cowgirl

After dealing with the va for several years, I am on guard Is it okay to call and ask the status of my ssdi claim? Its been a few weeks. I have not heard from ssa, all medical records and functional adult reports, hubby'n'mine are in. Thanks a bunch, cg

jbasser, thank you for replying with a case that may help Rockhound and myself! You are so good with hitting the nail on the head. This case description is very clear in discussion and support, a U.S. military veteran had excessive number of years didnt recieve deserved benefits and was given a misdiagnosis, the way I see it. A vet wronged with years of incorrect care, how unspeakable!! I am a veteran with disabilities and a family. I think I get or have had good VA care up to now for chronic sc conditions, but have I? with misdiagnosis? wrong rating? For many years the va has applied the wrong diagnosis and rating to this particular sc disabilty. How do I know? Their diagnosis & rating then and their diagnosis & rating now disagree. They told me. Go figure. Thinking about others is my way. My family, husband, kids, parents and siblings as should be. I consider all veterans to be 'MY family'. How can a medical care and compensation system meant for 'MY family' of veterans shortchange so many? Veterans with disabilities, young or homeless, senior or or single, with or without family members deserve great care and compensation. Am looking forward to sunny 4th and hope everyone here is as well! I'll celebrate our nations birthday and then get down to 'family' business. CG'UP!

In a nutshell; sc issue on original claim was given 0% rating. Now the issue is diagnosed and rated correctly percentage wise.% Regulations then and now agree on the correct diagnosis. So, rating was wrong from the start. Whats the fix? for years with wrong diagnosis and no compensation? How about missed care? or insurance oppurtunities, or Got proof, IMO, Drs. letters, cfile, VA records, smrs, regs, lab reports, etc. My head hurts and I am having a hard time thinkin! Thanks for listening, fondly, CG'up?

just checked, Wilford Brimley is still alive, but if his schedule is too full I vote Gary Sinise!! or Willl Smith!! or Willie Nelson or Tom Hanks or Oprah Winfrey or retired General Wilma Vaughn (ret) or one of our illustrious military supportive Senators Filner or Murray or Lee Greenwood - God bless the USA! Bottom line there ought to be a veterans registration drive to make sure each vet is provided one on one assistance for counseling in VA healthcare offerings and specific GI benefits. cg

subject being my fingers reading left to right on edits. Been hitting the delete key (first button on bottom right group of buttongs of an 'edit' post). Instead I should jump one space and hit 'submit' or whatever correct button there is. Hence my 'ghosts' posts, meaning, I put them there, then edited and submitted = no more post to see (GHOST)! sorry, head needs humor at times when stress overloaded like today, Ok Vern? Oooh Vern, where are you? Chance I date myself if I mention Casper! cg

Okay, the title to this post was supposed to catch someones eyes. Usually I write a post, rethink, put in a couple of changes and submit. Then I'll see one more change to make....so I edit. Thats when I accidently hit the delete button, yikes. Maybe its because I think I hit the submit (delete) key Well it is the first thing in the row, I dont know. Worth a laugh eh?? Cause I return to the subject - No Post! smiles. In fact, I must have wrote 3 different 'Ghost' posts this week... or did I? haha, CG

Aw, SouthernBelle, good luck and heres wishing you well. My husband wrote a letter for me and it was difficult for him, but it was accepted and listed on the SOC as being submitted. He used a early draft of mine as a guide, took a couple of days, wrote it and was a bit more quiet afterwards for bout a week. Empathetic? Sympathetic? Dont know. He is my best freind and Godsent! (Don't think I'd ever read his, mine was soul baring enough). Got the rating and new self insight too. Hats off to you and your courage to support your loved one~! cg

Thanks Rental, you're a doll trying to read my strange questions when my brain gets fuzzy. In fact, I'm smacking myself in the head trying to figure this stuff out. My doctors report reads, the following .....'mildly reduced left ventricular enlargment with mildly reduced left ventricular function and estimated left ventricular ejection fraction of 40-45%.' ....thats what I had a decade ago first claim after discharge..was assigned 0% then..watcha think? How does one prove this up? Maybe they (and I?) goofed on my first claim?? Thoughts welcome. cg

http://www1.va.gov/womenvet/docs/ACWV_Meeting_Minutes_Feb2008.pdf Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Advisory Committee on Women Veterans

Hello Ron, I too have seen the 'pat' and standard reply statements the VBA employees use. I have also recieved those replies. In my correspondence to the VA, I try my best to include along with the subject matter, the date of each item I submit, date submitted, method submitted and defining (like you did) abbreviations. But of course, I still get back the automated statements that dont address any thing in specific. We here at the VA have recieved your claim and are working it.....and the only thing dated is the letters release date. So? The form letter never, did I say NEVER, reveals what claim or details anything related to me the veteran. Oops, the form contains name and file #. I get it again and again - write clearly and in elementary language to correspond with the VA. Send 'everything' by certified'signed for mail. The only proof until the date stamp, if even then! Ron, what you have and are going through is next to ridiculus. Ricky taught me to laugh (hahahha!) Sorry, but I wonder, you sound so stressed, are you connected to VA behavorial and social health?? Reason I ask, once had a VA PCP offer and I stammered, 'what'? Well, visitng that clinic allows me to air my old military years gripes that I have carried as 'excess baggage', Started seeing providers, rarely having similar discussions and probably furthered VA docs education about stresses of military 'life'. I got sc for mdd (30%) thanks to my Hadit family and Pete, I found my correct diagnosis in a copy of my Cfile. (For those of you who are new and reading this - a CFile is a permanent VA Claims File the and keep for individual vet claimants)] Best to ya Ron, cg

Wow, Fast rating, good for you! Yes take a break, one day at a time is a good mantra! (My back pay came in about 2 weeks after the rating. Congratulations on getting whats due you. cg

Hello all, researching cardio ratings for timeframe of 1993-1997, just dont wanna miss anything, think I got it but just in case and double checking myself! Thanks a bunch! Fondly yours, Cg! cg

Where can I find CFR 38-1 and other associated regulations for disabilities from yesteryear? Example, if claim filed in 1996, how can I tell the date of the regulation and criteria used to determine the rating? (I'll continue searching as well) Thanks, cg

Free, Ya know I'm there with ya. Every step forward is a sucess, makes the bumps in the road more vague in recall. Good luck on your ssa claim, hope it bolsters your va claim. cg

My thoughts, if the spouse has earned a portion of disability pay by factual, genuine contribution, support or endurance, so be it. But don't stop there, read on for my real thoughts! Military, active or retired divorce/seperations are probably very high in splits, I dont side everytime by a man or a woman, each contributes, one side less or more. each situation is just that, each. man or woman can hold their own if capable and allowed the chance. Children deserve care first, what happens in vegas doesnt stay there (men or women) military retirement earned with spouse as part of the team = shared retirement spouses normally share, meals, beds and retirement income, dont they? or not. prenups are ok uncle sam would issue spouses if needed. marriage splits always involve more than 2 people Disabilities affect others. some military members dont deserve their spouses some spouses dont deserve part of military retirement disabiliy pay is for the individual but could include dependents allowance va disability is extremely hard to get or we would have Hadit upset people dont always think logically morals are from role models, most often our parents judges are like horses, ya just gotta watch em! wishing the best for your day, cg

Yw, anytime. If ya can, take someone with you or at least take handwritten notes, why not? Once I took copies of SMR pages for proof and the exam worksheet - doc used both! Best to ya, cg

Aw Betty, sure makes one wonder. When I submitted my last claims request, my dependents paperwork had aleady been submitted. I was to learn that the VA held the dependents claim (I think its also called a non-rating claim) until my current claim for Iu/Increase was rated - so all the numbers would balance out. Still took near a year for the rating and backpay. So I wonder if its possible that your IU claim is in the system somewhere on another screen in the VA computer system and hasnt been 'presented' to the viewing level of the 1800 callers. Also its possible that your dependents claim could be 'married' into the IU claim, which may put it up higher in pecking order. The claim should be logged asap but who knows why it isnt? Maybe wanted to miss a va centers numbers for May? or was recieved in June for recieved claims accounting. Hang in there, you're doing fine following up and checking in with the VA to see 'if there is anything else you can do to support your claim meanwhile!' Best to ya. cg

Crossbars, didnt mean to caution you too much. I'm just thankful we have ways to inquire now'a'days. Over a decade ago when I filed my first claim, only service representatives got and interpeted VA information. I regularly use IRIS and 1800 VA along with my vso for inquiries. Just got a claim rating back and was surprised to see a telephone call 'referenced' in the SOC discussion. I prefer to be able to print out 'correspondence' as proof. Sandbox do read the forum on who the C&P doctors are and how the doctors conduct compensation exams. Knowing about the particular exam, say sinus, cardio or depression can lead you to the right 'exam worksheet' so you can know what to . As far as the base medical records not being trusted, it depends on the specific statements made in regards to your disability isses desired service connection. You, I and others are here at Hadit because of having what we think is clear disabilities in SMRs that the VA overlooks. Well the VA raters and regulations require specific information and recency connections to the claimed issue. For someone fresh out of the military, the exit discharge holds a lot of weight, usually. But, also do IMO statements by an accreditied physician (could be VA or a private physician or a base physician) showing continuing care or validation for a condition incurred in service. Along with the claimm, the VA that chooses to rate the issue as sc or not, hopefully using thier regulations. Example, after discharge, I had a condition that I thought clearly without a doubt service connected me because it had hospitalized me in ICU within 12 months prior to discharge and I had an onging physician care on base until the time I retired. The va did their exam and sc some issues but not this 'larger' more important one. Took me near 3 years to get it connected, thank God the same doctor wrote an outstanding strong statement - got SC @ 0%!. Ok, VA or VSO (at that time) didnt advise me I was incorrectly rated for the sc issue. Fast forward to near 10 TEN years later, sc 0 to 60% With Hadit help, I read and reread, didnt give up even with the major depression. And I believe "preperation & education" is the key. As of last year, lawyers for veterans have entered the picture - a longgg time coming if you read the posts of yesteryear. Er, sorry for bein long winded, just want to welcome you and support. Best to Y'all, cg

Thinkin the best for ya, don't recall having recieved a letter with '6 weeks' on it. Sounds like youre special! cg (ps caution, Iris, 1800 or written requests from vet/vso can be fodder in SOCs)

Why not? Did the va or another doc recognize 'the increase in symptoms?' and affect on your lifestyle? Once I had hives and couldnt get dressed for a couple of days, took alot of benadryl (husband didnt mind!). ok, I'm not sc for a skin condition, but I think you have a fair chance if the medical diagnosis and 'increased severity' matches the va's regulations. Medical opinions and proof validates. Best to ya, cg

Mcafee, I hope you recieved notice that VARO recieved your NOD request? Have you recieved any of the automatic letters that come when one submits a claim? An iris or letter of inquiry may help you understand where they are in the process. I do status check with iris, vso, 1800. Am also submitting additional 'specific' information for my nod. Heard that a year is normal va timeframe for processing nod's if not varo goes into 'red'.(overdue). At minimum I get automatic letters from the va. If you have your 2way communications on paper it may validate your cocerns if its not by the va's book. Best to ya, cg

Yes, do ask for the current percentage. Also if the person on the phone can tell you the date of that decision, even better. I've had the call center tell me 'what stage' my claim was at and that helped. Best to ya, cg

Best of luck to you, 'best rater' sounds confident and reassuring. Having a rater interpet and use the regulations for positive outcome is a blessing. I recently learned to keep my 'feet on the ground'. I was middlin' thinking IU was possible for me, 'aint over yet, but got a large increase for something else. Again, Wishin' the best to ya! CG

Vetswife, God be with you both. I am proud of your husbands service and of YOUR dedicated service. Thank you for posting, if I were a Hollywood movie producer, I'd be on it like a fly, well ya know. Unbelievable! You both deserve a HUGE HUGE apology from the TOP! My first thoughts after reading your post, STUNNED! I wish your husband and you the Best of care because from what you described, that VA center person had NO business telling you to call your congressman etc, to get money to take care of THEIR problem for your disabled Veteran !! Berta, true. Leadership comes from the top. When I was in the military 'houses' were 'cleaned' because the latest& greatest 'pardadigm shift' or a proactive commander came on base. In a few months letterheads change, work schedules shifts, buildings painted, budget allocation rearranged and detailed reports expected - but most obvious BOSSES transferred 'In or Out'. Disabled Veterans and their families deserve Top Notch Care! God bless your family, cg'up!

Best to ya, cg