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Ao Payment Update

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Berta

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Update in part:

Though the first batch of payments did go out midweek, the relatively small number — about 1,300 claims worth $8 million — reinforced the fact that the process for calculating retroactive payments is timely and complex.

The VA expects to produce a steady stream of rating decisions and payments each week for these diseases, perhaps in the thousands. But there will not be a November geyser of checks as some veterans had hoped.

Most of 163,000 veterans or survivors with pending claims for these diseases should expect a longer wait, at least several more months. The VA goal is to have all these claims processed and paid by October next year.

http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,222310,00.html

and available at NVLSP web site

Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/nov/06/tom-philpott-paying-new-agent-orange-claims-a/#ixzz14VVNbYJF

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Berta, Do you get a feel from the articles that they are not going by dates? I mean like vets that filed right at Oct. 09 when the first sniff came out about this and vets who just got wind of this and first time filing?

I was one of those that was denied in the past as you and filed right away but I am reading and seeing vets that are getting award that filed later and some for the first time. I am feeling like the VA is going through and cherry picking claims to work and those that are as you say complex sitting them aside? Do you feel that way?

Maybe not in your case are you worried about any day or breathe could be your last but many of us vets like me with 100% and tag on PTSD dealing with the added stress of waiting on this is causing problems with me! I may have to take a break from some of this for a few days. While I do enjoy reading of those that have been awarded reading that they filed after me does not help my condition any!

Add to that and the fact that I have heard nothing from SS in over 3 1/2 months and I am getting myself all worked up.

Take care and good luck to all our Veterans and remember be thankful on Veteran's Day!

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 stillhere, not really knowing the inner workings of the VA I personally don't think they rate claims as first in first out. Some claims may take very little time to develop and be ready for a rater than the more complex claims. Knowing all the new presumptive were to be developed as far as they could and then held in limbo until 30 Oct to begin the actual rating process. I filed in mid Oct. of 09. But I have no clue how long it took to develop it before being placed in the holding pattern and I would think many claims filed after mine made it to the holding area before mine. Simply because theirs' were are slam dunk to develop. I filed in Oct 09 and in July or August I get a letter from the VA asking for dependency info back to 1991. This tells me my claim hadn't been developed fully and wouldn't be until they received that info or their waiting time for it ran out. This also tells me there were a lot of claims filed after mine that went ahead of me. I don't think the VA is cherry picking the easy claims but it would stand to reason that if lets say 5 raters each take a claim in turn and 2 of the five are easy claims the the easy ones will get rated first while the other 3 raters will have to spend more time getting their claims rated and ready for review.

I don't know how SS does it these days but when I filed for SSDI back in 1991 they told me the earliest I would hear from them would be five months. After 5 months I got a check for one month and a few days later I received a 5 month retro check. They also told me after I was approved that they would have me under review in 5 years but that didn't happen until after 10 yrs.

I try to go by the theory or 3's for anything to do with the government. If they say 10 days don't expect anything for 30 days if they 30s day expect 90 days.

Hang in there brother, yours is coming and probably long before mine. 

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  • HadIt.com Elder

The Nehmer Court case resulted in several "thou shalts" the the VA is obligated to follow, even if they don't.

Among them is a fairly short period (For the VA anyway) of 21 days.

Lets say a veteran had previously filed an IHD related claim, and all required evidence, etc is in place.

The VA denied the claim, usually saying that it was not related to service. Now, the service relation is presumptive due to the change in A.O. presumptions.

The big question - - - is the Nehmer time limit in effect? For the start of "reconsideration"? Evidently the VA thinks it isn't.

I would guess that the VA will say that the 21 day period does not apply, or give some other reasons, such as the time limit does not start until we - - -, even though the VA may have already done this during the original denial process.

There are other Nehmer related statements in the VA training letter concerning A.O. Presumptives that appear to be ignored as well. (Priorities, etc.)

I'm sort of waiting to see if the Nehmer class action lawyers file something related to he VA's processing of A.O. claims.

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"I'm sort of waiting to see if the Nehmer class action lawyers file something related to he VA's processing of A.O. claims"

They are compiling data base of vets they here from (I posted their email addy for AO claim here)

who have potential retro coming.

They also have a data base that VA prepared and is still adding to for claims the VA has identified as potential Nehmer retro claims.

They will compare the list- but cant do much yet until they hear of any possible AO retro that was denied erroneously.

In the late 1990s they went into VAROs and found MILLIONS of dollars of Nehmer retro that VA had failed to pay veterans.Almost 90 thousand vets (maybe more) and widows finally got their proper AO retro award.

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  • HadIt.com Elder

Hi Berta. I just realized I had a Vet who has AO Diabetes. He was stationed In Thialand but went inside Vietman several times. The VA denied his claim initially over 10 years ago but his DD214 had his RVN service typed out. The VA said they made a grevious error. He was also Diagnosed with CAD at the same time and did claim it but Dienied as they said the Cad came first.

Do you think this would make him an IHD Nehmer Member?

I think it does.

John

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Hi Berta. I just realized I had a Vet who has AO Diabetes. He was stationed In Thialand but went inside Vietman several times. The VA denied his claim initially over 10 years ago but his DD214 had his RVN service typed out. The VA said they made a grevious error. He was also Diagnosed with CAD at the same time and did claim it but Dienied as they said the Cad came first.

Do you think this would make him an IHD Nehmer Member?

I think it does.

John

Definitely sounds like he is a Nehmer class member as long as his records show boots on ground. I'm a little confused about his DMII claim. Was he denied then granted comp. for DMII? If that is the case then the VA concedes AO exposure and his IHD/CAD claim should go back to his original claim. 

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