11550]

danang, That is why having legal representation from the start of the process is critical. I believe that like the SSA process legal consul should an option from the start. VBA employees know how FUBAR things are but until the top tier of SES's (senior exutive staff) actually impliement real changes and corrective action- then everything stays status quo. My opinion, lets have legal minds looking into the VBA process at the first stage of the game. We already know for a fact that the legal communtiy is busting at the seems when observing VBA adjudication. It really makes the VBA look like a joke and what has already happend is that those SES's seem to know that the crap is on them. I hope that this not fading trend, but rather a big push to bring professionalism to my agency. Believe it or not most of the bottom tier folks want things change for the better.

[carlie]

poolguy,

Can I ask, what position do you hold at a RO ?

carlie

[poolguy11550]

Legal Administrative Specialist