Need The Legal Beagles

[carlie]

Question is, if a medical report is not signed by the doctor or shown in CAPRI, will it still be weighed as evidence

in adjudication of the claim.

The question stems from these two threads

http://www.hadit.com/forums/index.php?show...c=35376&hl=

http://www.hadit.com/forums/index.php?show...c=35420&hl=

and this Court Case:

(I don't think this case sets precedent.)

http://www.nvo.org/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?p=3095

[Philip Rogers]

carla - my interpretation is they will still weigh it the way they usually do. However, I feel the judge pointed out that it could be appealed due to failure in the regularity issue. They are actually violating their rules. I believe that in the case posted it made no difference in the outcome because of the spinal bifida issue. jmo

pr

Question is, if a medical report is not signed by the doctor or shown in CAPRI, will it still be weighed as evidence

in adjudication of the claim.

The question stems from these two threads

http://www.hadit.com/forums/index.php?show...c=35376&hl=

http://www.hadit.com/forums/index.php?show...c=35420&hl=

and this Court Case:

(I don't think this case sets precedent.)

http://www.nvo.org/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?p=3095

[Berta]

The case NVO cited states:

"Finally, the Secretary argues that the Board did not err in relying on an unsigned examination report because the Secretary confirmed that the July 2005 examination report was transmitted in compliance with the applicable M21-1MR requirements. "

I think the key wording here is "transmitted"

for 2 reasons-

The VA recieved an unsigned C & P report that I obtained from the C & P doctor- years ago-

The C & P doctor was identified in the actual decision.

When I called him years later ,he pulled the report from his desk as we talked.

I could immediatly determine -as he read the part I questioned him on-that the VA had manipulated his actual report and he sent copy of the report to me.

Far different from what they put in the SOC-and I didnt know them (1996) that I could have obtained the actual C & P.

But the report was not signed.

Then in another situation the regional counsel and the local VA Medical Director-- had assured me that 4 months after filing my FTCA claim- the Medical director had agreed with my charges and that the regional counsel wopuld be negoptiating a settlement with me.The report was done on May 19 1995 and within a month it disappeared from the C file, as well as the RC and the director-they had both left the VA rather suddenly.

Then my FTCA case took over 2 years more to be settled.VA claimed this report (called a Peer report for FTCA purposes) never existed.

When I reopened my claim I knew by then that I could get an up to date copy of my C file.

The report that never existed was found at the vcery bottom of my file.

It was devasting but unsigned.

Then I found out why-

the key word is "transmitted"

when the C & P doc I mentioned prepared his report he "transmitted " it from his VA PC to the RO.

This was the same case for the Peer Report.

The doctor who did the peer report -I ran into him in K Mart after he had left VA and he told me he not only was shocked that I had not won the FTCA yet- he also said this report was still in hs VA PC which it had been transmitted from - (thus not signed) as the VA had proof of the origin within their PC system.

I then found out last year that there is another course for these documented Peer Reviews.

His report had been "transmitted" from his VA PC to OLMA (VA Office of Legal and Medical)(who took down their link at VA web site when I started to ask them some tough questions.

When I obtained my IMOs they were electronically signed.But there was no doubt as to the origin of the preparer- just like IRS electronic returns.

So IMHO I feel that an 'unsigned' medical report by a VA doctor could well have been "transmitted" between one VA entity to another-with an origin that could be none other than the VA doctor who prepared the report.

Hope all that made sense.