vetquest

As a retired veteran I receive Tricare and get all of my care through private doctors. I now only see the VA for my annual checkup. The MH and GP both tell me I am better off in the private sector and they do not want to provide duplicate care, at least they are honest. I am going to try to get some new medication for my SC disability through the VA because the copay is so high. I am torn between wanting to see veterans be able to get private care and wanting the VA to continue to exist. If they did away with the VA they may try to get us onto single payer and that would be no better off than we are now.

SealVet, I can understand your feeling this way about C&P's. I once said at a C&P that people who run or ride bikes make me angry. The examiner said "well I rode my bike today, how does that make you feel?" I have had a neurologist accuse me of malingering. No it is not right and it is a disservice to veterans who have sacrificed to their country. Here we can understand what you are going through and give our best advice. I was once left on a gurney at the VA emergency room hallway for four hours before I was seen. I suffer autonomic migraines due to an injury and was ignored. But if you are feeling anxious or angry try to get some help, especially if you might have PTSD. Untreated it can ruin your life. Try to get in to be seen for all of your SC issues, it makes it easier in the long run. I am not a wordsmith but there will be some others here that are much more eloquent to help.

The best way is to get a copy of your C&P and see what she said. You can request one at your release of information office. If you believed she fudged the report you can get an IMO but that costs money. One thing not to do is to say the doctor fudged your report, that will look poorly on you. I know that is not how the system is supposed to work but that is the way things shake out. Sometimes if the doctor does a poor C&P you can request another on the grounds that it was done poorly and did not include everything. Good luck and keep us posted.

I hope this is not political but I think the CBO should be more concerned about payments and medical care to those who have never worked a day in their life. Veterans earn their disability in peace time and war by putting their bodies on the line. I suffered a career ending injury through no fault of my own and am paying the price today forty some years later.

Definitely fight them. I went for TDIU and the VA threatened to reduce my PTSD and sever my migraines. The BVA is much more into reading the evidence and I have found them more willing to give the veteran their due.

Dates with the VA are definitely not speed dating. It took ten years for the VA to finalize my claim and I am now waiting on a DRO about an EED. When my claim is finally finished I will have to find something else to test my patience or I will feel lost. Where else in life can I find people who are so unfeeling and slow.

Unfortunately we cannot assist with this. The VA works not on the veterans' time but on their own time. They will draw out an appeal until the veteran is going insane. Sorry I cannot be of more help, I have a DRO appeal going on right now too. I have experienced better times at BVA than at RO levels.

I had a VA examiner one time say that since I was drawing from civilian disability unemployment insurance I was technically still employed and not eligible for TDIU. This same examiner later stated that my SC disability was not SC and was the main reason I was unemployable so no TDIU. Later when they realized their mistake and reapplied the SC they claimed it was not serious enough to cause unemployability. And then people wonder why veterans think the VA is out to get them.

Thank god the C&P docs never got to see my flash file. I agree with hamslice, it's like a stacked deck.

Good Job Hamslice.

If you want to change your representative use form: https://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-21-22-ARE.pdf I hope I understood your request correctly.

This is going to make me a supreme court junkie.

That is a dilemma. It seems by reading the denial you already have a claim pending. You say there is no record of it though. I say it is time to contact the white house vets number. 1-855-948-2311

Unfortunately there are two types of Long term disability insurance. Pre tax and after tax. If you are working and read this make sure that you get the after tax insurance. Pre tax LTD is taxable where after tax LTD is not taxable. It looks like he may lose this one. When I applied for TDIU they attempted to say my LTD plan superseded my rights to TDIU but mine is not taxable.

Good advice all around. No one has came out and said but in my humble opinion, You should try for an increase.

Check out the letters section and select benefits summary - veterans benefits and see what your monthly benefit is. Also look for wording that states you are receiving the 100% rate due to your service connected disabilities making you unemployable.

Your best bet is to wait and see where your case goes from here. If you say the examiner was not honest it could look bad on you. When you appeal, if that is necessary, you might need to get an IMO for your condition. So right now relax and wait. We on this board know how difficult that is but it is your sanity's best route. We have been there before, I had a neurologist write a very bad evaluation on me and it all worked out in the end.

As for the claim being denied it might be denied at the RO level but I doubt it would be denied at BVA. BVA is strong on good buddy letters. Before we start thinking about appealing, did the previous C&P's or your VA doctor provide a nexus? This could be used in your favor. As long as a doctor provides a nexus you can point this out. I would request your records and see what the other C&P's said about this. I would also request your treatment records. I am hoping that your claim will not be denied and need to go to BVA. As for personality disorders, the military and VA love to claim personality disorders. I was diagnosed with about six different ones before the VA settled on PTSD.

Wait until you get your BBE and check your Effective Dates carefully. There may be an error in effective dates.

Good deal that they invalidated the debt for you.

Yes, it would make sense but we are dealing with a governmental organization that is not here to serve you fairly, no matter what they say.

Bad paper discharges for some Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are the target of a class action law suit. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/12/22/class-action-suit-could-aid-more-50000-army-veterans-iraq-afghanistan-wars.html?ESRC=marine-a_181226.nl

Keep fighting and let us know what happens.

EED is earlier effective date. If you believe you were not given the correct effective date you can appeal this with more evidence. If you have more evidence that is great or you can just appeal and hope the BVA decides that your EED claim is valid with the evidence available.

Once you start a claim never withdraw your claim. You lose your effective date if you withdraw the claim and file a new one. It sounds like you have been given bad advice if I understand your situation correctly. Always remember that you have one year from the date of an award or denial to appeal. File your NOD in that timeframe and you keep your effective date. There is one other catch the VA sometimes uses, that is when they declare your condition was decided to be at a rating at the time of your C&P. I filed for increase of PTSD in 2007 was denied and appealed and was given an effective date of the C&P for the appeal; 2013. I appealed this again and my EED was moved back to 2007. The appeal of an EED does not always win but if you keep your case running you have a chance.