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georgiapapa
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Posts posted by georgiapapa
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Burt,
Listen to Vync and Notorious Kelley. You would not be in your current situation had it not been for your injuries in the military. Let the VA do their job and provide you with the medical care you need, medical equipment you need, compensation you deserve and any other benefits you qualify for due to your medical conditions.
Also get all the assistance you can from the American Legion to get the maximum disability compensation you are entitled to and have them seek assistance on your behalf regarding your housing situation.
Good luck to you.
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Welcome aboard and good luck to you.
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On claims based on a potentially fatal condition, I agree with lotzaspotz. If you want to preserve the earliest effective date on new claims and you can financially afford to delay currently pending claims, I would file the claims to preserve the EED. If you can't afford the delay, hold off on the new claims until the pending claims are resolved. Just my opinion.
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Your friend should make an appointment with a cardiologist ASAP. If he doesn't, he may not live to collect disability. His CAD could have worsened over the past two years.
If he was boots on the ground in Vietnam or served on a vessel in the waterways of Vietnam he should be approved for disability compensation due to his agent orange exposure. All he needs is his military records showing proof of his Vietnam service and a detailed diagnosis letter from a cardiologist. I would suggest that your friend have his cardiologist complete a VA DBQ (Disability Benefit Questionnaire) which can be found on the VA.gov website. Since this is a presumptive disease a nexus letter should not be necessary. His rating will depend on the severity of his CAD. If he doesn't have the ability to submit a claim on his own he should seek assistance from a veteran's service organization. Good luck to your friend and please convince him to see a cardiologist immediately.
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A question came to mind while reading another post today where the VA was proposing to reduce a veteran's rating due to an error in the rating decision made by the VA. The VA was proposing to reduce the overall rating from 70% to 50%, a reduction of approximately $500.00 per month or more. If the VA prevails in the reduction, it appears the error made by the VA has resulted in the overpayment of thousands of dollars to the veteran. No mention of fraud by the beneficiary in this case.
QUESTION: In a situation where the VA determines it has overpaid disability compensation to a veteran as a result of an error by the VA and no fault or fraud by the veteran, can the VA require the veteran to repay the overpayment?
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I thought I read 1% on active federal employees and undecided on federal retirees, disabled veterans and social security recipients.
However, I may be wrong which will not be the first time. I agree with PR. Don't worry about because we have no control over it.
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Welcome aboard. Even if they do disassemble your claims package it sounds like you did a good job in preparing it in a manner that would make it easy for the raters to review and follow because it was so well organized. I prepared my last claims package in a similar manner after receiving some excellent advice from others on this website. One of the hadit members warned that the VARO disassembles the claims package and suggested I submit a Table of Contents and number all my pages which I did. My last package contained about 105 pages so I numbered the pages 1 of 105, 2 of 105, etc. This made the package easy to reassemble. My last claim was successful without any appeals.
I also believe in handling my own claims without a VSO. There is plenty of information available and other members on this website who can provide all the info you need to file a successful claim.
Good luck to you.
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Again, congratulations to you and your family. Put some of that retro away for a rainy day.
Semper Fi.
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Any Corpsman who served in combat with the Marines will always be part of the Marine Corps family. In my book, you are a true Marine.
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As a combat Marine veteran myself, there is no doubt in my mind that any corpsman who served in a Marine combat unit would have no problem documenting PTSD stressors. Navy corpsman are highly regarded by Marines because they were often the difference between life and death for Marines when they courageously exposed themselves tending to wounded Marines during the heat of battle.
One of my heroes is Navy Corpsman David Robert "Bobby" Ray who was in my old unit in Vietnam, Delta 2/11, and was KIA along with 12 other members of my unit on March 19, 1969. Bobby Ray received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his continuing efforts to save wounded Marines.
I wish you luck on your PTSD claim because I know it is well deserved.
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You can go to www.archives.com for information on how to obtain copies of your military records including military medical records. You indicated you went to a civilian doctor at Ft. Hood for the sleep disorder. You should call his office and request copies of any medical records he has pertaining to your sleep disorder. If you don't recall the doctor's name or contact information you should be able to find his name and possibly his telephone number on the prescription bottle that you still have. If you find his name but no telephone number, google his name for the info.
You definitely need to make sure you get a good sleep study in order to have a strong medical diagnosis of sleep apnea. I do not believe your sleep apnea claim will succeed without it.
In regards to the lack of support from your wife, make sure your mental health counselor is aware of this situation so they can advise you on how to deal with it. I am not a mental health expert but in my opinion you need to be in a supportive environment while dealing with your mental health issues.
Just my opinion.
Good luck to you.
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The statements are helpful but the statements alone may not meet the threshold for service connection. You stated the doctor treated you for sleep disorder but you were not diagnosed with sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder. Was this a military doctor, VA doctor or private doctor who treated you?
If you haven't already done so, I would try to get an IME and IMO from a pulmonary doctor who specializes in sleep disorders. Ask the doctor up front if they will provide an IMO that meets VA requirements if their exam and review of the records supports an IMO. Provide the doctor with all of your relevant medical records showing any symptoms of sleep appeal as well as the statements from your wife and room mate. Include the medical records from the doctor who previously treated you for a sleep disorder since the symptoms you mentioned are sleep apnea symptoms. If you have not had a sleep study, ask the doctor to perform one. With the symptoms you describe, the sleep specialist should not hesitate to perform a study. The sleep study will determine if you do in fact have sleep apnea.
At a minimum, the doctor will need to include a nexus statement in the IMO stating it is their medical opinion that "it is at least as likely as not" that you had sleep apnea during your military service.
Good luck to you on your claim.
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If you are having trouble with CPAP there are other options (oral appliance, surgery, etc.). Reach out to John 999 for more specific information.
As far as your claim, If your VA sleep doctor has not reviewed your MMR showing symptoms of sleep apnea, provide a copy to the doctor for his/her review. Afterwards, ask the doctor for an IMO including a nexus statement expressing their opinion that "it is at least as likely as not" that you had "sleep apnea" during your military service. If your VA sleep doctor will not provide an IMO, ask the VA doctor to complete a DBQ for sleep apnea. Even if the VA doctor will provide a DBQ but will not provide an IMO, go to a private pulmonary physician who specializes in sleep medicine, provide the private specialist with all of your relevant medical records (MMR & VA), request an IME followed by an IMO. Any out of pocket costs you incur for the private doctor will be a smart investment when you receive an additional 50% disability compensation award for sleep apnea with CPAP. Just my opinion.
Good luck to you.
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Congratulations and good luck to you.
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Welcome aboard.
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If you were taking prescription medication for your pain during the past twelve months you can obtain copies of your prescription records from your pharmacy. These along with your records showing periodic visits to the doctor for your pain should be adequate. If you don't have these records it will be difficult to prove a 12 month history of pain.
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Excellent advice above.
In your buddy letters and spousal statement, ask them to be specific when describing symptoms (snoring, snorting, stopped breathing, gasping for air, sleepiness during the day, etc.) and detail when and where they observed or heard your symptoms. During the first year after discharge your civilian co-workers may have witnessed symptoms and could provide statements.
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Since it was a CUE based on an error made in the 1998 decision, I believe you will get retro back to 1998 but I am not an expert. I am sure others on this site will let you know for sure.
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Congratulations. Good luck to you and your family.
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Welcome and good luck to you.
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Congratulations. I hope you got P & T.
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Welcome and good luck to you.
New Claim
in VA Disability Claims Research
Posted
Filing the new claim will slow down the processing of your PTSD claim. However, if you want to establish the earliest effective date for your fibromyalgia you should file without delay. This is a personal decision you have to make.