ptsd No Nod...totally Screwed

[sjh4951]

Looks like my late husband never filed a NOD to his ptsd denial although he did submit new evidence within that time frame.

All this worry about the va not accepting the amended 214 and now I find it's the lack of NOD that got my claim for accrued screwed up. Bill had a rep for his claim...why did the vet rep not tell us that a NOD was needed???? How were WE suppose to know that a NOD was needed??

Not to mention the last denial stated that Bill had one year from that date to submit and now I'm being told that that was an administrative error and the date was actually 6 months prior to that. All this down the drain because proper procedure was not followed?? I'm so upset.......all those years he (and my children and I) suffered from ptsd and this is how it ends, all over because of one missing form? For all I know he did send it and it was shredded...regional is Columbia so who knows?

Anyone have any advise........I'm not ready to give in or up.

[sjh4951]

"What did the SSA determine the actual cause of his PTSD was?DON'T KNOW (YET)"THE AWARD LETTER DOESN'T SAY. HE DID GET WORKER'S COMP THAT HAS A DIAGNOSES(NOT PTSD) BUT THAT'S A LONG STORY.

[sjh4951]

BERTA, CAN I E-MAIL YOU PRIVATELY?

[Pete53]

I really have a hard time making my way through the posts on this thread. I am glad that Berta can do it.

[Berta]

I really have a hard time making my way through the posts on this thread. I am glad that Berta can do it.

I too am confused here Pete but what I see is this-

the veteran's cause of death would be extremely difficult to directly service connect.

An award of DIC under 1318 - as it appears is what the claim is for-

would depend on documented medical evidence of PTSD,diagnosed as due to service, and ratable at 100% for 10 years prior to death.

I dont see any evidence of that here- unless the SSA medical findings clearly state that military service caused this veteran's PTSD.

You need to get the medical determination from SSA as to the reason they awarded your husband solely for PTSD.

If SSA did not state it was due to his service-somehow you will have to identify his stressors and then prove at least one of them.

And then prove that the stressors disabled him totally for 10 years prior to his death-by medical evidence.

I posted the phone number for JSRRC-they might be able to give you some ideas as to what they could access- I believe they search records for a fee in some cases.

A private email to me will not help you get closer to the evidence you need.

If you access his unit on line (most Vietnam Units have web sites) they could have Looking For sections to try to find anyone who could provide a buddy statement for you or even a reunion roster to find anyone with a name he might have mentioned.

You said he was in Vetnam 67-69-but the usual TDY was one year-

if you have his dates of actual Vietnam service perhaps a Unit history would reveal a battle or firefight he could possibly have been involved in-still a stressor from that battle or firefight would still need to be proven.

[sjh4951]

I too am confused here Pete but what I see is this-You have both made me feel stupid.

the veteran's cause of death would be extremely difficult to directly service connect.I am not claiming PTSD as cause of death

An award of DIC under 1318 - as it appears is what the claim is for-

would depend on documented medical evidence of PTSD,diagnosed as due to service, and ratable at 100% for 10 years prior to death.

I dont see any evidence of that here- unless the SSA medical findings clearly state that military service caused this veteran's PTSD.As I've said many times, the award shows no diagnoses at all. I've written to SS requesting that info, I've called SS requesting that info..all to no avail. I can't make them give me the diagnoses. It is a moot point anyway...the NOD is the issue.

You need to get the medical determination from SSA as to the reason they awarded your husband solely for PTSD.

If SSA did not state it was due to his service-somehow you will have to identify his stressors and then prove at least one of them.

And then prove that the stressors disabled him totally for 10 years prior to his death-by medical evidence.

I posted the phone number for JSRRC-they might be able to give you some ideas as to what they could access- I believe they search records for a fee in some cases. I appreciate that very much.

A private email to me will not help you get closer to the evidence you need.You asked questions that I wanted to answer but not publicly. I spent a long time composing an e-mail to you about things I've never told anyone, it felt good, then when I tried to sent it, it was refused. I wasn't trying to burden you in any way.

If you access his unit on line (most Vietnam Units have web sites) they could have Looking For sections to try to find anyone who could provide a buddy statement for you or even a reunion roster to find anyone with a name he might have mentioned.

You said he was in Vetnam 67-69-but the usual TDY was one year-He enlisted right after graduation in 1967 and was discharged in January 1969. I stated this below. Why would I state a time period that wasn't true? I was trying to get help here from people with experience.

if you have his dates of actual Vietnam service perhaps a Unit history would reveal a battle or firefight he could possibly have been involved in-still a stressor from that battle or firefight would still need to be proven.He requested the Unit Diaries but was denied.

As I said in my first post...I cannot find evidence of an NOD and that is what has been the problem. You asked me questions and I tried to answer them to the best of my ability even though they pertained to stressors. His CAR, apparently, and diagnoses was accepted..it is the NOD that is the problem I was told. It appears he never filed an NOD for the PTSD, he filed for the cancer and if you will see M21-1MR, Part I, Chapter 5, Section B. It states that they were to notify him if there were multiple issues and he did not address them all, and they did NOT.

I appreciate the help from all of you. I did my best to answer your questions and explain the circumstances. I did not expect to end up being made to feel that I was not completely honest with you or that I was stupid. I need help and was hoping that I could find it here.

[Berta]

I met Pete over 20 years ago at Prodigy vets BBS- there is no way that we want to make anyone feel stupid or appear that we doubt what they are saying-

I am just trying to determine how you could possibly obtain DIC.

I see no basis for any accrued award unless somehow you can prove that a NOD was filed.

When I focused on PTSD as a direct SC death- it was because you said you had proof of SC PTSD for 10 years prior to death.

You have a good handle on the 1318 DIC award criteria.But we are trying to determine what evidence you can obtain to support that type of DIC claim.

I dont turn on my email thing here - I certainly hope you didnt think I rejected your email-I dont use this format at hadit.

I could make a mistake in email advise that no one here would see to correct-

and besides that-

if you have significant information of a personal nature that could help your claim-by all means tell the VA.

They know my husbands and my whole life story by now I think and I assure you they should be trusted with any personal or sensitive info that would possibly help your claim.

You need to realise that there are many seasoned claims advocates here-with decades of VA claims experience-

I questioned the fact that it appeared you said your husband's Vietnam service was 1967-1969- when this is over the usual TDY period for the Vietnam War.

But you then said he enlisted in 1967 and then was discharged in 1969-

this too is unusual because ,up to 2003, USMC enlistments were almost always for four full years.

We cant help but notice these things that give us a confused picture of his service.

"I HAVE MEDICAL RECORDS AS EVIDENCE PLUS THE AWARD LETTER FROM SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY WHICH HE WAS RECEIVING SINCE 1992 UNTIL HIS DEATH IN MAY OF 2006. ALSO ONE OF HIS CURRENT TREATING PSYCHIATRISTS STATED IN HIS LETTER TO THE VA THAT BILL HAD HAD PTSD FOR OVER A DECADE"

What did this treating psychiatrist attribute his PTSD to?

On his DD 214 it should state his period of oversease service in Vietnam in the boxes on the right hand side.

If you have those dates and the full designation of his unit-

(I mean like my husband's the whole designation-like-

IstMARDIV,First Amphibious Tracker Battalion)

what ever that is in his Mil records, perhaps I could find more as to the Rockpile incident-or at least some firefights that he could have possibly been in-or something that his entire unit experienced during the actual dates he was in Vietnam.

Still this might reveal nothing that could be proven as his personal stressor experience.

Where was he during the TET offensive?

CAPS - if he was in the CAPS program I am sure he would have talked about that.It was part of my husband's unit's PUC citation.