mitchell3006

Don't trust anything you read on the IRIS or hear on the 800#. You will probably see a deposit first if you have direct. Otherwise wait for the letter. Don't get your hopes up or down based on the other two. Mark

Larry J, Got my mom signed up many years late for CHAMPVA. Have some experience getting back reimbursement for her (12G or so). Go to pharmacy and get printout of all presciptions and bills. If you have insurance on her get copy of EOB form and cross reference them. Get claim form from VA website (10-7959a) I think is number. Send these to CHAMPVA. They are helpful on phone and will actually let you know what they need to approve and pay. Do the same with doctors offices. Make sure that their bill is like insurance billing. It has to show the diagnostic and procedure codes. There 800# is 18007338387.Their portion of the website is actually pretty straight forward. Hope this helps. Mark

No test for tinnitus. They can play around with tones to help you get an idea of frequency that the ringing is close too. You basically just tell them you hear it and that you've heard it since the onset in service or whenever it started. If it bothers you when you try to sleep, try using a small fan to mask the noise. So far there is no real treatment for it. Mark

If your records show the loss then you have an obvious service connection (to us anyway, with VA who knows...). Seriously use those two to file the initial claim for loss also document and file if you have tinnitus (ringing in the ears). The hearing loss takes a lot of loss before it pays anything. Tinnitus pays 10%. The nature of your service specialty is high risk for hearing loss. Make sure you explain the job and what noise exposure you had in the military to the C&P examiner and audiologist.

Betty Wonderful news. It's about time. Y'all enjoy the money and have yourselves a little vacation. I'm really proud for you. Mark

Betty, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! B) This little guy will show you where to look to give thanks. Sorry I haven't posted sooner but I have been off for the last few weeks and my home PC wont work with new format. Need to talk to TBird if I remember. Then I would have known sooner. It's about time they came through for you. Mark

Berta, Haven't seen that one but was given a business card for "After Hours Crisis Calls" at each station last trip to Jackson VAMC. Has national suicide hotline number and Houston call center and Emergency department numbers on it. They seem to be trying some at least. Mark

Cowgirl, My PC is a female NP. SHe does a great job. I had been being seen by young male MD at ENT. Now a more senior female MD with a bunch more initials behind her name is seeing me. Most of Jackson,MS VAMC primary clinics are staffed by NP it seems. All I have seen have been good folks. Specialty clinics have mostly MDs. Not all as nice as the NPs. Mark

Tbird, If you vote NO it still makes you choose a topic to split off or it won't accept your vote. Mark

Berta, So sorry for the delay. I get a compliment for fast reply then miss the return post for two weeks. Please forgive me. Dad was in country helo pilot with 1st Cav.

I sent in a letter asking for a review of the file and that sufficed to get it started. It should be just a check and review of records. I don't see any reason that any evidence would have to be sent in in my mother's case. She already gets DIC just the eligibility date is wrong. Mark

Berta, I read Nehmer the same way you do. We discussed it a little while back and I have been reading all I could on it since. I have a claim in for my mother as a surviving spouse now. I spoke to one of the ROs in the Jackson Office and she said that mother should be eligible for big back check and that Nehmer did in fact apply to surviving dependants i.e. me, my children if I died. She said that VA had responsibility to track down survivors after veteran's death and to continue down line if spouse died. Unlike other claims that die with veteran, Nehmer claims are supposed to be paid to someone in the line of inheritance. By the way, just a plug for the folks that have called me from Jackson VARO, they have been the nicest and most helpful. My claim is still pending but two different ROs have called to clarify various sections of claim and ongoing appeal and have surprised me with their professionalism. Both have discussed that they have several new trainees in office. Maybe this is a sign of improvement. Mark

B) This is a great article for me. I am fighting with them over vertigo and possible Meniere's now. Already SC for hearing and tinnitus. Vestibular side may be secondary. Thanks, Mark

I'll cross my fingers and toes for you Cowgirl. Ouch...cramp...cramp... Good Luck, Mark

I think I'm going to have to jump in on Ron's side. This form shouldn't hurt anything. It meerly cuts out inferring anything. "Inferring" can be synonimous with "assuming". This way you nail down what the VA can close the file on. You still have to file a specific NOD about the others. Maybe it will speed the process a little...Course maybe frogs wouldn't bump their butts... <_< Mark

Betty, Congratulations, just turned the computer on after camping for a week and decided to hunt for your latest post. Guess GOD told me the good news first. Something told me it would be here. Mark

Hey Betty, Just logged back in and saw the post. Believe and your blessing will come. Prayers and thoughts with you. :P Mitchell

I just noticed your percentage for the Meniere's. You should be getting minimum of 30% for Meniere's. 6205 Meniere's syndrome (endolymphatic hydrops): Hearing impairment with attacks of vertigo and cerebellar gait 100 occurring more than once weekly, with or without tinnitus.... Hearing impairment with attacks of vertigo and cerebellar gait 60 occurring from one to four times a month, with or without tinnitus..................................................... Hearing impairment with vertigo less than once a month, with 30 or without tinnitus.......................................... Note: Evaluate Meniere's syndrome either under these criteria or by separately evaluating vertigo (as a peripheral vestibular disorder), hearing impairment, and tinnitus, whichever method results in a higher overall evaluation. But do not combine an evaluation for hearing impairment, tinnitus, or vertigo with an evaluation under diagnostic code 6205. This is straight from 38 CFR. This is what I was talking about on the jumps on percentage. Mark

:) This may take a little explaining. I wonder about posting ideas of what to look for as far as claims. Example: Vet has bad left knee. Obviously the left knee would be applied for. But many vets younger vets don't think to look at secondary problems like right knee due to over stress, maybe hip pain due to limp, back pain, or even GERD due to meds. They don't realize that the combination of these symptoms that is preventing them from having gainful employment may entitle them to more compensation. VA may only give them 10% for the left knee if they don't pursue the others. Don't know if this is coming out right. I'm not talking about shotgunning or fishing but legitimate ideas for secondaries that many inexperienced or younger vets may not be aware of.

Sorry but that isn't allowed Meniere's under 6205 includes tinnitus as part of the condition so the tinnitus 6260 is not allowed as seperate. That would be stacking according to regs. It can be rated seperate with hearing loss and peripheral vestibular disorder if that will give a higher percentage. Probably not as Meniere's jumps quickly by itself. Mark

Berta, Good Luck. Our prayers are with you.

Good deal. I still have to dig through the boxes of records and try to find all the awards over the years and put them in some kind of order. Thanks so much for the info. Lets me know I'm doing something worthwhile. This could be in the neighborhood of 50k back pay if I figured right. Its several years worth. will definitely help her.

We got her started with the application for CHAMPVA as soon as I realized that she should be covered. He was only being paid at 60% when he died. Don't know what the DMII and Peripheral Neuropathy might have added to that. Was not 100% P&T at time of death. We already covered Social Security. Took forever with them to admit the conditions disabled him. My argument to judge was that they had to be disabling, death is about as disabled as you can get.

Berta, I thought I was on the right track but guess I needed confirmation that it wasn't wishful thinking. She got dropped through the cracks with the change in county VSOs. The new one assumed that everything was taken care of and she believed the VA letter. They offered her education benefits. No info on ChampVA or anything else. I have looked at this stuff enough till I think I confused myself. I know, easy to do. I still have two claims and an appeal pending and I guess this gives me something to do while I wait. Thanks for the quick response. Mark

In the VA Summary of Evidence granting DIC in 2001 they say: 01/03/94 "A statement was recieved from MR. XXXXXCounty VSO, indicating that widow wished to continue the veteran's claim for service connection resulting from AO exposure as she feels his death is service connected" (Died 12/15/93) Decision was deferred pending reciept of alternative processing instructions. Formal 21-534 recieved on 04/21/94 Decision denying claim was 05/05/94 (wish they were still that quick to let us know something. Mom's VSO went down due to Alzhiemer's about the time she was granted DIC so she missed out on a lot. She has been paying insurance, glasses, presciptions, etc. I found this working on my own claims. Oct 2001 decision granted 08/01 as DMII effective date was 07/09/01??? This new claim was filed 04/03/01??? EED is strange anyway.