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VA Disability Claims: 5 Game-Changing Precedential Decisions You Need to Know
Tbird posted a record in VA Claims and Benefits Information,
These decisions have made a big impact on how VA disability claims are handled, giving veterans more chances to get benefits and clearing up important issues.
Service Connection
Frost v. Shulkin (2017)
This case established that for secondary service connection claims, the primary service-connected disability does not need to be service-connected or diagnosed at the time the secondary condition is incurred 1. This allows veterans to potentially receive secondary service connection for conditions that developed before their primary condition was officially service-connected.
Saunders v. Wilkie (2018)
The Federal Circuit ruled that pain alone, without an accompanying diagnosed condition, can constitute a disability for VA compensation purposes if it results in functional impairment 1. This overturned previous precedent that required an underlying pathology for pain to be considered a disability.
Effective Dates
Martinez v. McDonough (2023)
This case dealt with the denial of an earlier effective date for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) 2. It addressed issues around the validity of appeal withdrawals and the consideration of cognitive impairment in such decisions.
Rating Issues
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Tbird, -
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Are all military medical records on file at the VA?
RichardZ posted a topic in How to's on filing a Claim,
I met with a VSO today at my VA Hospital who was very knowledgeable and very helpful. We decided I should submit a few new claims which we did. He told me that he didn't need copies of my military records that showed my sick call notations related to any of the claims. He said that the VA now has entire military medical record on file and would find the record(s) in their own file. It seemed odd to me as my service dates back to 1981 and spans 34 years through my retirement in 2015. It sure seemed to make more sense for me to give him copies of my military medical record pages that document the injuries as I'd already had them with me. He didn't want my copies. Anyone have any information on this. Much thanks in advance.-
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RichardZ, -
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Caluza Triangle defines what is necessary for service connection
Tbird posted a record in VA Claims and Benefits Information,
Caluza Triangle – Caluza vs Brown defined what is necessary for service connection. See COVA– CALUZA V. BROWN–TOTAL RECALL
This has to be MEDICALLY Documented in your records:
Current Diagnosis. (No diagnosis, no Service Connection.)
In-Service Event or Aggravation.
Nexus (link- cause and effect- connection) or Doctor’s Statement close to: “The Veteran’s (current diagnosis) is at least as likely due to x Event in military service”-
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Tbird, -
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Post in ICD Codes and SCT CODES?WHAT THEY MEAN?
Timothy cawthorn posted an answer to a question,
Do the sct codes help or hurt my disability ratingPicked By
yellowrose, -
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Post in Chevron Deference overruled by Supreme Court
broncovet posted a post in a topic,
VA has gotten away with (mis) interpreting their ambigious, , vague regulations, then enforcing them willy nilly never in Veterans favor.
They justify all this to congress by calling themselves a "pro claimant Veteran friendly organization" who grants the benefit of the doubt to Veterans.
This is not true,
Proof:
About 80-90 percent of Veterans are initially denied by VA, pushing us into a massive backlog of appeals, or worse, sending impoverished Veterans "to the homeless streets" because when they cant work, they can not keep their home. I was one of those Veterans who they denied for a bogus reason: "Its been too long since military service". This is bogus because its not one of the criteria for service connection, but simply made up by VA. And, I was a homeless Vet, albeit a short time, mostly due to the kindness of strangers and friends.
Hadit would not be necessary if, indeed, VA gave Veterans the benefit of the doubt, and processed our claims efficiently and paid us promptly. The VA is broken.
A huge percentage (nearly 100 percent) of Veterans who do get 100 percent, do so only after lengthy appeals. I have answered questions for thousands of Veterans, and can only name ONE person who got their benefits correct on the first Regional Office decision. All of the rest of us pretty much had lengthy frustrating appeals, mostly having to appeal multiple multiple times like I did.
I wish I know how VA gets away with lying to congress about how "VA is a claimant friendly system, where the Veteran is given the benefit of the doubt". Then how come so many Veterans are homeless, and how come 22 Veterans take their life each day? Va likes to blame the Veterans, not their system.Picked By
Lemuel, -
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Question
grent
Have a case before BVA on lost records recently found at NPRC.
CURRENT FACTS
Back in the eighties the VA knew about my injuries but based on a small note i think in my SMR gave me just a complete denial on claim i filed.
This was very scanty unclear one line information information in medical file
Located lost hospital records from NPRC St Louis MO recently
Then requested my old denied claim to be re-opened pursuant to 38 CFR 3.156 and the lost hospital records
had DRO hearing did 60 days form 9 now at BVA
the BVA judge is going to come in and say thats great you located your hospital records (thanks for your service) but it"s
re dun dant and not new or remarkable evidence
Im trying to fight them and argue that VA made a mistake because my one line smr entry of injry notation were used instead of my hospital records which were lost (but very in depth of my injuries) at the time but just found at NPRC these hospital records were not in my SMR because the hospital did not put them in their, when i left the military hospital usually the records are sent from the military hospital back to the service members smr at their duty station / command / that did not happen
the military hospital never sent them back to my command duty station how can i prove the VA did not use them in the prior rating decision i dont think that matters only the fact the VA new about it is what matters
so now im going to have to prove that the lost material / hospital records located at NPRC is new and material evidence and not redundant I plan on using an IMO as a nexus to state the conditions in the lost records are not only new and remarkable but relate back to my in service injury and had these records been made available to the VARO at that time i would have been given a 100% rating based on the VA ratings dealing with those kinds of injuries at that time
i have been told these nexus letter imo"s are a must for these type 38CFR3.156 re- open rior claim cases, with out it the BVA judge is going to rule in favor of VA and say the records were lost thats true (glad you found them) but the evidence is not new they are redundant
also can i submit current doctors report and can the nexus letter take all my current injuries and relate them back to my re-opened claim as SECONDARY which they are or can i only have the IMO NEXUS LETTER state what i asked for in the original claim
can you recomend any doctors who do these kinds of special re-open claim IMO NEXUS letters
should i use an IMO? / NEXUS??
WHAT I HAVE READ SO FAR ON THESE TYPE BVA CASES
i read a lot of appeal cases at the VA web site all the arrows BVA DECISIONS say yes yes over and over a lot of claims i see were denied
and the BVA judge's state over and over and over "i see no indication of "nexus" to re-open this claim"
the BVA Judge's will state yes the records were lost but not new or remarkable then they always say roughly the same thing
"I WE SEE NO NEXUS BETWEEN THE RETRIVED MATERIAL BACK TO THE ORIGINAL CLAIM" claim denied.
QUESTIONS FOR HAD IT
am i headed in the right direction ?
am i doing any thing wrong?
can i request the BVA to put my case on hold through my lawyer until i have everything i need, evidence wise ready to go?
i currently have a lawyer
Do i need to change anything here?
thks for your help if i'm doing anything wrong please let me know
Merry Christmas Happy New Year
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