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Received Copy Of C- File - Maybe Some Of It?

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Josephine

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  • HadIt.com Elder

Gee the mail man delivered me this huge box.

Boy the box weighed a ton and it was the requested copy of my C- File.

Maybe I should know the answer to my question,

but what is susposed to be included in it?

I would have thought I had never received a Non- Service Connection

Pension, for there is no mention or paper work for it.

No mention of the BVA and went there twice.

I have looked for a shred of how I was rated and nothing is there.

I did find what appears to be my first filing of 1992 for " Fear of Heights".

I was looking for the papers that I had filled

out myself and nothing was there.

My 1992 filing was July 1992 for " Fear of Heights" and the page states me

to be employable and competent.

Reason for denial no service connection.

In 1992, I did not have any C&P and did not even go to the rater, how

did anyone know if I was competent or employable?

I know that I am rambling, but what is susposed be in that huge box?

Thanks so much,

Betty

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  • HadIt.com Elder

Sounds like things are out of order.

A claim file is contained in a 3-fold file folder. Award information goes on the left flap, DD214s and power-of-attorney goes on the right flap, and in the center flap is the "meat" of the claim. There will usually be one or more jackets of service treatment records, which are supposed to go on the bottom, and they stay in the jackets except when we pull them out to look at them. On top of that we file in chronological order the claim, copies of letters we send out to the veteran or doctors or whatever, original letters that we recieve from the veteran, buddies, congressmen, whoever, and other evidence. Exam requests and medical opinion requests go in the center flap as well, and they come back on yellow paper, so we can easily pick them out of the "paper cabbage" as Pete (I think) called it. Previous ratings are filed down in the center as well, on blue paper.

We keep adding to the center until we run out of room on the metal fastener. Then we have Volume II created, and we transfer the stuff from the left and right flaps of Volume I to Volume II, and start filling up the center flap with more stuff (by this point it's notices of disagreement, additional evidence, VAMC treatment records, new claims, claims for increase, angry emails from Senators, etc). There's supposed to be a "This Volume is CLOSED do not put any more evidence in here" sign on Volume I at this point, but I only rarely see them. But most of us are smart enough to file new mail or whatever in the center of the latest volume. The volumes themselves have "VOlume I of III" or whatever written on the outside, and we keep updating that as well. Each volume should be about two and a half inches thick. Of course on the outside of the volumes are barcodes with the vet's claim number or social security number that we use to track everything by and zap with our bar code readers.

Ok, so that's the way *I* see your file.

If you get a copy of your file and they don't break it up somehow to let you know what came out of what volume (remember, they're in chronological order)... god help you. :)

Try to figure out where the various pages came from chronologically, keeping in mind that some of them may be a chunk of historical treatment records dated 20 years ago, but received by us last year.

I hope you can take what I've shared with you here and possibly "reconstruct" your claim folder the way it appears to your rater.

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  • HadIt.com Elder

Thanks James,

There is susposed to be some order or logic to my file?

Mine is just a box of papers thrown in and I have looked and have

not found a thing that would benefit me.

I guess I already had all the important papers myself.

I was looking for a clue on my first filing, but I am puzzled by the

typed up 1992 claim for " Fear of Heights".

When I did file it would have been for " Nervousnes".

At that time, I never knew my illness was called " Anxiety".

I guess the good thing of it all, I succeeded in re-opening that claim and

the BVA Judge awarding me Service Connections with 16 years retro for

" Chronic Anxiety".

Thanks bunches!

Betty

Sounds like things are out of order.

A claim file is contained in a 3-fold file folder. Award information goes on the left flap, DD214s and power-of-attorney goes on the right flap, and in the center flap is the "meat" of the claim. There will usually be one or more jackets of service treatment records, which are supposed to go on the bottom, and they stay in the jackets except when we pull them out to look at them. On top of that we file in chronological order the claim, copies of letters we send out to the veteran or doctors or whatever, original letters that we recieve from the veteran, buddies, congressmen, whoever, and other evidence. Exam requests and medical opinion requests go in the center flap as well, and they come back on yellow paper, so we can easily pick them out of the "paper cabbage" as Pete (I think) called it. Previous ratings are filed down in the center as well, on blue paper.

We keep adding to the center until we run out of room on the metal fastener. Then we have Volume II created, and we transfer the stuff from the left and right flaps of Volume I to Volume II, and start filling up the center flap with more stuff (by this point it's notices of disagreement, additional evidence, VAMC treatment records, new claims, claims for increase, angry emails from Senators, etc). There's supposed to be a "This Volume is CLOSED do not put any more evidence in here" sign on Volume I at this point, but I only rarely see them. But most of us are smart enough to file new mail or whatever in the center of the latest volume. The volumes themselves have "VOlume I of III" or whatever written on the outside, and we keep updating that as well. Each volume should be about two and a half inches thick. Of course on the outside of the volumes are barcodes with the vet's claim number or social security number that we use to track everything by and zap with our bar code readers.

Ok, so that's the way *I* see your file.

If you get a copy of your file and they don't break it up somehow to let you know what came out of what volume (remember, they're in chronological order)... god help you. :)

Try to figure out where the various pages came from chronologically, keeping in mind that some of them may be a chunk of historical treatment records dated 20 years ago, but received by us last year.

I hope you can take what I've shared with you here and possibly "reconstruct" your claim folder the way it appears to your rater.

Edited by Josephine
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  • HadIt.com Elder

Yes, the claim folders are supposed to be in chronological order. Newer stuff is to be filed down on top of older stuff, until we run out of room in the volume.

Here are the things you probably want to concentrate on:

Find your Service Treatment Records (the actual pages the doctor wrote on and when you went on sick call in service). Put that stuff into a seperate folder. Ideally, put it in chronological order and tab it if it shows evidence of a claimed condition.

Look for your Form 21-526s Application for Comp where you've filed your past claims. Tab them. Look for what we call a VCAA letter ("We are working on your claim for...") and tab that. Look for Statements in Support of claim that either support the recent claim, or that raise new claims. Tab. Look for exam requests. Look for the exam that came back from those requests. Tab it. Look for the final rating that was done on your claim. Tab it. Then repeat the process. Be mindful of the dates on the pages, use them as a guide to help you rebuilt the claim file as it exists for the rating specialist.

When that is done, you'll be able to see what evidence we used to decide your claims, and what claims we considered, and hopefully understand why we reached the decisions we did.

I hope that helps.

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  • HadIt.com Elder

James,

Honestly when I went for my last C&P, I ask the doctor if he

had my C-File, he said " yes", it is this box beside of me. I

know it is the same box they sent to me.

I would love to see the examination request and what was used to rate me

I will get that old box out again and do as you said and see what they

sent to me that I don't already have.

I would have thought they would have at least sent me a copy of

The New and Material Evidence of My Psychiatric Records, which were lost

in the Archives for 40 years. I secured them myself and I do have I guess

the originals and they have a copy.

Again, thanks for your time.

Knowledge of Rater and more like a DRO?

Always,

Betty

Yes, the claim folders are supposed to be in chronological order. Newer stuff is to be filed down on top of older stuff, until we run out of room in the volume.

Here are the things you probably want to concentrate on:

Find your Service Treatment Records (the actual pages the doctor wrote on and when you went on sick call in service). Put that stuff into a seperate folder. Ideally, put it in chronological order and tab it if it shows evidence of a claimed condition.

Look for your Form 21-526s Application for Comp where you've filed your past claims. Tab them. Look for what we call a VCAA letter ("We are working on your claim for...") and tab that. Look for Statements in Support of claim that either support the recent claim, or that raise new claims. Tab. Look for exam requests. Look for the exam that came back from those requests. Tab it. Look for the final rating that was done on your claim. Tab it. Then repeat the process. Be mindful of the dates on the pages, use them as a guide to help you rebuilt the claim file as it exists for the rating specialist.

When that is done, you'll be able to see what evidence we used to decide your claims, and what claims we considered, and hopefully understand why we reached the decisions we did.

I hope that helps.

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  • HadIt.com Elder

If you have something that we didn't give you a copy of, assume that we don't have it. When you send it in, you will want to say "I asked for a copy of my c-file on (date) and received it on (date), but the following evidence did not appear to be of record. Please consider this new and material evidence and reconsider my claim for (whatever)," or something like it.

This is why each rating decision lists "Evidence" on it; so that the veteran can say "Hey, wait a minute, I sent them XYZ, but it doesn't look like they considered it!" or "Wait a minute, I served for 20 years, and they only used my STRs from 2000 to 2002!" That sort of thing.

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