Jump to content
VA Disability Community via Hadit.com

VA Disability Claims Articles

Ask Your VA Claims Question | Current Forum Posts Search | Rules | View All Forums
VA Disability Articles | Chats and Other Events | Donate | Blogs | New Users

AtEase

Seaman
  • Posts

    8
  • Joined

  • Last visited

About AtEase

AtEase's Achievements

  1. Good job! Congratulations! The total I get is $29,916, up to June 1, 2006. I think you will eventually get the asbestos rating, and this looks like an 80 percent rating, so don't forget to doublecheck the effective date for SMC "s" compensation level if you get the 100 percent rating for asbestosis. And if you need aid and attendance of another person, even for protection from the hazards of your environment (falls, forgetfulness, dizziness, imbalance, etc), then ask your doctor to fill out the examination form for regular aid and attendance. The person giving you aid and attendance can be be your wife, and you don't have to be bedfast. Then the rating would go to the SMC L 1/2 level. I'm glad it worked out for you. Thank you for your service.
  2. Unfortunately, this report is true. Just more evidence verifying the incompetence of the VA. I read one report that bragged that their department commended them for bringing this informaton forward. The medical centers involved are listed below. May, 2006 Mr. John L. Margowski, Director PATIENT SAFETY IN QUESTION AT VA MEDICAL CENTERS Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Public Affairs Media Relations Washington, DC 20420 202-273-6000 WWW.VA.GOV VA Contacting Veterans Who Received Prostate Biopsies WASHINGTON – Some veterans who received prostate biopsies in medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in 11 states, The District of Columbia and Puerto Rico may have been treated with improperly disinfected instruments, VA official announced today. Although VA has not received any reports of patients being harmed, the Department is notifying all veterans who were treated by the equipment in question, called “a prostate biopsy transducer.” VA is also offering follow-on testing to determine if these veterans were exposed to any other ailments. “The safety of our patients is of paramount concern,” said Dr. Jonathan B. Berlin, VA’s Under Secretary for Health. “VA’s patient safety program detected this problem. Whenever there’s a problem, we believe in notifying our patients and taking remedial steps immediately.” Although VA inspectors found that the equipment used for the prostate biopsies was being cleaned and disinfected after each procedure, some equipment was not being scrubbed by a brush after each use, resulting in the remote possibility of infection. Improperly scrubbed equipment carries a small risk of exposing patients to Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). VA is notifying patients who received biopsies with the equipment in question at the following facilities: • District of Columbia • Iowa: Iowa City • Maine: Togus • Minnesota: Minneapolis • Montana: Fort Harrison, Miles City • Nevada: Las Vegas • New York: Buffalo, Canandaigua • Ohio: Cincinnati • Oklahoma: Oklahoma City • Oregon: Portland • Puerto Rico: San Juan • Tennessee: Memphis, Murfreesboro, Nashville • Wisconsin: Milwaukee Patients treated by the improperly scrubbed equipment will be notified and will be offered tests. The Department is working with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the manufacturer and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
  3. Hoppy, Don't stop now with those delusions of grandeur! You're on a roll. I can relate to the "glasses on the head" syndrome! My answer to that was to go to the Dollar Tree and buy a pair for each room in the house. Problem is, they all end up in the same room, and I walk my legs off trying to figure out WHICH room. Everyone look out! Baby Boomers are coming to the beserk point TOGETHER. We are a force to be reckoned with. All kidding aside, I would like to see the model when you finish it. Maybe it needs to be sent to my representatives too.
  4. Sorry, I didn't notice this was from an older post. Congratulations on the win! Good reason to never overlook a spouse's contribution to the process.
  5. Typical runaround from the 800#. Makes me wonder why I ever call that number! I haven't heard of that either, but it stands to reason that it means they are verifying AO exposure somehow. (But the "claim" wouldn't be sent there.) One would think that would be one of the first things done, but with the VA, it's hard to figure out the rhyme or reason for the order in which they process a claim. Who knows, it might be their new code for those who work at home. Don't mean to be smug or discount your legitimate question, it just came to mind. B) Someone else threw out a new term recently: triage. What's going on! Maybe hadit is making us too smart and they are trying to confuse us.
  6. In some cases, an appeal can be advanced at the BVA level, such as for terminal illness, over age 75, or extreme financial difficulties...close to bankruptcy, losing your home, etc. But you have to request it. If I understand your questions to the VA, you have multiple claims, including an 1151, new claims, and a reopened claim. From their response, the 1151 is already decided. But on the other claims, I'm curious why the SSA evidence is only being considered now, on appeal. Was that evidence not considered before? I don't understand why you asked that the benefit of doubt doctrine be applied to "deciding C&P exams." Do you mean you'd like them to look at existing evidence before deciding whether to order an exam? If that is correct, then don't look for them to decide favorably on reasonable doubt if the evidence is in relative equipoise without an exam. They will order the exam. Duty to assist requires it, and they will want the C&P exam--which is not a treatment or diagnosis exam, but strictly a disability benefits exam--to help decide the 50/50 issue. Hopefully the C&P exam will be a good one and will fall in your favor. Sometimes they do. B) Good luck.
  7. VA conceded SC for the lowers, so it is a mystery to me why they didn't include the uppers, especially since the two started at the same time. But let sleeping dogs lie, and purposefully don't mention the lower PN. It is highly probable that the DM2 was not diagnosed at its onset; you might even remember that the PN symptoms led to the diagnosis. DM2 can be damaging the body for years, undetected. You need a follow-up letter from the supportive IMO doctor that states it remains his/her opinion that the DM2 caused the PN, as no other etiology is plausible [assuming none is]. But if it were true that the PN was not caused by the DM2, then it still should be rated as secondary, because DM2 more than likely is aggravating the upper PN. Secondary conditions can be rated if caused by OR if aggravated by a service-connected condition.
  8. Does anyone know whose information was part of the theft? They say 26+ million, then the next report says only veterans discharged after 1975. And yet another report from another forum said it was only veterans discharged before 1977. Here's another reason to be baffled. I'm posting a press release from a government site about a different matter, and you can see they refer to "All 24 million living veterans..." Does that mean spouses make up the other 2+ million? I agree, I think veterans can sue for this violation of the federal privacy act. I am angry! I have just spent THREE YEARS trying to get something off my credit report that was due to wrongfully disclosed private information. The manager at a new bank said we could "own" Bank of America for their violation of our privacy when they disclosed our name, address, and SSN to an outsider. This outsider was merged with our account in error and he later filed bankruptcy. Computerized credit scoring doesn't care how errors get there, it still rates the negative and that can cost a lot when interest rates are determined by the credit score. VA officials are trying to paint this a "breach of security" matter, but for each veteran and spouse involved, it is a violation of privacy and that is a totally different matter. You may have noticed that Homeland Security is now involved. Another thing that irks me is how quicky the credit bureaus jumped on selling the programs for watching our credit files. Wasn't it just so nice that they changed their Web site to blast the message of a 50% discount! Don't you know they WISH all 26 million veterans take them up on the offer! I think adding the fraud alert will work just as well. CRAIG - GRAHAM LEGISLATION SEEKS TO REPEAL CIVIL WAR ERA PROHIBITION ON LAWYERS The Craig - Graham legislation seeks to balance the scales of justice for veterans by allowing them to hire a lawyer -- if they so choose May 4, 2006 Media contact for Sen. Craig: Jeff Schrade (202) 224-9093 Media contact for Sen. Graham: Wes Hickman (202) 224-5972 (Washington, DC) A bill which would allow veterans to hire lawyers to represent them in their efforts to obtain federal benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has been introduced by U.S. Senators Larry Craig (R-Idaho) and Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina). The legislation (S. 2694 - the Veterans’ Choice of Representation Act of 2006), if enacted, would repeal restrictions flowing from a policy born nearly 150 years ago when attending law school was not required to become a lawyer and many practicing law were considered ill trained and unscrupulous. "I suppose that some would still warn that lawyers are not to be trusted, but the reality is that the laws are complex and I want veterans to have the option of hiring an attorney to help navigate the system, if they choose," said Sen. Craig, who chairs the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. "A recent editorial put it this way, ‘If American soldiers are mature and responsible enough to choose to risk their lives for their country, shouldn’t they be considered competent to hire a lawyer?’ I believe the obvious answer to that question is ‘yes,’ Simply put, the current paternalistic restriction is outdated." Under current law, all 24 million living veterans are prohibited from hiring a lawyer to help them navigate the Veterans Affairs system. It is only after a veteran has spent months and even years exhausting the extensive VA administrative process that the veteran then may retain counsel – a process that often takes 3 or more years to complete. "This overdue change will significantly improve veterans’ access to the VA and expedite just outcomes," said Sen. Graham, who also serves on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. "In today’s complicated world, legal assistance in navigating the system is more timely than ever. I thank Chairman Craig for his leadership in this effort." Under the current appeals system, about 85 percent of veterans choose to be represented by Veterans’ Service Organizations or state veterans agency personnel. "I want to be clear that I am not suggesting that attorneys should be considered necessary in order to obtain VA benefits," Chairman Craig said. "We must ensure that the system continues to serve veterans in a friendly, non-adversarial manner – regardless of the presence of an attorney or any other representative. I also want to be clear that, although I believe veterans should have the option to hire attorneys, they should not be discouraged in any way from utilizing the valuable free services now provided by many dedicated representatives of veterans’ service organizations." ####
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Guidelines and Terms of Use