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caregiver program is so screwed up, seriously........if they actually implemented that program consistently from one location to another, I would be raising hell. I know I qualify, and I can drive. Driving isn't a disqualifying factor at all, dude I know was on Quest for Kona and his wife is paid at tier 3!

I thought your wife was also your caregiver? Does she not receive income for that as well?

Asknod, So, after all the back and forth with my VRC.......I still don't have a written ILP to sign. She simply sent me letters twice saying I wasn't in the program, I called the whitehouse hotline back in September and then got her supervisor who then got my stuff rolling again, still refuse my avocation. My VRC met with me AGAIN in October and I had to send her links to every single item that I was asking for and that I had recommendations from my doctors for, but I had to get another recommendation for one item. I sent her an email back saying forget that then, I am not paying my outside doctor for another appointment to get her to sign another letter (no VA doctor seems to want to fill out anything for my mh stuff, I see a non va provider) Anyway, I CANNOT find anywhere that the CFR says the avocation has to be recent, only that I had to have participated in it previously for at least 12 months. I know if I bring it up again, she will just send me a letter that I am not eligible for ILP/voc rehab like before........it took her over a month from the time I sent her the links to actually make an appointment to see me today and I emailed her to ask what was going on, by the time I actually receive any of these items I mine as well have bought them myself. Some of them are things I actually need. I started this in Jan. and this is getting ridiculous honestly. Is this normal??? Thanks!

I have bipolar II disorder, and no medication has ever "worked" for me, I am highly med sensitive and it is VERY complicated, add to that diagnosis PTSD and it is a hot mess of trying to treat with my med. issues. I do not and have never drank so that I cannot say anything about but don't think that just because one woman was fine who had bipolar and took her meds that everyone who has bipolar disorder is the same, we are not sadly. If only it were that simple

Sorry, I should have made it more clear.....exactly what Berta stated. My kids went through their VA rep at their college and the VA education folks directly I did not have to deal with it with the RO, no appeals etc.

I can't answer all your questions, but my oldest two children did receive chapter 35 benefits for the time I was retro IU PT and they would have received chapter 35 and did not, NOW don't forget they will take the money YOU received for them as a dependent over 18 and in school for that period of time.....which is far less but they will take it.

I have 3 children that have used chapter 35 or are using it so far and 2 more to go.....they don't apply until they are going to enroll and the college also certifies them (most universities/colleges have a va rep these days), our kids have scholarships that cover all their costs of tuition and books and use their chapter 35 and any other scholarship, grants, etc. over that to pay their rent, etc. because they do not live on campus. Chapter 35 goes directly to them, not to the school, as was mentioned above.

I am rated for a mental health condition, that condition is listed first and then the other diagnoses are in parenthesis after it.........when I have had c and p exams they take into account all my service connected mental health, mh is currently 70% and I have also just completed CBT, which was very hard!! So many years later.......20 plus for me since leaving the Navy and I felt like I was often going backwards instead of forwards having to put those PTSD/anxiety type things down on paper, going through discussing them etc. was not easy and I will admit that I wanted to quit many times. Just on the other side of it and I will say that it did teach me some great tools I didn't have before and I have no regrets that I did it, my psychologist was amazing. I do not get seen in the mh clinic at my VA, I saw her through telehealth and have zero desire to do group therapy, she hasn't even suggested it to me, we still do one on one therapy and that is a great fit for me. Group therapy would probably push me over my limits on being demanding emotionally and physically. Whichever you choose I wish you the best, we all have personal limitations that we have to weigh!

yes, so true! I used voc. rehab long ago and now I am in ILP and even though I was initially said I qualify the vrc was a pain and kept telling me that instead of item x, which my doctor approved and I was forced to have recommendations for every.single.thing....then she decided I had to volunteer in order to prove "improvement in my interaction with community, etc." I said, No! I am 100% PT with SMC L, I am not and cannot volunteer.........no, not answering phones, no not anything else......Also, they refused to allow me an avocation stating it had to be something I had done in the previous 12-14 months. I had been too sick to do anything other than try to seek and fight for care for myself, with the help of my spouse, my congressman. I gave up on the avocation part because they insist that 12-24 month deal is something I cannot fight?? Guess if you come home really screwed up and end up in Walter Reed for a couple years focusing on surgeries and rehab then you just don't get the benefit of you ILP helping you with a avocation that is suited to your ability and accommodates your disabilities. ILP is a mess, a hot mess, imo and if you get into the program and actually receive some of the things to make you a little more independent and live a more fulfilling life you are one of the lucky few

I have never filed a nod, screw that.........I have had that RO pull some really dirty stuff, against the CFR 38 and I called them out on in by A. emailing with documented evidence that they were wrong every person I could think of in the VA top to bottom, I had a proposal to reduce my rating go from there to increasing me to 90% IU PT from 70% IU PT, (whereas the reduction would have lost my IU PT) with 4 items deferred, and an APOLOGY from the RO within two weeks of writing those emails, I was called first by a lovely woman who informed me I would be hearing from my RO within two weeks. All of my service connected disabilities were at least 10 years old and none of them had improved at all, which was very obvious by the A and A form my neurologist filled out.......I received that letter to reduce in March, new letter in April and then after all my deferred issues were taken care of by November I was 100% PT with SMC L and K...........far cry from my beeswax reduction to 60% because of some quack who did my CP exam who was a GP and said I didn't have migraines, reduction from 50 to 0%, however my neurologist had my husband trained to give me injections in the year or so previously for my migraines, I am on 4 medications for them and my neuro filled out my A and A because they are so debilitating. I don't mess around with talking to the RO or even my VSO at this point, they just tell you to file a NOD and sit back and wait for the hammer to drop. I even had one examiner put that I may be malingering about a vestibular disorder, which was confirmed and diagnosed by Shands. When you start sending supporting documentation like I had, only an idiot (or a rater) would say that you aren't disabled or it wasn't service connected. I literally had to get on the phone with a guy from the RO and tell him what page in my AD records each issue was, they couldn't be bothered to look up where I had been seen during AD, lazy.

I am assuming BPD is bipolar disorder? That is not considered a personality disorder and can absolutely be service connected, so if that is what you think the denial is for? I am quite confused honestly. It doesn't matter if you have depression, ptsd, or bipolar disorder, if you were seen for similar mental health issues while on active duty, then I don't understand why this is an issue? I was only seen twice and never admitted during service and I am service connected for bipolar disorder as well as other mental health diagnoses but they only list the first thing they rated me for in my award letter like 70% bipolar disorder (panic disorder with agoraphobia, anxiety, ptsd). It lists like every damn thing the va ever listed as a diagnosis, not kidding, nightmares, sleeping issues, etc.

Tell me you must not be in Florida where we having superb RO's and CP examiners LOL Sadly, it isn't funny but incredibly true!!

yep, broncovet is absolutely right........our dependents get choices, we don't. Someday, maybe???? I am not holding my breath, if I were still able to work and could have private health insurance even with the copays I would be happily paying for it and using it instead of the crappy va.

I have had to get my congressman's office involved for other things, not a claim and they were somewhat helpful. I have had better success with issues I have with the VA that aren't being taken care of in a timely manner, or things that the VA just tried to give me the run around about, ie . voc rehab, then I call the whitehouse hotline and start sending very informed emails with documentation attached to back up my issue and holy crap, those people who have been ignoring my non va authorization for mental health seem to find me a new provider after bugging them for months. They can't really deny that they haven't taken care of their part when it is all documented in secure messaging, etc. Voc. Rehab was giving me crap about my ILP, telling me I had to volunteer or I couldn't receive anything else which is total bs...........anyway the whitehouse hotline and emails have given me much better and faster results than my congressman's office.

This is exactly how i was TDIU then 100% schedular, I am not able to work and my disabilities have gotten worse as well as added some since my original award of TDIU, I do understand that there are many people rated at 100% and still working, I will never be one of them and having been IU before 100% kinda shows that I am unable to work. The va doesn't make sense all the time that is for sure, but the tdiu is definitely helpful when you cannot work and have a high enough rating to receive it, I felt comfortable going for the increase and wanted to be schedular if possible because they always seem to want to throw around taking away IU from veterans........who are the most vulnerable of us all imo.

yes, they will only count the 2 days, that will not count as a month against them............they should have taken a summer class as those who were already in Chapter 35 receipt will receive the full 48 months still.

If you are married and your spouse has earned income you can contribute to an IRA or Roth IRA, we do it every year.

I have never mentioned anything like that to my mh providers, they are horrible. My neurologist will help me with anything I need. He has had my husband trained to give me injections at home so I don't have to go to the ER, written letters for me, etc. He is the head of neurology and it isn't uncommon for him to secure message me on a Saturday or call me to check on me. Some providers are amazing like that and then there are the 75% of the crappy ones.

I opted out of B for the same reasons, you did........I have A, which is at no cost and have since 2009. I am 100% PT through the VA, and have never had anyone messing around with me about canceling appointments. The only problems I have are when providers leave, etc. Keep your A and when you get to retirement age add the B (you won't be charged the penalty then) if you choose, that is my plan if things haven't changed giving us more choices. I refuse to pay hundreds of dollars a month for service connected disabilities through medicare plus the copays and meds. THAT is a bs scam imo.

I am surprised you only posted 10!

It is near impossible to find a doctor to even see us without insurance, let alone fill out an IMO. Sad state of affairs really. I hate using the VA more than anything but have no other choice. Veterans like me are screwed, if you get a back doc, well that is how it is. Fighting is futile really until you get enough ammo together to get someone involved to fight for you that has more pull than you do. Now, if I were a post 9/11 veteran I would have all the resources available to me, from the VA as well as organizations that ONLY cater to post 9/11 veterans, who btw will never get a single penny from anyone in our circle of friends, family or veterans. So, I just fight another day and tell them if they refuse to provide me care, fine I won't set foot in a VA mh clinic or hospital. I will be dead first. I trust them about as much as a trust a crack head with a bowl of crack. ZERO.

Not sure about the L but don't be surprised if/when they decide you need a fiduciary.

I am as well, and AFTER prior to 1975 vets are started in the caregiver program sometime in early 2019. Then the plan is for the rest of us to be eligible 2 year later, so basically as happy as I am for Vietnam Vets and those from prior eras still living I think it is totally xxxxxx that as usual Desert Storm vets get the shaft.

I received a proposal to reduce before and it was a very clear package and gave me all my options were. It looked just like any other brown decision package and no one ever called me to tell me I was getting a reduction. It was a total BS proposal to reduce and I had it fixed in less than 2 weeks but that is another story.

If you didn't get an envelope how did you find out what they are proposing to reduce? This seems very odd. St. Pete is so screwed up but I at least get the envelopes. I have never heard of this being done over a phone call.