Vync

I'm mixed about looking into it. With the combination of asthma, lumbar DDD, and hypertension, I have to pick and choose my activities carefully. Those shoes do sound really cool...

Thanks Pete, but I already got all of my medical files from the VA system. Now just to get everything else...

Congratulations!

Tips on communicating with VA health providers https://www.myhealth.va.gov/mhv-portal-web/...h_provider.html Some of these make sense, but I think the docs would be shocked so see a patient walk in with a grocery bag full of medication and a shopping list of questions/concerns.

John, I agree completely. I have had TMJ for only 16 years, which was caused by botched dental surgery. Chronic pain has been an unwelcome friend ever since. Also, my former boss got TMJ from a car wreck and had three surgeries to 'fix' it. It only made things worse.

Bergie, I tried that, but have not had any luck. John999, My dental exam should go well. The dentist who is doing it also saw me about a month ago and commented that my TMJ was worse than before. Luckily, the doc is older, not a young inexperienced puppet. Testvet, When I was at the C&P clinic, I glanced over at the rolling carts loaded with C-Files and wondered if you happened to be in the same building as me. I am doing what Bergie recommends. I plan to carry with me an index of all documents, ratings criteria, and copies of all evidence with key statements highlighted. If I make things easier for the doc, maybe they will respect it.

When I was at the VAMC yesterday, I picked up a "Veterans Travel Benefits" brochure from the Travel office window. It does not say VAMC. It says "VA health care services" and refers to requirements. Later, it points the reader to the URL you listed below. It also has a number for reporting fraud. In this case, it seems like the VA is causing fraud by not paying what you think you are owed. You might get a better clarification from those guys: VAOIG hotline 1-800-488-8244 8:30am-4:00pm EST M-F

I was there in person and showed the list to the attendant. They rescheduled it for a day next week.

I remember being told that I would only be given travel to the closest VAMC, unless I needed treatment at another facility. Regarding choosing your provider: http://www.patientadvocate.va.gov/rights.asp III. Participation in Treatment Decisions You will be given, in writing, the name and title of the provider in charge of your care. As our partner in healthcare, you have the right to be involved in choosing your provider. You also have the right to know the names and titles of those who provide you care. This includes students, residents and trainees. Providers will properly introduce themselves when they take part in your care.

More VA incompetence: I had a dental C&P exam scheduled for first thing this morning. I found out by getting a printed copy of my upcoming appointments this afternoon. No notification by phone or mail. This is the second time I had a C&P exam scheduled and was not notified.

My C-file is at my VAMC, in the C&P clinic. They said it was four volumes thick. I placed my initial request for a copy of it at the beginning of November 2009 and heard nothing at all from the VA, despite numerous calls. The only thing I learned was they will not send it for copying until all claims are completed. I asked the C&P clinic folks if they could route it through the VAMC's Release of Information office. The supervisor was not in the office at both the C&P clinic and the ROI office, but they asked me to follow up tomorrow. Anyone have any luck getting a copy of their C-file this way?

bump

That's cool, as long as we get invited to the parties. I think I also read somewhere that the deductible is waived if you are going for a c&p exam. Anyone know if this true?

The VA typically takes out a small deductible (I think it is $6.00 or so) when they issue travel pay. Does anyone know if we still have to pay the deductible once we go over 50% SC?

Hey Hedgey, When they rated my 10% SC eye condition, the rating actually said 'bilateral'. Check your award letter to see if bilateral is included on your SC conditions. If you have condition X on your left leg and then condition Y on your right leg, I don't think they rate that bilateral, because they are different conditions. Also, some conditions like TMJ are rated singularly, regardless of being SC for either or both TMJ sides, so they don't qualify for a bilateral rating. My understanding of the way they calculate bilateral ratings is to first rate all bilateral's separately (just like normal SC) and then add 10% to that (or multiply by 1.1). Afterwards, the bilateral value plus non-bilateral totals are calculated to produce your combined rating. Someone else might want to confirm this. I don't want to be passing along incorrect information. More info is in CFR 38, 4.25

Normally, if go to the Release of Information Office, they can print off the C&P results once they are entered. In some cases, I call ahead to my VAMC ROI office and they print and insert my records into an envelope, so I just drop in, show ID, and pick them up in person. Please be aware that the results of the PTSD exam, or any other MH-related records, will most likely need to be approved by someone in the MH clinic, maybe the doctor who performed the exam. Expect that to take anywhere from a day to a couple of weeks. I have found the only way around this is to ask the MH doc to explicitly state this in the records.

Neither. It was just a request for increase to an existing disability. My asthma got worse and they changed me over to stronger/different meds, which was the justification for the 30%. I received systemic steroids 3x in less than six months, which was the justification for 60%. The nebulizer really helped, but they don't give you a rating for that.

This is very interesting. Is it just me or is the VA ripping us off? My situation is similar. My rating increase was effective September 3rd, 2009, but the effective date of payments began on October 1st, 2009. That's 28 days of not getting paid, equivalent to an entire month of Februaries. This just does not seem right. Is there any recourse? If you owe them money, they count every penny and even charge you interest daily until you pay up...

lol, I agree! tyvm!

I agree, but then again, this is the same guy who said I would never receive a combined rating higher than 40%. I figured that since Bill asked the question regarding GAF and %, I would follow up and ask for the general consensus about a rating for that GAF range.

With GAF's consistently in the mid-50's through mid-60%, and currently working, what tends to be the average % granted? This doesn't sound right, but I talked with my county VA representative and the guy said the % granted is solely tied to your GAF. He also said that if your GAF is above 50, you get nothing, but a GAF below 50 means you will receive a % granted. Based on what I have read here, his opinion did not pass the smell test.

Absolutely! I told Carlie that I almost had an asthma attack when I opened the envelope. Thank goodness for the rescue inhaler provided by the VA. :o

I checked the mailbox and found another VA envelope. I expected to see the usual "please submit evidence regarding the following blah, blah..." letter, but was surprised to see an award letter. It wasn't in a white envelope either. This letter was regarding only the asthma portion of my claim, as everything else was deferred pending receipt of additional evidence. Original asthma rating: 10% Increase as of 10/2009: 30% Increase as of 01/2010: 60% Original combined rating: 40% Current combined rating: 70% The VA used evidence from my treatment records any my supporting personal letter for this decision. No additional C&P examination was given. I was curious about this because I read in a few places that C&P's may not be required if evidence of record was sufficient. I was surprised about the quick turnaround. I submitted my claim increase request in December 2009. I submitted supporting evidence and my personal letter about two weeks ago. I sincerely would like to thank everyone here at Hadit for their assistance. I especially want to thank (in alphabetical order) *Bergie*, Berta, Carlie, Cowgirl, Hoppy, jbasser, John999, Pete53, Sawgunner, and Teac.

They didnt make me watch any video. I just went in and signed some paper. The only big difference I notice is that instead of seeing only the prescription numbers, I can actually see the numbers and the names/dosages of the prescriptions too. I never expected that I would be able to see all of my prescriptions back to 1995, when the VA started issuing me meds. That was neat.

You might need to follow up with your physician. In some cases, they may switch you from a CPAP machine to a BIPAP machine. Here's a link that might be helpful: http://ezinearticles.com/?What-is-the-Diff...?&id=965994 Here are the ratings for sleep apnea: http://www.warms.vba.va.gov/regs/38CFR/BOOKC/PART4/S4_97.DOC 6847 Sleep Apnea Syndromes (Obstructive, Central, Mixed): Chronic respiratory failure with carbon dioxide retention or corpulmonale, or; requires tracheostomy 100 Requires use of breathing assistance device such as continuous airway pressure (CPAP) machine 50 Persistent day-time hypersomnolence 30 Asymptomatic but with documented sleep disorder breathing 0 Check this out regarding surgeries to correct sleep apnea problems. It's pretty medically technical, but goes into some serious depth. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2625321wiw Hope this helps!