Chuck75

To me the request for updated dependent info is either a device intended to slow things down, a procedural check the box type of request, or a change in award is in the offing. At least you know somebody is doing something, if not exactly what. I received another "we are still working" letter today. A previous one was dated June 1. Cheer up things can be worse! I have no Idea where things are actually at. Just one part of the claim doubles (By scheduler rules, should be slam dunk, retro is possible) the current payment. Another part adds a "special schedule" item. Finally, the claim seeks service connections for conditions "caused or aggravated" by a current SC condition. The interesting part of the claim adds something that was originally denied under old rules (implied, but not spelled out in the denial), and since medical practice changed, becomes an independently claimable item. (With military hospital treatment records to back it up.) Just to add to the pile, I recently sent a copy of the SSA determination of 100% disability that associates the disability with a currently SC condition as secondary to a primary condition aggravated or caused by the SC condition. And thanks to a screw up by a state VSO, I had to NOD part of an earlier claim that was awarded at a 10% level that should be higher. Another part of the effort involves SSA. They came up with an effective date later than the law allows (To avoid paying retro) So I had to file documents with them stating that the medical evidence clearly justifies an earlier effective date than they used. It's one of those odd situations where medical evidence and other events suggest that you really should not be working, yet the employer carried you until a govt. contract ended. After that, it was about a year before I was able to accumulate enough medical records for the VA, and while I was at it, use the records for both claims. Perhaps the weakest item in the list of things that SC was applied for is an interesting one, since it causes pain, does not show up on X rays, yet is clearly shown on a CAT scan or MRI. The only test that might have shown it in the far past was not done, due to a real chance of the test causing problems worse than I had to begin with. Yet, an IMO from a qualified board certified specialist indicates "more likely than not" a result of military service. I have yet to see a request for a C&P. (Knock on wood) The stack of VA and non VA treatment and drug list is large, and some of parts of the claim are even substantiated by a VA veteran's center physician. (That got into another little bag of worms. Seems that they never heard of or were ignoring the VA form used and the directive to fill it out if asked by a veteran. I had to present the Veteran's Center Administrator with a copy of the guide containing the instructions. I did not know such existed, until I ran across the info somewhere on Hadit. (My spelling checker decided to correct all the typos, mine and yours--sorry)

It can be (and has been) argued that a return receipt means only that the recipient received something, not exactly what it was. This would seem to indicate that the VCAA reply should be hand delivered, and a copy stamped with an official VA stamp indicating date of receipt. I did this with SSA to prove that I had filed a request & forms in a timely manner.

There are two issues. 1. VCAA response 2. Method to insure that the VA acknowledges receipt of it. 1. I would not try to exactly copy a VCAA response letter, unless I had the original. I would reference it as the VCAA letter you (the VA) sent to me on or about (date) And then state the response. 2. Registered Mail or personal delivery with receipt signed by a person authorized to do so. 3. I might copy the administrator/director of the VARO with a statement that the response was sent previously, and somehow lost or mislaid by the VA. The whole subject of the VCAA gets me upset. Everyone I've received does not meet the requirements, in that specific information needed to favorably decide a claim is not identified. The statements are always general requests for medical information and anything else the vetern thinks might help. The regs and law, as I understand tham, require that the VA identify specific information that they require, in addition to any that they may already have. No VCAA letter I've ever received has contained this information, even when I requested it under the the "duty to assist" clause.

By declaring your SSA payments as a "tax" the government removed any direct legal link to the payments. This was done to allow the government to "borrow" money without your consent. (And, quite possibly, never pay it back.) Once it became a tax, the government language changed to reflect the idea that the government thinks it has more of a right to the money than you or I do. The state tax was just an example of how your taxability may differ from mine. There are a bunch of things that may make a difference as to the taxibility of a SSD payment, including, but not limited to income level, and source of income.

If you have the VSM and the VCM, the only other thing that would enter into the issue is "feet on ground" The probable exposure to AO residuals due to proximity spraying near your duty station is a plus in your favor for AO exposure. Evidently, the records verified the AO spraying. So, the result is that you more likely than not have AO exposure, independent of "feet on ground" And, your military records show Vietnam service, due to the medals. Your pay records may also show something like "hostile fire pay" or other in warzone pay and allowances, as well as tax exemption. Given the combination of facts and records, it would take a really hard nosed head in sand evaluator to naysay AO exposure. Once that bridge is crossed, the cancer would be SC'd. (As it was.) You may have problems getting the VA to SC secondary conditions, and need authoritative IMO's to accomplish this in a reasonable manner. You mentioed a FOIA act request for info--how long ago was this request made, and have you received a timely reply? The FOIA has a time limit, (I believe 20 working? days) If not met, a complaint can be filed, and may eventually result in an administrative penalty for the delequent office.

If you make a written request-- Cite the FOIA act and duty to assist. This puts a time limit on the VA to respond with the information. Supposedly 20 or so days. If they fail to respond in the appropriate time, there is a method to file a complaint. Supposedly, the VA can be administratively fined for lack of compliance. If there are items that you know existed, and you suspect that the VA has "lost them" Make the request for all records, and those specifically. The question should also be asked as to why you were not shown a complete copy of the "C" file, and where is the rest of it--and why is it not all together. I also have had problems with the Chicago VA. Many years ago (70's) they screwed up payment for my flight training. At one point, I was over $600 in the hole. (A lot of money for a young family with a new child.) I ended up going to the VA in person to settle the matter. At the time, I worked for a defense contractor(Northrop). I had all the little cues (Such as a picture ID that was honored by DOD, a B1a bomber tie clip, a lapel flag pin, and a very conservative suit and tie) that (on the surface) told VA employees that I knew what I was about. The VA requirement for veteran escort was not mentioned. When all was said and done, The check for past due money was cut, and I had a hand written certificate of entitlement to flight training, authorizing training thru the ATR rating. To get it all done, I had to go all over the building, and into multiple offices on four floors. (Without an escort) No way will that happen today!

The tax laws are quite complex. It takes a Philadelphia lawyer to decipher them (which I'm NOT!). Beyond that, taxable or not varies from case to case. For instance, a state may or may not tax SSD. One of many questions involved in taxable or not -- is part or all of the disability that you receive SSD for based upon an SC disability, and were you in the military prior to 1975. As I understand it, when you reach the normal retirement age, in my case 66-1/2, things change again. Naturally the tax laws are loaded against the SS recipient. Evidently the IRS would like us to pay tax on at least the employer payment to our SS acount, since the payment is a business expense.

Evidently, the SSA process in your area is quite different than that in mine. In Jan07, since I was turning 62, I went to the local (small) SSA office to file a SSA claim for both disability and early SSA pension. I had a copy of my recently filed VA disability claim with the accompanying documents. After answering some questions concerning the degree of disability I have, and furnishing information required on several forms, I was given a package to complete, the major part concerning release forms for my medical records from the VA and various physicians and medical facilities. First, the early pension payments started on time. The disability was also approved and the first payment was received in July. I have appealed/ asked for reconsideration on the effective date of the disability, since I did not work due to the medical conditions I have in the entire year of 2006. There is a not to well known clause in the SSA regs that allow retro payment of up to one year prior to the claim submission. At this point, I receive the same payment from SSA that I would receive if I retired at the normal age of 66-1/2. The significant difference is that the money is not taxable. I did notice that a review was scheduled seven years in the future. The evaluation was done solely based on medical records, and accomplished by a private physician under contract to the state government department that deals with disability, unemployment, and workers comp. The reason I questioned the effectivity date was simply that that my medical records show that an earlier date is appropriate, and that the date originally set by SSA is obviously a date set solely to prevent payment of retro compensation. The SSA process I experienced, although a typical govt. process designed to eliminate many claims, is a much fairer and responsive process than the VA's. I had to reluctantly file an NOD on the VA side, which will undoubtedly cause a lengthly delay. At least the doctor doing the evaluation is a state licensed physician in private practice, not a VA or SSA in house "medical professional".

Sounds like you need to do something in the near term. I'd suggest that that you talk to a lawyer that is qualified to deal with this sort of thing, and find out what kind of options are appropriate. The PA must work under the supervision of a doctor, and both the PA and the Dr. can be taken to task. The PA and Dr. might be accused/guilty of malpractice and defrauding the gov. since he is paid by the gov while doing the exam. The PA harmed the gov and possibly you.

You don't suppose the questions were not answerable without causing mayhem, do you?

10-15 cents a pack and Jonny W. Black label was 7.50 a fifth.

As I understand it the Navy has stopped sending detailed records to the National records center. They retain them somewhere. (I don't remember the command) In any event, since the ship is still active, They either have a copy, or know exactly who does. The problems I ran into in my claims were caused by several things. Loss of medical records by AF Hospital in Vietnam Duplicate records were not maintained by Ship (No functional copy machine at the time.) Ship was decommissioned and sold in the 1970's Awards were not updated on DD214 when I went back to inactive duty. Many of the awards were for the time I was on the ship(s), and granted after I had transferred. The DD just shows Vietnam service with stars. Getting it corrected is another hassle. The Navy board is just interested in correcting "bad paper" to "good paper". The existance of the awards is known, and available on the Navy award site. No details other than the dates and type of award are on the site. The details may be available in ship's logs, but the date of the award may not match the date of the reason/action receiving the award. This means that a relatively expensive copy (several months of the ships log pages) must be obtained. The award than I have been able to obtain a copy of says that the award (NUC) was given for service under hostile fire and combat conditions. One, in particuliar, that I have not been able to find details of was a combat ribbon. CR(old abbrev.) or CAR(new abbrev.) The details are crucial if "combat veteran" status is to be conceeded by the VA. All is not lost, since one of the awards, the sec nav citation (NUC) that I have a copy of, shows combat and hostile fire.

All I can tell you is what I would do. First, once the payments are decided, you need to get a letter from SSA showing the disability award, and the fact that amounts already paid as SS pension were deducted from the award. The letter should state that the amounts deducted are not taxable, since they become part of the disability payment. If necessary, revised tax returns can be filed for up to three years. Unless the gov opens older ones (Usually only happens if the IRS thinks they have a fraud case). There may be other exceptions to the 3 year rule, I just don't know about them. Without the SSA letter, it's possible to go ahead, using a note explaining the situation. This may or may not toggle some sort of IRS action. The biggest problem to me is not so much the federal IRS, but the state IRS. They may not really want to understand the situation. In my local area, we have a good federal IRS office. They have never failed to help me when I needed help, and even saved me money a time ot two. One was a waiver of penalty for withdrawing an IRA. (That's no longer an issue for me, due to age, and there are other exceptions for this or that withdrawal reason that didn't used to be there.)

While I understand this view, I'd point out that many leaving messages on this forum are not very computer literate. Using a search capability to find something can be quite a painful process if you don't have a good idea of the correct search terms to use.

Pure conjecture says that the system is afraid of making a decision that might be questioned by the member of congress. So, more review is done until someone in a position of authority releases it. "Why would they pull it just before making a decision besides delaying a decision on my claim?"

Try this for the NY FOIA Cheers! http://www.nycosh.org/health_safety_rights/foil.html

The SSA office can printout a copy of the existing award letter, and a copy of your SS payments and income subject to SSA (If appropriate) I asked for a copy of my SSA file with an FOIA letter, and got it from them on a CD.

Wait--Several reasons-- If a decision goes against you, you will need a copy that is current as of the decision. (To decide to fight or not) The VA will not provide multiple copies without a charge in short time spans if you find that a before decision copy is not enough for your needs. Pulling the file to copy can slow things down.

Understand that this is common practice by the VA and SSA. A captive Dr. writes the opinion, based upon the medical records and other considerations. (or signs off on an opinion written by someone else, supposedly a medical professional) Besides, this is also fairly common practice for consultant Drs in normal med practice. "Dr gives an IMO by only looking at the med evidence"

Sounds like stress related to me. The relief of getting out of active service often lowers blood pressure, until other events compensate for the improvement. Also, understand that a diagnostic level is an "after the fact" event that shows that you have and have had the condition causing the level to exist before the diagnostic test was done. The VA and SSA like to say that you didn't have the medical condition until there was some sort of defining event, such as a formal diagnosis.

In my case the VA used the date of claim, not the date of diagnosis in my VA records. Proving "feet on ground", even though the basic info was in my service med records took a bit of time to document. To add insult to injury, DB II can go for years before glucose blood levels reach those used to confirm DB II. Looking over my medical records, it's obvious that the levels were above normal (100 Max) for over ten years. They went from 108% of normal in the late 80's to 135 or so around 2000. By 2003-4 they were high enough to get a tentative diagnosis, and by 2005, formal diagnosis. Many older med records were thrown out by hospitals, Drs retired, died, etc. making it difficult to reconstruct a good time line that would be useful in claiming aggravation of conditions by diabetes.

You seem to have encountered one of the many disadvantages of direct deposit. At least a mailed check indicates what it's for. In addition, direct deposit authorizes the gov to make withdrawal's, and is not limited by the amount of a check the gov claims was issued in error. Withdraw first, then tell you about it (maybe eventually) is the normal practice. Direct deposit is justified if you are concerned about the security of a mailed check. In some crime ridden areas, mailbox contents are often riffled for such things as SS checks. Most banks require positive identification and an account to accept a gov check. Merchants may not be so picky, although they are required to also identify the customer.

H/O LVEF 60% on 2D echo -- 2D echo is a two dimensional sonogram LVEF is Left Ventricle Efficiency as opposed to total Heart efficiency An MRI or CAT scan can give a 3D scan that is dynamic. A stress test with drugs may use sonics or CAT. (I've had both) Not sure about H/O (a guess might be hospital outpatient) RTC means return for check The medical profession is worse than the military when it comes to using abbreviations. --------------------------

When I first started getting Zocor/Plavix from the VA, it was the US branded drug. Then, they changed to a canadian branded "generic" labelled form. The hue and cry started about importing drugs from Canada, and the VA went back to the US branded version. I suppose if and when the VA stops supplying the drug (possibly in Aug if they apply the policy), I'll go back to the insurance company and get a signed letter (if possible) stating why the VA is refusing to supply a formulary drug to a veteran under the veteran's drug benefits act. Next I'll take that letter to my congressman and start the fun and games.

Actually, I've been getting Plavix (Zocor) from the VA since 2002. My cardiologist also stated that I would need it for life I've also taken asprin with Plavix on a daily basis since 2001. I like the idea of filing "malpractice" and practicing without a license claims against the VA administrative system that is denying the drug. Perhaps a class action would be appropriate. <G> The Drug benefit program for all veteran's says nothing about the ability of the VA to deny a formulary drug to a veteran. Nor does it require a veteran to be treated by the VA. I did place a statement in my VA records the the VA does NOT provide my medical care, other than on an occasional basis. I. E. A routine visit for periodic tests and drug renewal with a minor non cronic condition present or discovered that merits short term medication.