Rivet62

Thanks

Thanks. Brain fog and pain causes problems. It causes uncertainty in how I perceive things, like... am I reading things right, sort of thing. I'm not sure if the pain comes first and then the fog, or the fog then the pain. But thanks for your help. Truly.

I want to be very sure that I understand the span of employment history that VA is seeking for my TDIU claim. Some say, just provide the last 5 years from the date of the TDIU request/claim and backward from that date. Others say that VA wants the last 5 years of working history, the history of work prior to the recent 3 years of unemployment (3 years of unemployment, and the 5 years of working history prior to the 3 years of unemployment. What's right? The date that VA acknowledged receipt of my TDIU form is January 26, 2022. I went on eBenefits and it shows this:

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I found this: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.benefits.va.gov%2FWARMS%2Fdocs%2Fadmin21%2Fm21_1%2Fmr%2Fpart3%2Fsubptiv%2Fch05%2FM21-1III_iv_5.docx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK

My SOC states 10% for DDD lumbar thoracic because of painful motion, as right they should because not one examiner or care provider has measured my motion with a goniometer. I'm convinced those are used for decoration to look important. In fact, I bought one. I gaze wistfully from time to time wishing I had just one measured ROM. End of rant.

Yes. Even though the OP is talking about TDIU, the SSA rules about advanced age are realistic and could serve to help him decide. https://cpollardlaw.com/social-security-disability-lawyer-virginia/age-impact-ssdi-ssi-claims-special-rules-over-50-55/ If he starts his own business then there are vets programs to do so, in addition to SBA help. As far as I know, the IRS allows 3 years of net losses, and that may be the breather he needs to get established. Record keeping is best left to professionals imho.

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That's what it looks like to me, but usually things like that are direct-mailed to the official entity requesting it, to prevent tampering (like school transcripts or something of the kind). I would much prefer to have the form sent back to me so I know the employer has responded, then I can quickly upload it. VA has given me a 30 day time frame to upload things.

Thanks for the insight. I'll do what I can to make this part easier.

Ah ha. Ok then... Lol... thanks for all you've done here.

I want to avoid that, somehow. In that case, can I upload the records I have from private doctors?

It is simply a request for VA medical records, VA Form (Dec 2020) 10-5345. I suppose the Information Release office at a VAMC can better answer my question as to the current procedure, but like your experience shows it is something they might ask for again and again. I almost think the easier way would be to create a MYHealth eVet account, request premium access as a surviving spouse, since the radiology reports and lab tests and even imaging are now available on Blue Button in MyHealth eVet. He wasn't in the VA Health system for long before he died. I can imagine things get trickier when requesting records from decades ago.

Oh the dear man. What a good wife you've been.

That answers it. I'll do the compact PDF.

I have a question about employment records. I am doing a TDIU request, and I'm unsure of what records VBA will see when they request my employment records from the VAMC where I worked. Specifically, all the documents which show the doctors notes for sick leave, unpaid leave extensions due to service-connect disabilities, the medical transfer papers, and the FMLAs. It's the doctor's notes on the FMLAs that are the most supportive of my TDIU claim, imho. I would like to upload those in a compact PDF. Do you guys get to see those in the standard records request? Or do you guys just see total leave days etc?

Right. My understanding is that a comp exam done at the VAMC shows up in Blue Button, and that makes things much easier. I don't like the third party outsourcing either. I was especially surprised to see so much outsourcing occurring on the military bases now. I got out in '81, and the bases were their own islands, set apart from the commercial world. Times change, but maybe not for the better.

VA.gov is asking me to upload VA Form 21-4192s if I have them, for my TDIU claim/request. I want to be proactive and gather as many as I can, to upload into my TDIU claims processing. The form confuses me, and I suspect it might confuse my previous employers as well. Here's a screenshot of the form and what confuses me: https://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-21-4192-ARE.pdf Is Box 2 my address?

They also don't pay retro beyond two years anymore. I fell into that group of the 2 year limit. They used to go back beyond 2 years, and maybe they still do under a certain circumstance...I don't know.

Same here in my little city in Alabama. I went to the SSA office to pick up a printout of my lifetime work history. The doors were closed, and signs taped to the door, along with a free standing sign to call the 1-800 number. I called the 1-800 number and she told me that SSA is no longer printing out the work history (you need the earnings history so that a prospective appeal attorney can be sure you qualify based on work credits). The lady on the phone said that I would have to request the work history from some third party outfit in Maryland and that I WOULD HAVE TO PAY A FEE FOR IT. Or, I can access my records online, which I have had trouble with all along. I finally could see my records online, but this aspect leaves a lot of people unable to access their records in a timely fashion. You used to be able to go in, and take a number, and wait for a clerk to print it out. Anyway, the lady seemed to agree that SSA wants to move everything online and make it self-serve. Sign of the times. Covid being the go-to excuse for budget problems, imho.

I know at my VAMC they had a comp & pen department, and in that same department they had physicians and NPs do the pre-employment exams for prospective VAMC employees. In any case, I found the comp & pen department very approachable. I worked at the VAMC. It helps to smoke. You meet a lot of people in the smoke shack. I made a friend who worked in the comp & pen department. However, they would rotate these registration desk clerks from one department to another. Like I said, I had to travel quite a distance because I wasn't allowed to do the comp & pen exam at the VAMC where I worked (conflict of interest). The VAMC is so big that often times one desk doesn't know or understand what the next desk is doing, and the VBA is has very different concerns than the VHA, so that adds a layer of opacity to what vets face. That being, if it were me, I would GO to the VAMC's comp & pen department and ask if they are taking on new exams. I would get that answer from a supervisor and not just a clerk. I see some here on Hadit have opted for an Independent Medical Exam, in place of a C&P, but others have said that refusing to do a C&P on any basis is not wise. I really don't know. Maybe it helps to be a member of the American Legion and or the DAV to get help from other members beyond what is officially offered by the organizations. I am a member of both and if no one could or would help me then I would be re-thinking my dues and my memberships. I don't have an answer Mr. Cue. Only that I'm sorry your friend is facing this problem.

This is true. The treating doctors are very reluctant to do DBQs or make statements for the purpose of claims. They don't want to enter an adversarial relationship with the patient. It's like the difference between a workmans comp doctor and your primary care doctor,

This is true. One need only look at the position openings at USA.gov. There are many positions announced internally at a facility, that are not posted on USA.gov. It's more surprising to find a specialist who has stayed at a VAMC than to find vacant positions. Things change rapidly at a VAMC, not just the docs, but the administrative capacity as well. My VAMC was overwhelmed, especially after the Obama Care mandate.

And the problems are beyond just the pay. Remember when there was a requirement to see a patient within 15 minutes of registering for the appointment? And there is a requirement to answer MyHealth eVet messaging within 3 days. These pressures put doctors in the position of having to see as many patients as possible and they're pressed to get a patient in and out. So, beyond the pay there are problems with increasing requirements and changes nearly weekly, from every new exec that comes in with a cheeky new idea, and every change of Secretary of the Dept of Vet Affairs. There are continuous training tasks that must be done monthly. These are facility driven. It's nuts. All the reports...endless reports. Endless documentation. There are higher salaries though. It is surprising that a doctorate in psych can earn just as much if not more than some surgeons. I think the highest salary I have seen is nearly $200k, and that's a lot for bla bla bla. The highest I have seen for a specialty surgeon is $320k. There must be allowances, despite the congressional cap, and I have no idea what the administrative requirements are for exceeding the cap.

If I had the choice I would want the VAMC to do it. I understand that the VAMC comp and pen exams can be seen in Blue Button. That would sure beat having to request a copy of the C&P exam. I know that when I worked at my VAMC that our patient load got crazy after the Obama Care mandate. Vets piled into my VAMC to avoid having to pay the end of year penalty for lack of coverage. Our VAMC looked like a mall 2 days before Christmas. And forget the grass, we had vets parking everywhere.