tdiu Remand Of Claim To Appeals Mgmt Ctr

[farmall]

I have asked questions before and received great advice. My question now is what do I do? The letter states" we are writing to let you know that the AMC will be developing additional evidence concerning your appeal, recently remanded by the BVA. The AMC, rather than your local RO will be developing your appeal." Remand is for 1--whether there was a CUE in a January 1978 rating decision which reduced the veteran's service connected colon condition to noncompensably disabling, 2--entitlement to an effective date earlier than January 31, 2005 for the grant of TDIU, 3--entitlement to an increased disability rating for service-connected irritable bowel syndrome with history of amebic dysentery, currently evaluated as 30 percent disabling...... Among other things the CVAA redefines the obligations of VA with respect to its duty to notify and assist veterans in the develooment of their claims. In this case, the veteran has not been advised as to the evidenntiary requirements for a claim for CUE in a prior rating decision, an earlier effective date award, or an increased disability rating. When I called a SO at the RO and asked him what I should do, he said do nothing--they will get the information. I do not believe him and feel I should provide more info and argument in this claim. The VA violated the 5 year rule in lowering the rate to 0% --am I right in my thinking that in order to prove a CUE, VA must have violated a rule? I have been fighting this for 4 years and am uncertain as to what I should do. Flip aided us in getting TDIU and we appealed the effective date, but haven't heard from him in over a year. I am hopeful someone will advise me the course of action t take. I have fought this long and don't plan to give up just yet. I know there are people here who have knowledge about what to do. I am sorry this post is so long but thought I should give some history. If you wish to contact me via email, let me know and I will list it. Thanks--Sandra, wife of Roger.

[Pete53]

Sandra:

Continue to build up your claim. You can still add to it. Unfortunately the AMC has now become as bogged down as many of the RO's and they rarely make a decision although they do develop claims by acquiring information to either return it to the BVA or to remand to the originating RO.

I have know Veterans who have added Outside Medical Opinion while their claim waited at RO and than won their claim later.

Good Luck

[Philip Rogers]

Sandra, please post your email. Thx.

pr

Sandra:

Continue to build up your claim. You can still add to it. Unfortunately the AMC has now become as bogged down as many of the RO's and they rarely make a decision although they do develop claims by acquiring information to either return it to the BVA or to remand to the originating RO.

I have know Veterans who have added Outside Medical Opinion while their claim waited at RO and than won their claim later.

Good Luck

[farmall]

My email is yuma@ejourney.com as requested, thanks--Sandra. I have been reviewing my files but had an emergency so will get back to them this week. I have learned that VA takes their own sweet time in responding to claims, hoping the claimant will give up but not this one. When Roger got 100% and I was entitled to coverage dating back over a year, I submitted claims to Champva; one claim I had to submit 3 times, even going so far as to find the necessary codes on my own as the hospital had purged their records and could not help me, but I finally got paid-but I still have some claims they haven't paid so guess I'll have to rattle them again, trying to phone them is such a hassle but think I'll try that. Dealing with VA has taught me to never give up; just keep track of what needs to be done. Sandra

[cloudcroft]

Sandra,

The VA sure IS slow in responding, but that probably is due to it being overwhelmed with claims (but frankly, I do not recall a time when the VA was NOT overwhelmed) rather than any deliberate effort or "corporate policy" to slow things down or screw vets out of $$. I guess.

But then again, I will have to admit that sometimes it SURE DOES seem to be about saving money -- as if there was some unwritten order/memo given from higher up -- so saved $$ can be thrown away/wasted elsewhere in the world or on political pork projects rather than on American veterans where it belongs...or maybe that's just the bit of paranoia I am told I have when I say such things.

Still, the controversey continues re: what's REALLY going on within the VA -- in the absence of any "smoking gun" memo -- but I think that MOST of the slowness of the VA is due to being overwhelmed because of not having enough staff to process the ever-increasing number of claims.

The point is, be prepared for the long-haul and slow-going because it's the rule rather than the exception.

"Endeavor to persevere." (The Outlaw Josey Wales, 1976)

-- John D.

Edited August 19, 2007 by cloudcroft