Rocketeer

Thanks Seminoles and killemall for the support!

Thanks L and Buck for the congrats and comments. Berta: yes I am receiving my full retired pay plus my disability since I was at 60% awarded last November. I will have to dig into CHAMPVA to see if it is any better/less pricy than Tricare Prime for retirees. We really like our military clinic pediatrician for our daughter so would probably just stay with Tricare for the whole family. Regarding combat related special compensation, yes a couple of my injuries (knee, hip) were sustained getting ready for Kabul deployment, but since I am over 50% I receive full retirement plus disability already. On the DIC, there is another clause that can also apply since my 100% award back dates to the date of separation: OR 100% rated Since the Veteran's release from active duty and for at least five years immediately preceding death. Thanks for passing along the info and congrats!

Thanks Berta for the comments! I just filled out the NM property tax exemption form! I am retired active duty so will have to see how CHAMPVA compares to Tricare Prime. I personally like having access ro both the military clinic and VA hospital, so I keep two PCMs. I definitelty like the benefit that if I die with 100% my spouse gets DIC regardless if SC'd reason. Yep my GERD got worse over the years by using 'aspirin' for my chest pains.

Long time reader of Hadit, first day member. I signed up to spread the good news and pass along my thanks and appreciation to all of you (and ask a math question in another thread). I am very thankful to all those who have posted and replied. This site and VBN gave me much information and inspiration as I worked thru my claims over the past 18 months. On 30 Nov E-bennies showed all my claims and deferred issues have finally been closed and reflected on the letters you can download...100% P&T!!! . Extremely thrilled and a bit in shock and disbelief. I want to pass on my excitement and hopefully some inspiration to those who are trudging thru the VA disability claims process. Keep at it! Every diagnosis and condition you obtained as a result of your service is a testament to the sacrifices you made for this nation. There are laws established to compensate you for that pound of flesh and mind you have given...be it in combat or back stateside in training, from stress, long hours, rough conditions, etc. Don't ever feel guilty about your compensation or seeking compensation. You earned it orders of magnitude more than anyone has ever 'earned' their mortgage deduction or welfare or food stamps. Those are entitlements...VA disability is legally deserved indemnification benefit from our US Government employer for the workplace injuries we incurred. It is only accessible to those who sacrificed in service to the nation. Yes the 'process' is a lot of red tape, but in my case the process MADE me seek the medical attention I needed to find out what was causing my issues so I would have the diagnosis to go with the symptoms for a proper claim. The money is nice, but truly I am thankful to the VA for this process because it is a forcing function to actually seeking root cause and not accepting the 'just take some Motrin' party line that the military docs told me for 21 years (guess what Motrin/Aleve/NSAIDs make a Hiatal Hernia/GERD worse and it doesn't fix a torn meniscus in the knee nor a laberal tear in the hip!) So don't forget that piece of this 'process'. While you are working your claims, and determining your issues, you are actually taking control of your health. Bottom line: 100% P&T whoo-hoo!! Thanks to all the posters for the information to keep me going. To all those still in the fight, keep at it! God Bless You All, and God Bless America! Rocketeer

Fun with Math indeed! Long time reader on Hadit, first time poster. I am very thankful to all those who have posted and replied. This site and VBN gave me much information and inspiration as I worked thru my claims over the past 18 months. On 30 Nov E-bennies showed all my claims and deferred issues have finally been closed and reflected on letters you can download...100% P&T!!! . Very thrilled, but in typical VA fashion, the math doesn't seem to add up (they can't make anything easy). I am wondering if there is a mystery bilateral in the mix. Here are my rated conditions: OSA 50% Migraines 30% Facial Scars 30% Bilateral Pes Planus (claimed as right and left ankle condition) 30% Hemorrhoids 20% Pain from facial scars 20% Right knee patellofemoral pain/meniscal tear 10% Right hip laberal tear/degenerative arthritis 10% GERD 10% Allergic Rhinitis 10% Two more right hip degenerative arthritis issues at 0% Right knee scar 0% Left shoulder joint separation at 0% Sinusitis 0% I called my VSO and she confirmed there are no other rated conditions on the info they can see and that the 100% P&T rating was correct and my confusion was just due to the complexities of VA math. I am still waiting on the BBE which I assume will better explain it, but in the meantime I would like to figure this out. With no bilats (straight combination of above) I get 93 using VA combined ratings table. If you count the right hip and knee as bilateral you get 94. Even if you toss in the 30 bilateral pes planus into bilateral factor calculation (which you shouldn't do) it is still 94. Only if you break up the bilateral pes planus into two separate unilateral 20s (one for right ankle, one for left ankle) and then combine those with the right knee and right hip does the bilateral factor allow the above to get to 95. Anybody see another solution? I am sure the BBE will explain everything (yeah right), but VA math is so fun I thought I would share/seek the wisdom of the HADIT community (and to help reassure me the 100% is real). All the best to you all!! Rocketeer