Philip Rogers

Nope, no contributing factors, Berta. He was an artillery officer and served in Korea, mid 60's. I'll try and post more, in a few days, as I'm having difficulty w/my scanner and had a tree come down, partially on the house, in last night's storm, that I need to deal with. Fortunately, I have a rented Conex container in my yard, that I use for storage, that took the brunt of the tree and spared much damage to the house. pr

Robert V Chisholm won me a remand, at the court, on my SMC claim, a few yrs back. He knows what he's doing. pr

Carlie - the original rating decision, dated 7/14/69 states: "J. Original claim for death compensation I. SC for cause of death. F. Veteran died of an aneurysm. Cause of death appeared for the first time on death certificate. Service records are negative for cause of death and for any other condition which might be related to cause of death. 8d. NSC, PTE, VE Cause of death - Recurrent subarachnoid hemorrhage, ruptured cerebral aneurysm." pr

Ask to speak to the VSC manager. pr

Actually a sensitive seven is a good thing, as it protects you from having the average VA bozo work on your claim as they have to be sure everything is done properly!! jmo pr

I'll post more tomorrow. I do have his SMR's, the Mass Gen records, the autopsy, etc.. A quick review shows a denial of SC, by the RO. I do have the ratings form. I believe I have a denial of new and material evidence, (ie: the autopsy, the NOD quoting 3.307, 3.309, etc, and much, much, more. Once I've reviewed the file I may see if I can post the decision(s), etc.. Reviewing his file, I must say . . . I was great . . . at least I think so. I'll appreciate you'alls review, when I get to it!!! I even sent them a diagram of the brain showing the aneurysm and the optic nerves but then we divorced. pr

Thanks, Berta. It was definitely a ruptured brain aneurysm. He was treated at Mass General, with a new procedure, at the time, a sleeve attached and he was sent home only to have another fatal one, shortly thereafter, in about 6 wks. He had very poor vision and at the time I felt that perhaps the aneurysm was causing pressure on an optic nerve, causing his poor vision. If I can't tie it to that, then I'm looking for how his discharge would effect SC. Since it happened so long after his Korean tour,64-65 or 66, they used his discharge from active duty as the reason for the denial. My arguement there has to do w/the fact that reserve officers are never discharged, unless requested and was hoping someone may have knowledge regarding that issue??? We do have the full autopsy report and his medical records from Mass General, however I haven't reviewed them in 12 yrs or so. pr

I started this claim many yrs ago for my wife (now ex) and her mother. Her father died of an aneurysm on 1/1/69. He was an ROTC, reserve officer and had served a yr in Korea in 1964-65, or thereabouts and was released from actice duty around 1966, but had reserve duty. Reserve officers are never actually discharged from the military unless they specificall request it. He requested a discharge and was discharged around Oct or Nov 1968. SC for an aneurysm can be attained if it happens within one yr of discharge. When he died they denied his widow SC and DIC. I started a CUE claim yrs ago but never followed up due to a messy divorce. Anyway, does anyone feel she has a leg to stand on based on his actual discharge date of 1968??? I feel she could, although it could take yrs. Any thoughts would be appreciated. pr

You can go to: http://search.uscourts.cavc.gov/ and enter what you're searching for, at the CAVC. pr

You can submit it but they don't have to accept what's been decided. Now, if you can find something like it at the court, that could help. When I did mine, I used much of the text I found, both at the court and the BVA, that was like mine, in proving my claim. pr

Ditto what Carlie posted. pr

Bob - You can request an updated copy, which includes anything since the first request was sent, for free or you can request a complete copy, which they charge by the page for, something like 25 cents per page. If your file is large, they may offer to allow you to do the copying, under their "watchful eye," (so you don't add evidence) for free also, thereby freeing up an employee for most of the time needed to do the copying. No check is needed w/your request but they may request one once they've decided what the cost might be. pr

Bergmann & Moore, my attys, looked at my denial letter and agreed to take the case to the court. We did the contract thru the mail and it took 7-10 days to sign & seal the agreement. They felt based on the denial letter that the VA has most probably made some errors. pr

If you have under 10 yrs @ 100% or TDIU, you may want to pursue these claims, in case any of them cause your death, as a way of protecting your spouses eligibility for DIC. Also additional percentages can add up to some SMC type pay, for you. The decision is yours. jmo pr

Thanks and no I don't think they need to provide one. The VA uses whomever they want because they are federal and the docs are on federal property, so they don't even need state licenses. pr

What is cv?? pr

It means you win the service connection part, due to the benefit of doubt, rule. pr

Could be a whoops moment, like an acidental double payment. Just wait and see. jmo pr

Yes, I believe they can do it, because it involves your mental health. They are afraid you might not understand something in there and it may push you over the edge. It's just to protect you (and them). jmo pr

I think you could have a CUE. See http://law.justia.com/cfr/title38/38-1.0.1.1.5.2.96.26.html I'd file a CUE and feel you'll win, at minimum 10% retro, for whatever yrs. jmo pr

I see a great case for PTSD and back problems, based on the mortuary affairs duties. If you really need the money soon, I suggest using an atty specializing in SSDI law and suggest using www.nosscr.org for a referral. I used one of their reps after fighting for almost 10 yrs and she won me 7yrs retro in just under 6 months. To me it's better to get 75% of a win than 100% of a loss and while you could win in the end, I believe an atty could do it faster. jmo Good luck, whatever you decide! pr

I agree on Binder & Binder, never use them!!! To me they take the easiest, slam dunk cases which makes their stats appear great. They denied my sister and she won with another atty, in about 10 months, about 3yrs of benefits. Just sayin' . . . (just thinkin' of ya, Larry, wherever ya are!) pr

That's one of their generalized letters that you have one yr to decide but if nothing is heard within 30 days they will make a decision, based on the evidence of record. Claimants rarely realize that evidence submitted after the 30 days requires an additional decision, by the RO, based on the subsequently submitted evidence. I believe what happens is when evidence is submitted around or after the 30 days, the VA just ignores it and not knowing any better the claimants don't pursue the claim. jmo pr

Pete53 - can you post where that's from?? I can't see them allowing only 30 days. I believe you have one yr on most VA decisions, until you get to the final decision by the BVA and then the court makes the rules. jmo pr

I'd say your odds are probably 95%, in your favor, provided you use the right atty/firm and you have good evidence. Even without good evidence your chances are better w/a good atty. Remember, the atty should specialize in VA law. jmo pr