Va Now States Error With P&t

[RetiredVet]

When I received the VA's standard yearly I notice they did not have my P&T on it. So I sent them a letter through my senator asking them why this was not on it. (I sent it through my senator since my last four letters sent by mail for the clothing allowance they say they never got).

The VA's reply is that I am not P&T and I am scheduled for a review in June. They also said if I was P&T I would not be scheduled for the review.

So I sent them a copy of my award letter stating I was given P&T 6 years ago. I was already 100% IU before the DAV had requested the P&T rating for me. The VA replied that the P&T was in error. It has been six years now since I got the P&T rating.

The person I normally speak with at the DAV is gone for a few weeks so the person I spoke with had no idea what is going on. She did say when she called back that the VA states they have stopped my wifes DEA. This will also stop my waiver for S-DVI premiums I got for being P&T and affect other things.

The girl at the DAV also said they told her my 100% IU rating was right. Then she suggested I just wait for my review in June.

The DEA and VA insurance people stated in their approval letters that they had checked with the VA and verified I was P&T. I sent copies of those also so they would see I am not the only one that knows I was in fact rated P&T.

Both replies were faxes sent to me through my senator and not signed by anyone.

The VA gave no reason for doing what they did or said anything about how I can appeal. No other notice given and only after I sent them a copy of the P&T paperwork they stated that it was an error. It seems they also did not think I still had mine.

They also just decided on this according to the girl at the DAV and they let her know they have stopped everything.

I get all my medications through the VA. I see a VA doctor every month for one of my meds because it can only be issued 30 days at a time. I see local psychs, but get both my psych meds from the VA. I see the VA social worker about twice a year and she refills my meds. I got a letter from my VA doctor in 2006 stating that I am not now nor will I ever be able to work. I got that in case I needed something for ILP.

I was told this letter is too old for them to use. So I need to get a new one according to them. But that should have shown the VA that my VA doctor still agreed that my condition was permanent and total and that they made no error.

So I don't know what to do. Should I file a NOD? My wife wants me to go see my psych as soon as I can because I am losing it.

Even if I file a NOD they have already stopped everything. I just don't know what to do.

[carlie]

RetiredVet,

Prior to VA taking this action did you get anything in the mail

from them that was a proposal to reduce benefits ?

carlie

[RetiredVet]

RetiredVet,

Prior to VA taking this action did you get anything in the mail

from them that was a proposal to reduce benefits ?

carlie

No carlie I never got anything before this.

I am waiting to see if DEA (dependents educational assistance) and S-DVI notify us also. I also get the S-DVI insurance with the waiver for being P&T. When they get word from the VA that I am no longer P&T I assume they will also notify us.

My wife was going to attend college in the fall. My wife has spent all these years at home to take care of me and my daughter. I could not take care of my daughter when she was young. I did not marry until a few years after I retired so our daughter is just 11 years old now. Now that my daughter is older and I don't have to look after her so much my wife was going to go to college. Now my daughter helps me.

Had I known the VA was going to be like this and do what they did I could have started paying into a college program for my daughter years ago. They have also taken away her college benefits by doing this.

[Berta]

Something is drastically wrong here-

"The VA's reply is that I am not P&T and I am scheduled for a review in June. They also said if I was P&T I would not be scheduled for the review.

So I sent them a copy of my award letter stating I was given P&T 6 years ago. I was already 100% IU before the DAV had requested the P&T rating for me. The VA replied that the P&T was in error. It has been six years now since I got the P&T rating."

If they gave no reason or bases at all-nor any reason they made an "error" and if this was not an official proposed denial of P & T Status-

I suggest you make some waves with their director and call the VSM as well-

If you tell me what VARO I will give the contact numbers I have-

Is the wife in school now under DEA?

If so she should have been given her appellate rights.

and where were YOUR applelate rights here too?

This stinks-you could wait for the new C & P but still-

someone really seems wrong here-

"I was told this letter is too old for them to use."

Who said that?

VA has every right to order C & Ps whether a vet is P & T or not-

this is different-

even if the VA did make a reasonable error-you still have appelate rights- and nothing like DEA or the SVLI waiver should have been stopped-

[sharon]

Any action that adversely affect your benefits has to have DUE PROCESS. If your spouse had CHAMPVA, there was no future exam in the system. Do understand that the VA can requre you to have an exam even if you are P&T until you have it for 20 years. Something smells a little fishy! :P

[Pete53]

I remember a while back when some Veterans who won their claims and did not receive anything that said they were P&T got the full benefits. After a while it got so confusing the standard advice on Hadit was to ask for the benefits and see what happened. This was for TDIU that I am referring to in this post.

[RetiredVet]

Any action that adversely affect your benefits has to have DUE PROCESS. If your spouse had CHAMPVA, there was no future exam in the system. Do understand that the VA can requre you to have an exam even if you are P&T until you have it for 20 years. Something smells a little fishy!

Yes I realize the 20 year rule. And that may even be changed one day. As I said my wife got her award letter so she can attend college and I got my S-DVI letter. They both had to verify my P&T status with the VA.

We could not get the ChampVA because I am retired and we get Tricare.

I also have my P&T award letter and a fax from my DAV rep that he got from the VA back then. They sent my DAV rep a fax so he could let me know they had back dated the DEA benefits several months.

Why I think they got mad is because I corrected them on their yearly letter.

But none of this had been brought up until I complained that my yearly letter did not have my P&T on it.

As I said this was faxed to me through my senator and I have not received anything official on this. Just two replies which are fax cover pages and no signature's or anything.

I can handle the review. Letters from docs stating I can never work, psych and SSDI determination with review done in 2007 by SSDI and continued.

But to take the P&T away without due process or anything is not right. That also hurts my family.

It would be nice to know what reason they base their error on. I am waiting to see what my lawyer tells me tomorrow. Either way I will ask the VA for a reason they said it was an error. They even told my DAV rep that my 100% IU was correct.

I take 8 meds a month including medications for pain and two different psych meds which I get from my VA doctor. I have been given forearm crutches and a walker to get around by the VA. They know 90% of my time is spent at home. And as I said I see my VA doctor every month.

The DAV person I talked to must be new. My regular DAV guy was not there. At first this DAV person said I was not P&T. The DAV person called back, apologized and said I was P&T, but the VA now says that was an error. I told this person I would lose DEA and S-DVI insurance I got with the waiver. This person said this should not affect that. Then the person called back and said yes the VA is stopping my DEA, but I will still get the S-DVI insurance with waiver even if I am 10%. I gave up at this point.

I only have four years to go and my wife will qualify for DIC no matter how I die. This decision also affects that.