Vso: Using And Finding A Good One

[fanaticbooks]

I have a website entitled howtoassemblevaclaims.com. It is intended to guide veterans/dependents in researching, organizing and assembling a va claim/appeal.

Right now, revisions are with the web designer. Included is information on USING AND FINDING A VSO.

Because I know a lot of you will never access my site, I am including here, an excerpt from what will eventually be added to it. My only concern is to help veterans, whether you go to my site or read it here. Either way is fine with me.

I wish you success.

fanaticbooks

EXCERPT from revision eventually going on howtoassemblevaclaims.com

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USING A REPRESENTATIVE

In this journey through the ‘undiscover’d country,’ your representative, better known as a Veteran Service Officer (VSO) can be a very welcome guide as you proceed on your quest. However, if the guide isn’t experienced, then he/she could cause you to lose your way.

I am not yea or nay on a VSO. We used one in our appeal, BUT I did a lot of the work for him because I didn’t want anything to be missed.

While visiting various veteran websites I have discovered that there are no specific guidelines as to how a VSO is trained or how well a VSO does his/her job. Whether you choose a veteran organization such as Disabled American Veterans, American Legion, or Veterans of Foreign Wars (to use as examples) or your state’s Veterans Affairs makes no difference to quality or the lack thereof.

Sometimes you don’t even have a choice depending on how the organization is set up. Sometimes, also, it is a matter of geography, where one center represents a territory with no other choices available.

In many instances, choosing yourself as your own VSO might be the better choice for the entire process or the majority of investigative research. It might be that you can combine the two, you doing all the labor and then getting someone to do the liaison with the VA.

If you do feel more comfortable having a VSO handle your paperwork and corresponding with the VA, let me make some comments and suggestions.

• Whatever organization you choose, the VSO should not charge you any sort of fee. Most organizations about which I know offer these free services to all veterans, whether a member of their organization or not. However, it is courteous and respectful if you are able to join that organization. Remember, veteran organizations work hard furthering the interests of veterans, either singly or as a group.

• Do not be afraid to ask your VSO questions. If you don’t understand an answer, request more explanation. If you have specific needs and concerns, broach them.

• Any correspondence with the VSO or the VSO with the VA, request a copy for your records.

• Keep in touch so you know what the status is. Do not leave the VSO out of the loop if you contact the VA direct. Let the VSO know what you are doing.

• Do not inundate the VSO with lots of contacts. Try to give all your information at one time. Don’t keep sending him bits and pieces that are not necessarily vital to your claim.

The VSO is trying to help lots of veterans. Every time he gets documents they have to be filed which takes up time that is better utilized by helping another veteran.

FINDING A REPRESENTATIVE (VSO)

When visiting various veteran websites, I have come across a common question,

“How do I find a good VSO?”

Well, that is a question that is hard to answer.

There is no set group of questions to interview one to decide if he/she is savvy, committed and TRAINED.

However, after broaching this very question on a few websites, I did get some common-sense suggestions for trying to evaluate if the VSO individually or the organization at your location of choice is going to be of help to you. I will list them here, in no particular order, so that you may study and perhaps find some t you can then utilize when beginning this search.

• First, BEFORE you start your search for a VSO, decide just how involved you want to be.

If you intend to do a lot of the work yourself with the VSO acting as the go between, then you will need to look for someone who will cooperate.

If you are unable to work any part of your claim and need your VSO to take it from soup to nuts, again you will need to look for someone competent, organized, and willing to take on the entire process. This will be someone who will also need to be willing to take it into the appeal process as necessary.

• The following are suggestions from veterans. They were kind enough to offer their aid as I requested. I thank them. I am leaving their names and the websites out to protect their privacy.

- Talk to veterans, especially veterans you trust. Ask them about their experiences with VSO’s and/or organizations.

- Go to a canteen at a VA Medical Center or go to a veteran center and ask if anyone has some names that could be recommended.

- Go on veteran websites (See Support Groups in STEP 6) and ask for anyone’s experiences with a VSO or organization in a specific area. This would be an avenue where you would receive a frank answer to questions you might have since the member of the website is usually anonymous.

- Assess a VSO’s characteristics:

When meeting with the VSO, do you feel your meeting is being crammed into a small amount of time with not enough allowed to complete your queries? Or does the VSO have the patience and provides you with the time necessary to explore your concerns.

Is he/she getting sidetracked while talking with you or does the VSO give you his undivided attention?

Does the VSO exhibit confidence?

Does he/she seem genuinely interested in your claim(s)?

If you phone the VSO, is your call returned within a reasonable amount of time?

Does he/she show competence in the performance of the job?

How do you feel working with this person---comfortable, intimidated, encouraged, patronized? Depending on your response you need to decide if you want to continue with this VSO.

- Another possibility is to go in to a VSO office just before it closes. Even if they don’t have the time then to discuss your situation, setting up an appointment for another mutually agreed time could offer insight into the office. How are you treated, courteous with interest in helping you or in a hurry to just move you out the door?

• Sometimes you have no real choice in the matter. Remember, though, you may have signed a Power of Attorney (POA) with that VSO or organization but you can always rescind it and take the claim process over yourself or designate another VSO somewhere else to handle your claim by signing a new POA.

• Finally, if your VSO fails to give you the guidance you need, not to mention time to converse, respect and courteous service you deserve, then keep in mind there are other VSO’s out there. Do not worry about hurt feelings on the VSO’s part. They are there to help you! If they fail to do that, then you need to transfer to someone who can help.

Hopefully, this information will help a little. As I said at the beginning there is no set group of questions or actions that can guarantee a good VSO. There are a lot of variables in this complex area.

I wish you the best in your journey.

fanaticbooks

Edited June 14, 2009 by fanaticbooks (see edit history)

[john999]

Why not hire a lawyer?

[fanaticbooks]

Why not hire a lawyer?

A lawyer can be a VSO but I didn't want to confuse people who are new to the system. I tried to keep the info simple and free since many who apply are hurting for money.

When first starting out on filing a claim, a lawyer probably isn't necessary. Only in the appeal type time might there be a use. Why pay someone if you don't need to pay?

This excerpt is going to be part of my base website for those trying to make sense of how to begin the VA system or when they first appeal.

By the time a lawyer might be necessary, the person is familiar enough to know when one is necessary and doesn't really need advice from me in choosing. That person has found great websites like this one and received good advice that lets them make a choice on their actions.

My site has veteran websites listed as well and since this excerpt is posted on this site, lots of access to that kind of info.

When someone is trying to find a VSO from an organization, however, there isn't much out there. I just combined a lot of veteran suggestions into one place to possibly help others find someone.

fanaticbooks

[Hoppy]

Fanaticbooks,

I went to your site and it looks like you have put alot of work into achieving your goal. I did not find a direct link to the BVA searh engine. Maybe I did not look hard enough. In any event I feel the BVA search engine should jump of the page.

http://www.index.va.gov/search/va/bva.html

I have learned more and been able to focus my attacks on claims for initial service connection by reading BVA case decisions as a result of the searches I do on this search engine. The BVA decisions are written in good detail as to the way medical evidence is weighed and the laws are applied.

I Think a direct link and some instructions on how to use the search engine would be beneficial.

Some of my favorite searches are the name of the condition followed by the words "is granted". Example; "panic disorder is granted". Include the quotes.

This type of search will give you focused results on claims that were awarded. There will be some results that are not well focused. However, you will find plenty of winners for the condition you search for.

Edited June 15, 2009 by Hoppy (see edit history)

[fanaticbooks]

Fanaticbooks,

I went to your site and it looks like you have put alot of work into achieving your goal. I did not find a direct link to the BVA searh engine. Maybe I did not look hard enough. In any event I feel the BVA search engine should jump of the page.

http://www.index.va.gov/search/va/bva.html

I have learned more and been able to focus my attacks on claims for initial service connection by reading BVA case decisions as a result of the searches I do on this search engine. The BVA decisions are written in good detail as to the way medical evidence is weighed and the laws are applied.

I Think a direct link and some instructions on how to use the search engine would be beneficial.

Some of my favorite searches are the name of the condition followed by the words "is granted". Example; "panic disorder is granted". Include the quotes.

This type of search will give you focused results on claims that were awarded. There will be some results that are not well focused. However, you will find plenty of winners for the condition you search for.

I didn't know about it. We did not have to use it so I have been using areas with which I am familiar. I will definitely check this out and if I can figure a way to explain or work in before my web designer finishes, I will try to do so.

May I use what you have written here if necessary? It sounds as if you are familiar with using this site whereas I would be very new at it.

fanaticbooks

[Hoppy]

fanaticbooks,

Use any suggestion I pass along. It looks like you are putting in a pretty good effort into your site.

I have used BVA searches to find the answers the great majority of the questions I have answered. I get the answers from the BVA site and paste them into my posts with a note that I got the info. from a BVA case. Sometimes I post the link and the veteran can read the entire decision if they want. I also post the link to the BVA search engine and tell the veteran to search on there own for other cases.

This is a sample of what I do. Click on the link and it will take you to the exact case.

This veteran was successful in getting a PD diagnosis changed.

Below is pasted from a BVA case

“The history of the veteran's psychiatric disorder may be

briefly summarized. The veteran was separated from service

with a diagnosis of immature personality disorder. In March

1977, anxiety neurosis with schizoid features was diagnosed

at a VA examination. The RO granted service connection for

that disorder and assigned a 10 percent disability

evaluation under the provisions of Diagnostic Code 9400 of

the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities, 38 C.F.R. Part 4.”

See the entire case at:

http://www.va.gov/vetapp92/files3/9221266.txt

[fanaticbooks]

fanaticbooks,

Use any suggestion I pass along. It looks like you are putting in a pretty good effort into your site.

I used your first reply to me as a direct quote in my revisions. I will be sending this to my web designer since I know he won't have started on this section yet.

It is a good addition to my website. Thank you.

Just for your information, I wrote for the site: (It will be inserted with a group of others)

Board of Veterans’ Appeals http://www.index.va.gov/search/va/bva.html

This can be a very useful tool when searching for similar cases to your own VA claim. A gentleman by the name of Hoppy from the hadit.com website let me know how useful it can be. He says, and I quote,

“I have learned more and been able to focus my attacks on claims for initial service connection by reading BVA case decisions as a result of the searches I do on this search engine. The BVA decisions are written in good detail as to the way medical evidence is weighed and the laws are applied…

Some of my favorite searches are the name of the condition followed by the words "is granted". Example; "panic disorder is granted". Include the quotes.

This type of search will give you focused results on claims that were awarded. There will be some results that are not well focused. However, you will find plenty of winners for the condition you search for.”

I have done a quick look at this search and, after viewing it, feel it could be a useful addition to your research into wording and necessary proofs needed for your claim.

Thanks again for your help, Hoppy.

fanaticbooks

[Hoppy]

Sounds good to me. When I first started fighting my own claim I was reading the BVA search site and found doctors who had been service connected for the same condition I was trying to get service connected. Finding winners on the BVA site gave me the determination and confidence I needed to fight the VA for the 8.5 years it took to win my claim.

[sharon]

No service rep or VSO is an expert at everything. Shop around to find the one that is knowledgable as well as passionate about your particular claim/condition. Find out who specialize in in what! I have used different service officers for different claims.

[Hoppy]

I have been thinking about the SO problem. It is so complex I really did not know where to start. Sharon has provided a good starting point. Find one who is passionate about your claim.

I was thrown out of the offices of the DAV by a supervisor who yelled at me that I was wasting his time. I went down the hall and explained my situation to another rep with another organization and got a completely different reaction. The new SO took pre-med classes in college and had a masters degree in psych. He knew what the immune response was and he knew a lot about the DSM. He read my SMR and told me that I should fight my claim all the way to COVA if necessary. We did not need to go to COVA I was awarded by a DRO with my SO fighting the claim the entire way.

While in the military my condition was called angioneurotic edema and was considered a mental disorder. After I was discharged the condition was called "allergic edema", "idiopathic angioedema" or just plain "non allergic angioedema". It was dropped from the DSM and considered a blood born systemic disorder. The diagnostic terminology caused some simple minded raters some confusion which they did not seek a remedy for. They were denying my claim when they should have been developing the claim.

I am currently having a problem with an SO who is representing a vet I have been helping with a psych claim for panic disorder. The SO has never read any BVA cases that were won for panic disorder. I do not think he has ever represented a panic disorder claim before. He pretends to know things about the DSM that are not true. Yet the veteran has fired previous SO’s and when I was talking to some SO’s about taking over the claim they refused to get involved.

I would ask an SO if he has ever won a claim for the condition or increase or what ever the issue is that is being sought. I would also ask questions that would identify a passion for your claim as Sharon recommended.

Edited June 16, 2009 by Hoppy (see edit history)

[broncovet]

Hoppy is right. The VSO problem is a very complex issue. While I am certain that there are many, many great VSO's who have helped many Veterans, there is a conflict of interest built into the system.

At least one reason why the VSO's, as an organization, are afraid to tackle the VA is because they know where their bread is buttered. The VA provides gratis lease space to VSO's in the Regional Offices. Remember, there is no free rent. The VA expects "something" for this free rent. I am convinced that this "something" is for the VSO's to remain quiet, and keep things status quo, so that the VA can continue business as usual where VA employees, for example, get bonuses to delay Veterans claims.

http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/nf09/nfmay09/nf052209-5.htm

It just keeps going on.