Growing Medical Bills

[edtremblay]

Hi I'm new here trying to figure out how things work so please try to bear with me . I'm a 56 year old male Army Vietnam vet with stage 4 lung cancer. I've applied for and been granted ssdi but will not receive anything until September. My VA claim is pending and that looks several months away at a minimum the bills for Chemo and Radiation add up fast and while I have health insurance there is alot unpaid does anyone know if there will be any payment of these treatments from the VA once I'm rated??? Does anyone have any resources for litigation against the manufacturers of agent orange and the other herbicides that are causing all the problems??? This is an awesome site and I'm glad to have found it I'm proud to be a member thanks in advance for any help anyone can provide.

Sincerely Ed Tremblay

and thank you to all who have already helped and will consider helping wow what a family

[edtremblay]

thanks for the info

i'll call them today

I would keep on them about expediting the claim.

They were supposedly expediting my husband's claim...starting in July of 2006. The only movement we noticed was several form letters telling us they were "working on" his request for copies of his C-file.

He requested the copies in August 06 and died in Feb 07 - without so much as having his request for records taken care of.

So much for their expediting.

Free

[free_spirit_etc]

You can also use the IRIS system at the VA website - where they have to respond in writing. I have found that the people on the phone will often tell you anything.

They told my husband to send his evidence in and they would send it on to the BVA - and didn't bother to tell him that his case had been closed and wasn't being sent to the BVA.

They told me that my husband's file was in Privacy - and they were going to send ME the copies he had requested before his death -and that I would recieve them in 30 days. After waiting - I have found that they do NOT send the widow the copies the Vet requested - they were NOT sending them when the person told me they were - and I have to fill out a NEW request - which will now be delayed because of the time I spent waiting to recieve the copies they said they were sending.

They told me I was entitled to keep the payment for the month of death - and that I just had to send in a Form claiming it and a copy of our Marraige License - and now they are sucking it out of my bank account and telling me that there is no "evidence" that I am his widow. (I have no idea what evidence they would need beyond our Marraige License and me being listed as his wife on the Death Certificate.)

So be careful trusting what they tell you on the phone.

Free

thanks I'll call them today

[sixthscents]

OK, we run into this again and again... the VA phone service was never meant to put forth any serious information about claims. The people manning the phones have a limited amount of training, and depending upon their experience you will get vastly differing answers when you call.

These people get 2 weeks of training, and then are put on the job... so if you have a serious question that someone really needs to know what they are talking about to answer, dont expect the 1-800 number folks to be able to help you. Schedule an appointment at the regional office with a rater, and discuss the issue there. Seriously, it's kinda not the phone people's fault, its just that tthe system was never meant to be fullfilling the role it is today.

So... dont expect ANYTHING from the 1-800 number people but very basic answers to very basic questions... anything else is up for grabs.

[Guest jangrin]

edtremblay,

If you want to find out the status of your claim, the best way to ask is through the IRIS system.

Here is a link. Just follow the directions and you should get a response fairly quickly. This is the Iquiry Routing & Information System. Go to frequently asked questions.

https://iris.va.gov/scripts/iris.cfg/php.ex...nduser/home.php

Then if that doesn't work I would call the 800# and see if they could find a rater to call you back. I am sure they don't get too many calls that ask to talkk to a rater. And finally, how far away are you from the VARO that is rating your claim? I would call and set up an appointment and explain that you are in stage 4 lung cancer and that they need to put the pedal down on this. The squeeky wheel gets the grease. You need to start making some noise. Not mean noise, just noise.

Do you have a service officer? If you do you need to call him/her and have them call the VSO that works at the VARO and have him talk to the rater and put a push on the claim.

Just every 2 weeks send in the IRIS Inquiry, and call the VSO or stop by. It WILL make a difference. I really believe the people rating the claims understand and do have a heart. I also believe that they are swamped ewith claims.

Good Luck,

Jangrin

[edtremblay]

Jangrin thanks aqgain for your assistance I goyt that info about IRIS and emailed them today my head is swimming from all the acronyms but I'm going slow and learing alot this is the most informativem, friendly, helpful, curtious, and just plain awesome site I've evere been lucky enough to stumble into... Thank you all .I've found a home!!!!

edtremblay,

If you want to find out the status of your claim, the best way to ask is through the IRIS system.

Here is a link. Just follow the directions and you should get a response fairly quickly. This is the Iquiry Routing & Information System. Go to frequently asked questions.

https://iris.va.gov/scripts/iris.cfg/php.ex...nduser/home.php

Then if that doesn't work I would call the 800# and see if they could find a rater tmy head is spinning with all the acronyms o call you back. I am sure they don't get too many calls that ask to talkk to a rater. And finally, how far away are you from the VARO that is rating your claim? I would call and set up an appointment and explain that you are in stage 4 lung cancer and that they need to put the pedal down on this. The squeeky wheel gets the grease. You need to start making some noise. Not mean noise, just noise.

Do you have a service officer? If you do you need to call him/her and have them call the VSO that works at the VARO and have him talk to the rater and put a push on the claim.

Just every 2 weeks send in the IRIS Inquiry, and call the VSO or stop by. It WILL make a difference. I really believe the people rating the claims understand and do have a heart. I also believe that they are swamped ewith claims.

Good Luck,

Jangrin

[free_spirit_etc]

It seems like the VA has set that up though - when they tell you - if you have any questions call 1-800... Or in the case of survivor benefits --"If you are the surviving spouse call 1-800..."

It even says on had it to call the toll free number to get an appointment - but when I called - they told me I have to request an appointment in writing - and that it takes about 6 months to get one. IRIS said I need to request an appointment in writing also. I guess that is one way of weeding people out --but I sure hope it doesn't take six months.

But the toll-free incompetence is not unique to the VA. I have been dealing with all kinds of agencies, companies, etc - and they all have toll-free numbers -- and they will tell you just about anything --and tell you that the last person that told you something shouldn't have told you that. Or "You shouldn't have faxed it to ____ (where you had been told to) -- you should fax it to ___"

ACK!! The toll-free numbers are a hassle because no one is accountable for what they tell people.

I have found I get much better results writing to the companies.

Free

OK, we run into this again and again... the VA phone service was never meant to put forth any serious information about claims. The people manning the phones have a limited amount of training, and depending upon their experience you will get vastly differing answers when you call.

These people get 2 weeks of training, and then are put on the job... so if you have a serious question that someone really needs to know what they are talking about to answer, dont expect the 1-800 number folks to be able to help you. Schedule an appointment at the regional office with a rater, and discuss the issue there. Seriously, it's kinda not the phone people's fault, its just that tthe system was never meant to be fullfilling the role it is today.

So... dont expect ANYTHING from the 1-800 number people but very basic answers to very basic questions... anything else is up for grabs.