Tell Us How You Have Been Treated By Varo

[Pete53]

I am interested in what Members think of their VA. Please comment on your experience and are you glad or frustrated that your claim went to your VARO.

I will start mine went to Waco TX. Texas is so big we have 2 VARO's. Waco is slow but although it took way to long I think I was treated fairly. They did not lose paperwork my C File was complete except no Basic or AIT Medical Records.

The Chapter 35 handled by VARO in Musgogee Ok was pretty good although lots of paperwork and some appeals.

The Dallas VAMC was a mess but is getting better. If I need an operation I hope that I will get it done using Medicare HMO. The Department that does eye exams and issues glasses is terrible. The hearing Aids are good. My Primary Care Doc is good. Access to Medical Care is poor and the Pharmacy sucks.

Overall I give the VA that I deal with a C-.

[Bossman]

My claims are being handled in the Decatur, GA location. I have never been made to feel so powerless by any organization any were that I have been in my life.

The raters do not read the information that is in your C-File. New information that is submitted takes for every to get to your C-File.

One example, a rater had my foler on his desk and request that I go back to get paperwork from my surgeon. The rater said that I was not SC for my injury because my SC is on my knees and I did not have knee surgery. My Quad Tendons ruptured from my Patella (Knee Cap), my doctor wrote a letter saying that medically I had knee surgery, not Quad surgery which would be in the middle to upper thigh. He even sent the coding for the surgery that was used when the claim was submiited to the insurance company. I even gave him a copy of the diagnosis from the VA (same location) Emergency room stating that I had a dislocated knee. Knee being the key word. They then tried to get me to resubmit my calim as secondary.

That is just one example. I have 9 different SC disabilities and I have had some problem with VARO on all of them in one form or another. I can't even get a copy of my QTC exams dating back to 1998.

[Lflint33]

Hello all I use San Diego VARO and I must say they have been really good to me I got out the Navy in June of 1995. I put my first claim in in May 2000 and in Nov 2000 I got 70 % then I put in my second claim in June 2002 and in Sept 2002 I got 80 % then in Oct 2004 I put in another claim and they gave me 100 % in Jan 2005. AUG 2007 I called and asked about CH-35 they opened me back up and sent me to a comp and pen doctor with Q T C and that doctor said I got better and they sent me a letter to reduce so I got a letter from my doctor at V A Loma Linda and sent it to them and just last week they gave me everything 100 % P T SCHD. I will give them a A +.

[gdsnide]

I am interested in what Members think of their VA. Please comment on your experience and are you glad or frustrated that your claim went to your VARO.

I will start mine went to Waco TX. Texas is so big we have 2 VARO's. Waco is slow but although it took way to long I think I was treated fairly. They did not lose paperwork my C File was complete except no Basic or AIT Medical Records.

The Chapter 35 handled by VARO in Musgogee Ok was pretty good although lots of paperwork and some appeals.

The Dallas VAMC was a mess but is getting better. If I need an operation I hope that I will get it done using Medicare HMO. The Department that does eye exams and issues glasses is terrible. The hearing Aids are good. My Primary Care Doc is good. Access to Medical Care is poor and the Pharmacy sucks.

Overall I give the VA that I deal with a C-.

Pete,....That's a good subject U posted about & I see U are getting a lot of responses.

OK...here we go...I'm from St.Louis,MO & we also have 2 VA Hospitals & clinics & the only really negative thing I can say is " At that clinic they have a Woman Doc who is a real B---- so I go to hospitals which are about 35 miles away which is a bit of a drag as I don't drive because of my Epilepsy.

As for the VARO here I have never got one thing approved by them but since I found hadit am as little bit smarter on how the VA works & currently have a claim in with VA Doc opinions & a couple of IMO's so it should be a no brainer for them.

But, I feel I have been treated rather fairly by them as they have never lost anything on me.

On a couple of C & P's I have had I have had Docs who wouldn't approve a darn thing but that is an exception instead of business as usual.

In my opinion the ST.Louis Hospitals are very good & the Dental Dept. is great. I called Dental & had an appt. in 2 days.

Doc visits take a bit of time but that is to be expected with all the people they see.

I think what a lot of Vets fail to see is the fact that VA visits are free & when anything is free there is going to be a very long line.

I go out of my way to be nice to the Docs I see, try to make them a friend so they will help me when I need it.

But, like I said "the RO has never approved anything I have sent in" but that could be because of my inability to send what they wanted &/or needed as I didn't know exactly what to send"

After the claim I have in now I may have a different opinion if they don't approve it so will wait & see but overall ( Even though they have never approved a darn thing I have sent in HA) I would have to give the St.Louis,MO RO a B+ because as far as I know they have never changed anything I have sent in but I wish they would start approving so then I wouldn't have to go to the BVA to get an approval but with the new law that should be a thing of the past ( I hope HA)

But, overall I think I get treated fairly by everyone I come into contact with except for a few of the C & P Docs.

I hope the other Vets who feel they are not being treated fairly start to get treated fairly.

But, the one thing I remember when I go there if I am negative than the Doc is going to respond in the same way.

Also, the glasses & hearing aids is excellent

Good Luck to all.

GARY

[Josephine]

My dealings are with the Huntington, West Va. R. O and I think that

are the most crudest and I have been treated the worst in my life

by anyone.

Just my post today will give you an ideal of how they operate.

They know everything and I am the ignorant fool.

As you can see it has taken me 6 weeks for them to finally acknowledge

my TDIU Form.

I would just as soon be turned loose in a Rattlesnakes Den.

Betty

[broncovet]

Cleveland VARO

The inspector General says, and I agree, that the Cleveland Regional Office compensates its Veterans lower than all other states. This is an average over millions of Veterans.

Cleveland looses files, ignores claims, and boasts of a high accuracy rate which is false. They are very slow, and, if you complain, it will be even slower. Claims are lowballed only when they cant be denied entirely.

Evidence in Cleveland means less than political clout.

Cleveland will "farm out" your claim as a delay tactic. You see, when they "farm out" your claim, the other regional office makes no decisions..the Regional Office they farm it out to is not allowed to make a decision, only to "gather information". They then send it back to Cleveland to deny or lowball your claim, whatever the case may be.

"Farming out" claims is supposed to be a method of reducing the backlog, when it actually increases it. Cleveland "farmed out" my claim to Roanoke, Virginia. Roanoke did a good job of gather information, but then Cleveland sits on it for over a year

Once you get on Clevelands "black list" your claims will be delayed, denied, lowballed, or even lost entirely.

[BMCS00]

Togus ME

Not to be a non-conformist, but I have had pretty good success with the VARO in Togus, Maine.

2 years ago I put in an upgrade claim via the DAV, and even though the VA did all the legwork with getting copies from the doctors offices and all, it took about 8 months to make a decision on 2 items, and the other item was decided 3 weeks later.

I got an increase from 60% to 70%, then 70% to 80%. Comp arrived in my bank in timely fashion, and backpay to the date of claim was also very timely.

After reading the Dr report from the C&P for my back, he said I had no complaints or signs of radiculopathy. I put in a NOD on that item, got another C&P with the same doctor, this time to specifically concerning radiculopathy in my legs. He told me he had no recollection of my telling him about it during the previous C&P. This time I got service connected AND bilateral 10%. Not enough to get to 90%, but it's not over yet.

I give Togus a solid B+.

--Jim

Life is good!