Dro Hearing

[lugnut]

Hello fellow vets. I am waiting on a notification letter for a hearing at the VARO for a NOD review concerning my claim for DDD and others. Can I have my Am Legion Rep go with me? Should he speak for me? So far, any "work" has had to be done by me. I see on here that some people have researched information re their claims and have put together a summary of the info. Ratings, codes, percentages, etc. Is that a good idea also/ Any opinions with be appreciated. Thanks

Lugnut

[NSA-Saigon-ET]

Hello fellow vets. I am waiting on a notification letter for a hearing at the VARO for a NOD review concerning my claim for DDD and others. Can I have my Am Legion Rep go with me? Should he speak for me? So far, any "work" has had to be done by me. I see on here that some people have researched information re their claims and have put together a summary of the info. Ratings, codes, percentages, etc. Is that a good idea also/ Any opinions with be appreciated. Thanks

Lugnut

Hi Lugnut,

I agree with the others advice to you for your DRO hearing.

The length of time between you shots at correcting past mistakes is becoming greater these days.

Here in Houston it used to take around 4 months to get a local hearing on a DRO, but now I am waiting 20 months and still waiting. I believe it will probably be a couple more months still.

Houston is the worst of the VAROs in the country now, but all of them have longer waiting periods.

The point is this.

Use your VSO to aid you in preparing your claim for appeal.

Take one issue that was denied at a time and see why the VA denied the issue. You can attack the denial from their point of view , but nothing can stop them from simply changing their tactics.

However, what may be better is to start from scratch and rebuild the claim and present it at the formal hearing with all the facts being covered by regulation.

Try to keep your opinion out of the claim. No one cares what you think unless you can back it up with the appropriate CFR regulation.

You must be prepared to take the DRO by the hand and walk thru your claim.

While you are waiting for the hearing, go see the VSO and they will tell you the exact CFR regs you need to use.

Then you explain in written detail how your evidence is covered by the regulation.

If you practice this a little at a time you will get somewhat better at it.

Also, a lot of the preliminary stuff may be used over for each issue you wish to dispute.

I have rewritten my claims many,many,many times. Each time I strip away some b.s. and try to stay focused on the facts as they were.

Your best researcher for your claim will be you and you can get help here and other places when stuck.

No one can read your mind, so you will have to explain or be able to post documents so get a scanner and computer system.

If you go to the hearing really prepared you can bring a VSO for support or others to help you stay on track.

The work you put in now will pay off if the DRO then agrees with your statements. He will award the issue if he can, but if you miss the mark, he will send you packing again .

I speak only from my own ignorance in the past. I hope I am wiser now!

P.S. if you don't have all your documents don't expect the VA to retrieve them for you. Write to NPRC or wherever to get your documents yourself. It takes less time to get it done and not have to wait for the VA as they love to waste your time waiting.

Good Luck!

-donald