Philip Rogers

Yup, nothing like protecting "0%" ! It's service connected but only gets you counseling. ;-) pr

Wings, And your point is???? Remember, it protects service connection, not rating percentage. pr

Wings, I know it's all my fault and when the check comes in you can thank me. You'll be happy to hear the price of lobster is at an all time low. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, good! I know, I said I'd never mention it again but I lied. "SSDI, next!" pr

Wings, The RO, Oakland, is in charge, via the AMC, however any decision should be by the RO. Anyone other than the RO making the decision is an error. I still feel it's a winner. Never give up!!!!! jmo pr

I was lucky, I was able to meet up w/one of the guys, from my platoon, I hadn't seen since VN, 42 yrs ago. We had a good reunion!!! I also met some of the 1st Cav's color guard detail and I was very, very impressed with those young people, both male and female. I'm sending them some P-38's, which they never heard of and were quite impressed with. lol pr

I am sad to report I was unable to get to the National Archives. I only spent 2 days. Saturday & Sunday, in DC, before becoming overwhelmed, by the events going on and my personal emotions, causing me to extricate myself from the area. I'm sorry I couldn't do it! pr

I may be going to the NARA, in Maryland, where the unit records/lessons learned/after action reports are kept, not personnel records. It's where they find the records to verify stressors. pr

That's typical VA BS. Too bad for the Doc. pr

Maryland! NPRC is in St Louis.

I may be there next week and may be able to locate what you need but no promises. pr

Most likely the rater would rate you at 10% or 30%. The late Alex Humphrey, an attorney and a great friend of vets and Hadit.com) used to say he could get anyone a 100% w/a GAF of 50%. Unfortunately he passed away a few months back. You "should" get at least 50%, if not 70% but what you should get and reality are different. pr

Yes, you are correct, I believe the VA has to consider the SSDI decision but don't necessarily have to agree w/it. I would submit the SSDI decision as additional evidence to the existing claim. If the claim is at the BVA, I suggest waiving the original RO deciding and considering the SSDI evidence, otherwise the BVA will remand the claim for the RO to rule. jmo pr

Once the BVA makes the decision, your c-file is sent back to the original RO, with their decision, the RO figures out the award amount, authorizes the payment and sends you the award letter. Sometimes payment is received first and sometimes award letter is received first. That can generally take anywhere from 30 - 90 days or perhaps more, on rare occasions. pr

Robert stated "I sent all the proper paperwork to VA in 1983 and to weeks after I sent the paperwork.....I got a letter telling me no service connection so,I did not have money and gave up." I would CUE the original decision. Besides if his statement is factual, there's no way the VA could have processed a claim properly within a two week period. He needs to get copies of his complete service records. If he was discharged, due to his mental health, I would think he should have been retired out at a minimum of 30%. jmo pr

If it were me, once I received my current rating, I would pursue a Clear and Unmistakable Error(CUE) claim on their first decision. pr

Talking to legal is a great idea, however, I'd go w/a retired military lawyer practicing privately and specializing in military law. Legal on base works for the military, not you. jmo pr

I spoke w/magoo today and his computer went down, after he posted this. He is well and supposed to get computer back today or Monday. pr

I sincerely doubt we'll ever get a 25% increase, especially now, with what's going on w/the economy. Personally, I am quite please w/the 5.8% increase. That'll be an over $190 a month increase for me. Wow!!! I have enough as it is but then my wants and needs are minimal. jmo pr

You might want to really consider medical retirement. I believe with medical retirement you'll get lifetime Tricare or whatever it's called now, plus free air travel, etc, etc. That's a major benefit and would cover your dependents, also. Think it over carefully. jmo pr

Atty Alex Humphrey, a wonderful friend of vets and who posted here for many yrs, before he passed away, always stated that he'd use Robert Chisholm, in Rhode Island, if he needed an atty to represent him on a claim. pr

This is just an educated guess but they would retire those with 30% or more disability and as a retiree you would get a retirees ID card, allowing you access to base activities. pr

CG - if the returned receipt's signature is unreadable, take it back to the PO and have them get the persons printed name that signed it. I do that all the time. jmo pr

I thought the max age on children as dependents is 19yo? I know SS reduced theirs some years back. As for the overpayment, you should have requested a waiver, if you notified the VA and the VA made the error. Also, you should've realized they hadn't reduced your payment and therefore you may be responsible for any overpayment. jmo pr

Carla, you can get it from www.nvlsp.org. I've been getting it for about 8-10 yrs. It updates changes in VA laws and cases and basically gives advice as to how to handle claims using the changes, quarterly. These changes are then incorporated into the newest edition of the VBM, annually. It's well worth the money!! pr

skunk, your son's claim for school is "his claim" and "not yours," which is why they may be ignoring you. He needs to apply. Sorry but that's the way it is. pr