Capt.

Hello Meg and Phillip,,,,, I think all Veterans are in for alot of trouble and it is going to get worse. The DOD is DOWNSIZING and the dollars are getting harder for VA and its budgets too. This thing is getting scarey and I believe all ofus see it coming and know deep down that the backlogs are not going to get better but worse. Less dollars means more of what Phillip and you are saying. More remands , more faulty decisions and more stalling which takes time ,,,,,,,which means less money leaving the budgets. I am really concerned as we see so many new folks coming to Hadit and so many heartbreaking stories. More of our Veterans being Medboarded or asked to sign goofy agreements before they get out. It is getting worse and I see all of us here at Hadit trying to help more as the situation is obviously going off the track. But the backlog is getting so bad and increasing even faster than we could or would imagine. The tactics to deny are getting so ridiculous at the VA. Thanks so much Phillip and Meg for what you do. It does make a difference. How are we going to take care of our Veterans???? Whats worse is how do we keep our military strong for the next bunch of enemies looming in all parts of the world? Who would really want to go in and serve when the public is getting just a small piece of how we are taking care of our soldiers? These are some incredibly disheartening times we live in and watching these new folks come onto the board with their stories and experiences is worse than it was just 5 years ago here at Hadit. I can look back and really see it. I really mean it now more than ever ....... we can NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless...... C.C. I

SP4,,,Ralph,,,,you and I have quite alot in common,,,,AO is just one of the contaminates that has started this disaster with my health. The Peripheral Neuropathy is the worst and the others Ischemic heart disease , Atherosclerosis, Carotid artery disease, Rheumatoid Arthertist, Inflammatory bowel disease, Immune system problems, COPD, Restricted Lung Disease, Pulmonary Hypertension, Edema, Dry Eyes, loss of motor function, Skin problems, Tinnitus, hearing loss, Depression and Anxiety from the constant pain. Yes ,having the heart attack did not help you or I at all so our main goal is to wait and get our claims adjudicated and outlast them. And if you decide to give up , I will have to remind you that you cannot or will not ever ever ......NEVER GIVE UP..God Bless, C.C.

Hello and WELCOME aboard..... I am so sorry that you have to go thru this but I believe you are in DIRE need of legal help ..... a lawyer. I agree with what the others have said and also think that if your claim has reached a final decision and the case is closed you would as Bronco said have to reopen the claim. There may be a chance to have it CUED(Clear unmistakeable error) also if it has been Closed. This may be why they keep sending you closed issues when you reply to them and the Congressman is getting the same lame excuse from them so he can only go with what they are telling him or her. For the most part Congressman are not of much help in Veterans claims. There are only a few here on the board that have had help. As JBasser pointed out ...it is not suppose to be a claim but they seem to think it is. A dependent issue as he pointed out is ancillary. It is a benefit law nothing to do with a rating. If they are seeing you for free at the hospital then there is something very amiss . This is going to have to be carefully done because of the smoke screen the VA is laying down causing this confusion. Now one of the long shots and this one is a drastic measure .....is to get all of your evidence and try to hold a PRESS conference with your T.V station and don't forget to show your Congressman letters and responses. That may put a fire under the Congressman when cameras and questions are pointed to him and he couldn't do anything. Just a thought. But I know that a couple of our members have tried that too and it has worked for them. Dependent issues are very common , I too am dealing with one , so I would keep very close guard on your records and timelines , deadline dates. Your main goal is to dig in , get that Lawyer ,,,,, and NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

Hello Tbird..... I thought I might have got a virus or something.....or loosing my mind ....which could still be on table.....LOL....I am not mad or happy...... just glad to still be here and see help for our Vets, Dependents , Widows. Thank you again for your help and keeping OUR site going for every Veteran. NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

Hello John, Yes ,,,,most want to "practice" medicine and not make the obvious connection. They are afraid you might get cured and stop the prescription runs and the appointments. I have actually had a few VA doctors that wrote pretty good notes and such for AO exposures on some of it. Could have been better but not too bad. And had a AO DVQ done on the IHD. I actually had a VA Neurologist that told me he said my PN looked like a chemical exposure and said I needed to research where I was stationed. Then he and the others on the Neurology team ordered more Electromyography and Needle nerve conductivity test............................like 3 more and all confirmed the same. Still we have to help the doctors as best we can and lead them along alot of times making sure the doctors have records, reports , med records. Or the VA will say the opinion is not probative or that the doctor did not have all of the records. So it sometimes takes time and lots of research. NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

Hello John and Pete,,,,,, I hope this website will help you both and I know what both of you are dealing with. It is really hard to talk to someone how tough this stuff is. We have alot of Veterans dealing with PN and though AO is the main culprit with most Vets with it , the VA trys to brush it off and not admit the problem is AO and that the Veteran was exposed to it. PN causes so much pain and discomfort that people , and friends look at us as if we are crazy.......................... but problem is that pain can be so severe that depression and anxiety are a big problem. The National Institute of Health says that it is an "insidious disease" with no cures and limited treatment. So many Veterans do not realize they have a possible service connection and it may take years as in my case , to diagnose it and then put the puzzle together. But then alot of Veterans also do not realize that the Depression and Anxiety can be service connected possibly secondary to the disease. I do know that it will limit a person in what they can physically do and may lead into other health problems complicating matters even more. I do hope that we can all help other Veterans coming into Hadit with our experience with it and the VA failure to work with those that have it as far as service connection. I also hope that the VA will start to look at this disease and that regulations will change so as to not require the DMII with PN as secondary. Many Veterans have PN from AO or some other Chemical exposures and do not have DMII. I am one of those. I also posted a couple of BVA decisions which were granted without DMII and they are archived here with Dr. Durham and Dr. Yu as the IMO doctors. These 2 cases are HUGE and prove that DMII does not have to included with the Veterans Peripheral Neuropathy Diseases. I knonw that they are archived in the AO section here from a while back. I am sure there are others in the BVA archives. Education to the public and to our friends and family will help but we have to be vocal and try to find more information and medical treaties to bring to the forefront to help. I do offer to any of our Veterans with Peripheral Neuropathy that I will supply them with anything I have on it. I know that our archive here at Hadit concerning other bases that have had AO and the training seminar is extremely important. That training seminar is the only real solid evidence that unlocks bases in the US that we know it was used at . Now we need to just study and dig for those nuggets for each base. Just as Berta and James Cripps, and Kurt Priessman did with the research they did. I wish the VCAA was really suppose to help us but counting on the Veteran to get any help from the VA to "assist" to produce evidence will never happen. And it has to happen because the Veteran can NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello All, I wanted to post this as many of our members are dealing with Peripheral Neuropathy which is especially connected to Agent Orange. The website is important because of cases that have gone before the VA and these examples show powerful examples of individual claims that did get awarded. It also opens up some support for us that deal with this disease everyday and hopefully will help those in need of answers or trying to fight the battle with the illegal laws VA uses to deny AO and PN associated claims. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C. http://www.neuropathysupportnetwork.org/pdfs/Sample-Legal-Documents-Veterans-Agent-Orange.pdf

Hello John.... You would think the VARO would see that. Just more to put into the backlog. Oh yes....John...... HAPPY BIRTHDAY.... NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

Hello All, Berta and Carlie,,,, I could not agree more with the use of the Benefit of a Doubt (BOD) and what both of you have said. Asknod is on target. I have made several post concerning the BOD and it is without question one of the Veterans most powerful laws. However it almost always is utilized in the BVA arena and very , VERY seldom even acknowledged in the RO level except to say it does not apply. It is used by the RO to just ignore the evidence until remanded by the BVA or CAVC and the importance of it pointed out to the RO. Its like "Ohhhh you mean we do have to look at the Veterans evidence in equipoise". They know it. I am also amazed at some veterans lack of evidence to support the BOD rule and why they think they should be awarded. It is all about evidence, that means ....buddy statements,,,,,,, Hard IMOs.......... Medical reports............. Scientific evidence............ Medical Rational....... Service records....... . A claim is not going to be won on luck or without preparation. Even with the help of a lawyer , the Veteran has to prepare claim and make sure the table of evidence is there to be put into play. Remember , even the best lawyer cannot make it happen unless the Veteran can provide all the evidence. It is almost impossible for a Veteran to win if he or she does not get involved and hands on with their claim. I would also like to say that taking advice here at Hadit is a team effort. Its a safety cushion to not try and Maverick a claim on methods that are not proven, but rather using the tools here of other Veterans that have been there and done that. Its all about cutting the time off of a claim without having to live in the Remand box or even worse the AMC hole. I also believe that if a Veteran could have these tools of advice and the GREAT Archives we have here, we would not see such a HUGE backlog. My point here is as some of you have pointed out ...the claim could have been perfected better the first time around. We have so many veterans that have gotten either bad advice or bad representation that have lost valuable time with delays not necessary. If only they had found this place or one of the folks here to help. I think the advice here to all Veterans is to try and do it right the first time with as much evidence as possible. Connecting all the dots. Closing the loopholes as best as you can. If Carlie, Berta, John , Asknod, Kelly have pointed out, they all have been thru the process and each one including myself is saying the same thing. We all are hoping that another Veteran does not have to go thru what we have. Tugger, I hope you can hang in there and to tell us soon a success story. As always evidence is necessary to win coupled with an attitude of NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello 71, BINGO...... This may be really big for you. Jbasser hopefully will pick this up on the diaghram issue. he has experience with this one and knows what needs to be done with it. It is interesting that you are not alone when it comes to Pulmonary Hypertension and the Sleep Apnea issue is them trying to stall the outcome. If they change your diagnostic code on a respiratory issue then this could put you into the codes rateable for 100 percent. The sleep apnea is probably going to have to be awarded as a SECONDARY and they are already trying to head that off at the pass by not noticing the important issues which would allow the sleep apnea to be awarded secondary. Its like the VA doesn't want you to make any issue of the PH. Makes sense why the stall is going on for so long. You have them in a choke hold and they don't want to go to sleep and rather than make a decision in your favor , they do the only thing they can do and that is stall the veteran rather than give the award. You are going to have to get them to start moving in the process. I would get a lawyer to keep the road clear of the obstacles and a fresh IME like you are saying. Do you have any C and P exams concerning your respiratory issues and I would go over those results again? Isn't it something that the tactics they use are pretty much done to each one of us. I know Hadit has a huge archive but with these folks they use their archives and at least they are consistant. I believe you may have a chance of keeping them having to follow a path they are trying to keep you off of. Now you have something to look at. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Great......now the backlog will automatically keep growing and no real answer to fix it or speed up decisions. This thing is broken and just as expected...... no one wants to fix it. Sad days continue to happen for our Veterans community. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello 71, I know what Jbasser is asking you and please look or listen to what he is saying about the Diaphram issue so try to look at the xrays and radiology reports. There is a way to start a new direction with this and to try and correct this mistake the VA is heading you down. Ok. First its going to go back to a Medical expert to point this to the direction you need to get it to go. According to the Veterans Benefits Manuel : 14.5.5.2 The BVA Erred in its Assessment of Medical Evidence...."Specifically , it is error for the Board to reject a medical opinion for the sole reason that the examiner did not review the veterans VA claims file. This rule is especially relevant when the Board assesses the probative value of a a private physician's medical opinion, as non-VA doctors are less likely to have reviewed the documents in the VA claims file. IN THESE SITUATIONS, THE BOARD MUST RECOGNIZE THAT THERE ARE OTHER MEANS BY WHICH A PRIVATE PHYSICIAN CAN BECOME AWARE OF CRITICAL MEDICAL FACT, NOT THE LEAST OF WHICH IS BY TREATING THE CLAIMANT FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME". LIKEWISE, IT IS ERROR FOR THE BOARD TO REJECT OR DISREGARD A MEDICAL OPINION SOLELY BECAUSE IT WAS BASED ON A HISTORY GIVEN BY THE VETERAN". Nieves v Rodriguez 22 Vet. App. at 303.... (The claims file is not a magical or talismanic set of documents, but rather a tool to assist VA examiners to become familiar with the facts necessary to form an expert opinion to assist the adjudicator in making a decision on a claim). And in 14.6.6.3 The BVA erred in its assessment of Relevant Lay Evidence, Buchanan v Nicholson. So you have a decision from VA that says one thing and not addressing the main issue or in your case , making up a story and neglecting/ignoring your medical record and the 38CFR/M21s. You getting a medical nexus , an IMO and your own statement cannot be discounted according to the above. I do not know how you can resteer this vessel back in the direction you want it to go without taking these steps. I am dealing with the same scenario you are describing, with my Section 1151. The VA is trying to cloud up your water and confuse everything that it reads is just like what they are doing to me. Same old tactic. I also want to point out the VA's negligence in trying to not discuss the Restricted Lung disease in the diagnostic code that will allow a 100 percent disability ,,,,,,,,,your right ventricular hypertrophy still has to be steered by a medical link and rational.....again a stout IMO. The VA saying asbestos was not found in your record is ridiculous . Anyone older than 40 years of age has been exposed to asbestos. Yes they are trying to make their own little treaties like you said. This one is easy to refute though. Getting it back to where the right ventricular hypertrophy is service connected and getting it a correct diagnostic code and getting their ERRONEOUS decision corrected and that direction stopped is the main goal. Waiting to file a CUE at the end of the case is really not going to help you .....you don't have 10-15 years to reach the end of your case and have it closed. Don't think its just your claim......I have a 100 percent rating due to Pulmonary Hypertension that they are not wanting to even look at. ......just like your RVH. Also the diagnostic code for me is also being ignored but it is listed on my award. Your injury from below can be brought into evidence and I do not know what you are or have done with this .But I do know it is going to be tough to get the RVH thru this door from this avenue. You are probably going to have to try a totally new path to steer it down and still stop the VA from continuing down the path they have started. I would also look at what Jbasser is asking because it may open another door thru your medical records. That might mean direction by your Primary care provider and an IMO. Regardless it looks like your own statements and an IMO is necessary to start this thing back on course. A journey that is still going to take time. Hopefully someone else will chime in also to help with this. At any event your dealing with VA deliberately trying to be stupid and cloud up those waters, testing your patience and fortitude. So I know you will......NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello 71M, I am trying to follow what the VA has decided in your claim and I do see the right ventricular hypertrophy but the 38 CFR has it rateable IF you are dealing with one of the lung diseases that it falls under. Such as the COPD under 38CFR 4.96 and 97 with the diagnostic code of 6604 or the Restricted Lung Disease of diagnostic code 6845. Do you have a rateable lung disorder? And if the VA is saying you were not exposed then you will have to look at where you were stationed and what years. Nearly all of the buildings before 1980 had asbestos in them. http://dec.alaska.gov/spar/csp/sites/ftgreely.htm Important state environmental agencies and other agencies like Base Realignment and Closure Commissions (BRAC), or Corps of Engineers reports.Especially state Environmental Agencies and possible EPA. Also private engineering companies like Jacobs Engineering or Teledyne Solutions, just to name a few are necessary to link the COC(Contaminate of Concern) to the locality and the years it was there. Concentrating on the Lung issues would be my #1 focus. I would leave the Sleep Apnea alone for now with Lung issue and it probably would have to be secondary. Maybe looking at something more serious as this article points out. http://ezinearticles.com/?Restrictive-Lung-Sleep-Disorders&id=409066 I would also look at "Sick Building Syndrome" which is not very well discussed among Veterans Claims. I do have an environmental scientist who gave expert testimony and the link of lung disease with asbestos , 2nd hand smoke , as well as cleaning fluids and buildings with no circulation systems. The VA has to take this type of testimony as long as it is probative and if it supports medical rational. I presume you were also in service in the 60s or 70s and do not know if you were in Vietnam. I think you know how hard Agent Orange is to link with Lung Diseases though I suspect that eventually the IOM or NIH will try and support that with studies and reports linking a nexus between the pulmonary issues and Agent Orange somewhere in the future. Hopefully this will maybe get you looking at other avenues of evidence and science to keep the VA at bay and a way to have a claim brought forward rather than have it brought to a standstill. The Restricted Lung Disease with Pulmonary Hypertension diagnosis is going to have to be dealt with by the VA eventually. And as slow as the VA is................. 3 yrs is a definite stall for you by the VA....still a Veteran has to keep his head up and NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello Aggie, I would hope your claim on the Lejune contamination has been filed and sorry you are dealing with these health issues. The Pulmonary Hypertension normally will only be found by EchoCardiogram and or Heart Cath. To be rated for Pulmonary Hypertension a Veteran must have a service connected lung disease. This means that the diagnostic codes must be following noted with the conditions listed under the code. I would like to say that the VA is not looking for this one to award the Veteran. Basically it comes down to an increase in the rateable condition of the lung disease that is governed by the M21 schedular. You cannot file a claim for Pulmonary Hypertension as it is rated in conjunction with the service connected disease. The Veteran really has to keep an eye on his records and to make sure the Heart Cath and the Echo cardiograms do list it.Even if the disease is listed , most of the time the VA will not award it unless the Veteran is careful to pursue it and stay on it. There is a difference between Hypertension and Pulmonary Hypertension and the VA does not treat them as the same. One is dealing with Cardiovascular System and the other is dealing with Pulmonary System so careful study of the M21 schedulars and the 38 CFRs have to be followed to see where the Veteran fits and what treatments are available if any and what benefits could be awarded. As always the Veteran has to keep his feet to the grindstone and move ahead and to NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

bump comeon all you mouse hoarders

https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2002/08/22/02-21366/schedule-for-rating-disabilities-guidelines-for-application-of-evaluation-criteria-for-certain Hello All, Here is the Federal Register rules proposal from back in 2002 concerning the Cardiovascular , Pulmonary areas and I want to especially bring up the rule governing PULMONARY HYPERTENSION. For the first provision, we propose to state when pulmonary function testing is not needed for disability evaluation purposes. The first instance would be when there is a maximum exercise capacity of record that is 20 ml/kg/min or less (which would result in a 60- or 100-percent evaluation). Although this test is not routinely done, and not all facilities have the necessary equipment to conduct the test, if available, it is a reliable and precise way to assess respiratory disability, so it may be used to evaluate when it is available and is reported at levels that would warrant a 60- or 100-percent evaluation. If not of record, however, evaluation will be based on alternative criteria. The second instance would be when pulmonary hypertension (documented by an echocardiogram or cardiac catheterization), cor pulmonale, or right ventricular hypertrophy has been diagnosed. Any of these would result in a 100-percent evaluation. The third instance would be when there is a history of one or more episodes of acute respiratory failure, and the fourth instance would be when there is a requirement for outpatient oxygen therapy, because either of these also establishes entitlement to a 100-percent evaluation. So whenever a veteran has a service connected lung disease with a diagnosis of Pulmonary Hypertension, with Heart Cath or Echocardiogram, Core Pulmonale, Right Ventricular Hypertrophy as the ruling says ......it is 100%. Many Veterans ,,,,including myself missed the PH diagnosis because , VA really will not want to talk about Pulmonary Hypertension and its limited treatment. It almost always will fall upon the Veteran or his Advocate or a good Friend .......Hooray Jbasser , to find it in the records . Do not expect the VA or Regional Office to list it in the claims process or to award it on their own. As the saying goes... the Veteran is his or hers own best Advocate. Lets see how many of our members have one of the diseases listed with a service connected award. It will be so neat to have someone find this in their record and to NOD or even reopen a claim because the VA never spotted it on their own. Oh yes ,,,,,the pyramiding rule would certainly apply. For instance if you have COPD at say 30 percent and have Pulmonary Hypertension , you would have the 30 percent raised to the 100 percent and any other pulmonary issues would be capped at the 100 percent level. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello Berta,,,,,, That a girl...... now we have another AO in the CONUS . Elgin Air Force Base , Florida. Thank you Berta for your hard work and study. We have another place now ARCHIVED here at Hadit.com and the list keeps on growing. When you look at the list say back in 2006 and 2007, there was hardly anyplace other than Vietnam. Now with the Awards coming in from so many places , the Agent Orange list just grows and grows and grows. It now is leaving the Veteran the option to study for the Medical connection and then finding evdence and proof that AO was there at the location , opens the courts up to use the Benefit of a Doubt Rule. Filing direct exposure claims but with the presumptive diseases list to link that for the Veteran and his claim process to be awarded in the end has now been proven to be effective in the legal arena. Berta , it was not that long ago and we remember how many denials there were in AO claims. Not so now but unfortunately the age of the Veterans winning means not a great number left so time is running out. When we see the list growing for the AO locations we also see the strong legal treaties and presentation of the claims getting better and more awards due to proper presentations. Thanks again Berta and we now have another Agent Orange location to the long list. NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

Hello Jim,,,,,,, You know it should make all Veterans sick to their stomach to see the attitude of Mr. Yang defending VAs position on something like this. How can Mr. Yang and many other people in the VA and the Justice Dept. sleep at night knowing what they do and say are basically against logical and sound minds. I believe Justice Roberts is kinda in a state of disbelief or confusion himself about how the VA really works. Happy New year....NEVER GIVE UP .God Bless, C.C.

Hello Berta,,, Yes I think there may have been a newspaper article but below in the links I have provided , there must be some smoke because even the Alaska Dept of Environmental Conservation is carrying the Haines Pipeline as one more area of AO contamination in soil. The other sites I have listed also show specifically without any doubt that AO was used there. I think in the other items archived here including the Installation and Assesment Report on Fort Greely from 1975 shows specific reports of Agent Orange/Dioxin and the Seminar Spraying records from 1973 I posted. That one alone really opens the door for AO use in CONUS. It would be interesting if your lawyer friend has seen these reports from BRAC, ADEC, and other agencies I have put into the Hadit AO archives. His opinion on what might be considered strong enough to be probative at the Court level. The real key in my opinion is that the remediation of those sites is ongoing and those sites have to be remediated and place under Method I , Method II, or Method III levels. Also they have to put these sites off limits to Humans due to hazardous to health concerns. Proving exposure is always an issue outside of Vietnam, but proving that Agent Orange was at the same location as the Veterans service records indicate is another story especially if there is no doubt that AO was present. I was wondering then if the Haines Pipeline Veteran is still going thru the court process. I thought he was already service connected for it. Anyway if thats the case then my possibly my case will be the precedent setting case for Agent Orange in Alaska. I am pretty sure that no other Veterans put forth the evidence that I have been fortunate to gather on Agent Orange documents from Alaska to put forth for developing an AO claim from Alaska. I just hope my lawyer is smart enough to put it together for the VA and the courts at some point. Anyway Berta ,,,, if you get time try and look at the links I have posted as it might help another Veteran or maybe your lawyer friend to help someone trying to figure the AO in Alaska connection. Good to see you posting again. HAPPY NEW YEAR. Its kinda errie how young all of us were when we started getting sick. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello All,,,, Ok so now we have one Veteran got sick from AO at 41,, and another at 52, another at 47 and another at late 40s........just like the report I listed below. Most veterans with AO are in the 80 percent and get sick with one or more of the diseases between ages of 42 and 50. Hmmmmmmmmm why is the way it is. .....One of my close friends who retired after 23 years a Navy Seal on teams 6 and 4 called me a couple of years ago to tell me he has MS and at only 43 years old. He also has to worry if this does not go off into ALS. I think we see a pattern and research and the numbers do not lie. It kinda scarey how accurate our numbers are. Lets see if we can get some more of our folks to list how old they were when succumbing to the diseases of Agent Orange. Oh yes Berta , once Agent Orange was used to treat the right of ways , airfields, large areas of foliage, it was just fine to go on and do what you want or need to do. No special precautions or anything like that. JohnJr , I know what your going thru......all of us here that have posted are in the same boat. Berta, I remember you posted the Haines Pipeline Agent Orange in Alaska Court report and we have it here somewhere. At least we have the reports I posted to show AO in Alaska... NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello All,,,,,, What a great General and as Jbasser pointed out ,,,,he did it right the first time out , without a bunch of Washington arm chair experts stalling him on his next plan. If the events took place today ........ I don't even want to speculate what might have happened. The General was precisely at the right place and at the right time to bring a place in history that our Soldiers and Veterans were all saying.... Getem General. His stature and leadership will be hard to replace. NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.

Hello John and T8 John ,,,, I believe that if we find more Veterans and the Agent Orange effects posting to their age it will come out to about 80 percent were from 42 to 50 years of age when they started to get sick. I have the same diseases you mentioned but without DMII and some others that deal with lungs and heart. I wish some more would chime in on the age they were when AO started to give them problems. It took me nearly 7 years of testing before all of my records and medical test and lots of digging into records finally put the light on the subject. T8 ,,,,, thanks for posting that and if you look you will find that Alaska does not have anything mentioned on it from VA...... Does that mean there was no AO in Alaska??? We know that AO was used extensively in Alaska by the DOD. These Agency reports leave no doubt, without question. So why don't they show up on DOD's list? I will win my AO claim though it may take years to propel it thru the system. And these reports will be part of the record. I would think that logical minds would agree that Agent Orange was in Alaska used by DOD. Yes I can prove exposure. Yes I was there. However we see the effect of trying to deal with a smoke and mirrors adjudication. I did not know if you were aware of the real issues involving Alaska and the AO connection but I hope this may help you to award or adjudicate a claim from the evidence presented by any other Alaska Agent Orange claimants. Rather than have to follow DOD and VA sites that you posted and then have to have a Veteran like myself to deal with BVA and then on to CAVC to prove that AO was in Alaska. Yes, I know that you being involved in the adjudication process are going to have to use VA guidelines that you posted links for, to award those Alaska AO claims. But understanding that in reality, the only real question for a rater or DRO is was the Veteran exposed and Medical Nexus to support it. Did the Veteran also have these documents that I have posted to support the Medical Opinion and the exposure issue? Wouldn't it be great to know that a VARO could actually award a claim from the evidence I posted rather than have remands from CAVC or BVA forcing them to. Such a huge waste of your time and the Veteran. Not to mention the cost in dollars. Hopefully you may be enlightened by the reports I have submitted. I would also like to say that I only posted SOME of the Agent Orange Sites at Fort Greely,not all of them and not the ones at Fort Wainwright and Fort Richardson , Eilson Air Force base or the other DOD sites in Alaska that have AO contamination or useage. There has been one claim from BVA that was awarded concerning AO and the Haines Pipeline. It is archived here in the AO category and Berta , I believe has authored that one. Though I did not link it below , it is here at Hadit archives. http://dec.alaska.gov/spar/csp/sites/haines_fair_pipe.htm http://www.dec.alaska.gov/Applications/SPAR/CCReports/Site_Report.aspx?Hazard_ID=4246 http://dec.alaska.gov/spar/csp/docs/ftgreely/ftgreely_dd06_08_05.pdf http://www.smdcen.us/rabfga/factsheets/brac112_fenced_salvage_area_factsheet_r1.pdf http://www.smdcen.us/rabfga/docs/Final_ROD_FGA%209%20IRP%20Sites_August%202009_Update2.pdf I hope some others will chime into their age as becoming sick with AO . Thanks John for that info ,,,,it lines up with me too having those issues. Neuropathy is a real bummer and you and I know what it does to the system. T8 ... I hope you will be able to use this to better adjudicate an Alaska AO claim in the future . Thanks for you trying to help and deal with sometimes impossible situations concerning VA claims adjudication. Thank God we have a site for Veterans that archives what we store for others thru research and study. Knowledge coupled with an understanding and remembering to ......................... NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless,C.C.

Hello Tawny, John, SP4, How old were each one of you when you started to succumb to Agent Orange? If AO was not real bad for humans , then why was it outlawed in 1975??? Certainly the logical answers should come to our aid as we fight to stay alive. I don't know when each one of you started to get sick but I was only 47 years old in 1997 and the rapid rate of onslaught moved so fast that the Doctors could not stay on top of it or move fast enough to treat it. So by 2005 I was in big trouble. People do not understand that Agent Orange is not leaving your system and continues to affect the human body. Each one of us knows personally the hardship to ourselves, family , friends. The huge lie put up by the DOD and the VA. The fight the VA gives each Veteran of that era to deny benefits or even treatment/medications has only gotten better thru nearly 5 decades of denials and an attitude of "prove you were exposed" even when you walk by the barrels or travel the fields, roads , runways treated by it. This is the biggest scandal and after another 25 years there will be no more AO Veterans alive and then.....only then will we really see the TRUTH about how dangerous a chemical this really was. I believe , that one day in the future, we will see a national awakening of Agent Orange and then the American Public and the world will see what has really happened to our Veterans who have suffered and died from it. But then the benefits and having to take care of the medical needs of AO Veterans will be gone. Once the Budget is safe from the burdens and expenses of treating those Veterans, then we can immortalize those Veterans who died from it, in wonderful buildings dedicated to them, national AO remembrance days, AO walls, etc........ Why couldn't we see that now .....or why couldn't we see it 15-20 years ago when the truth started coming out?????? Carefully hushed by Thinktankers assigned to protect the Budget. Sinister and deliberate, still on course, yet a vessel still moving across an ocean of deceit and denial. We, unfortunately, are onboard and there is no getting off the ship .....U.S.S. Agent Orange. Theres a signpost up ahead.....Next stop.... The Twilight Zone. Never Give Up. God Bless, C.C.

Hello All, Bronco,,,,, I too think it would be great and a total plus for all Veterans especially those that have been in lockdown for years in the appeals process. However I also know that the VA is not going down without a fight . This is their ace in the hole ,,,,,,, They use it and use it everyday to keep from awarding a veterans benefits. If this VA is ever going to get corrected it must be by Congress to change the WAY the process has to go. I do not think the Supremes are going to get off into it. We all know the problems and we are PRODUCTS of this process system , and its just about money and power. Something VA is not going to relinquish ........ they haven't had to in the past ,,,,,, and I doubt if there going to now. Oh yes , I forgot,,,,,,,,just think how a decision favorable for the Veterans by the Supremes would affect the Bonus system to the VBA . Yea it means that the 180,000,000 dollars in bonuses last year would come into great jeopardy. Something the upper managers and ROs are not going to allow. You can expect a fight from the Justice Dept. and they will find a way to have it thrown out. I wish it was not so but I have to be looking at how they have developed the PROCESS and it took a long time to get it to where they want it. And now it runs like a well oiled machine.......if you are the VA. I think we all want it but deep down , we probably will not see it in our lifetime. Still every Veteran has to try to make the wrongs come to the attention of other Veterans and Advocates and NEVER GIVE UP . God Bless, C.C.

MERRY CHRISTMAS to my Hadit family and to all of our Military brothers and sisters . NEVER GIVE UP. God Bless, C.C.