Emily

[emily]

When I applied for widow pension in 1993, due to hardship, I had an income of $135 per month. For the next four years I was denied the benefits I was entitled. After my first hearing in late 1995, I was awarded a small pension, under widow in need, (hardship) I still had a child in school. The pension was about $300.00 per month. The RO made many mistakes. My mortgage was $350.00 per month. I was caregiver to my mother, she could not be left alone. That made me unable to work. She had four sons who were veterans, this made her eligible for benefits. When I applied for her, the RO did not know what I was talking about. They thought my youngest daughter was my mother. They never gave her the benefits she was entitled to. I wasn't about to confuse them anymore. I year they had my daughter making over $8,000.00, well she was in college. It took me one year to make them understand, she did not make that amount of money, but they did stop my monthly check. To make this short, in 1999 when I turned 60, I had no other choose but to take a reduced rate in Social Security. ON June 14, 2004 I was awarded DIC benefits, back to May 1993. In the award letter from VARO they show the benefits from 1993 till 2004. I had a hearing on Sept. 6, 2005, for a earlier effected date. When I checked the letter from the VARO, they were about $20,000.00 short. I did prepair a SOC, I asked the hearing officer what happened to the $20,000.00 plus. He told me they recouped the money I received earlier. I told him I wanted an itemized statement of were that money went, because there were so many mistakes made, I don't know how they could ever figure it out. As a parent of four veterans my mother never received anything. My daughter's pension was stopped when she turned 18, she was in school and still had six more years of benefits. Does anyone know if the VA can recoup the money from a non-service connected claim. I have been doing research and can't find anything. I was not entitled to any medical benefits!

[emily]

Emily, see if anyone else on hadit has Ken dippel's address. His grandma won a similar fight somehow by contending that her application for pension was a claim for DiC

Delta: Thank you for your reply. I still didn't hear from the VARO or my service rep. I had the hearing Sept. 6, 2005. The last SOC received in June, stated this is a DENOVO REVIEW! The Board of Veterans Appeals Decision granting service connected death, June 21, 2004. DIC was granted and entitlement to Educational Benefits were granted! The VARO went back to 1993 for DIC and 1981 for eductional benefits. The BVA gave more weight to the two IMO. The BVA stated: "Dr. A.J. is considered competent to state, as a specialist in infectious diseases, whether or not syphilis resulted in one of the possible outcomes of that disease! Dr. A.J. stated that it did result in cardiac involvement in the veteran's case, which ultimately lead to his demise! Dr. A.J.'s opinion is supported by Dr. S.G.'s opinion. In addition, Dr. A.J. pointed to the pertinent service medical records and provided supporting documentation for his opinion!" "The IMO stated that he had reviewed the veteran's recorda! He also indicated that he was a specialist in sexually transmitted diseases and provided documentation of his backgroung and credentials as a specialist in infectious diseases and internal medicine! He opined that the veteran had cardiovascular syphilis with aortic regurgitation leading to congestive heart failure. He furnished medical literature in support of his opinion and referred to the pertinent findings in the service medical records!" I know I'm not a medical doctor or an attorney but wouldn't you say this is Clear and Unmistakable Error? On Sat. Dec. 3rd will be 24 years that my husband died. If it wasn't for CUE he might still be alive today!