Va Aid And Attendance Program

[Sidney56]

Is there anyone receiving A&A from the VA and can give me some

advice?

My C&P results recommended A&A and I thought since they awarded

100% P&T with proposed incompetency, why is it that nothing was

mentioned in the decision letter concerning A&A

Is this something that I have to submit a request for?

While I'm awake , I guess my post about the insurance got

lost somewhere. I'm kind of confused with all these different types

of insurance that we are entitled.

[Berta]

Sidney -You should apply for Aid and Attendance.

DId they make any statement as to Housebound or A & A in your award letter?

I used the A & A reg for application as an accrued benefit under Nehmer:

"Under 38 C.F.R. § 3.352(a) the following criteria will be

accorded consideration in determining the need for regular aid

and attendance: the inability of a claimant to dress or undress

herself, or to keep himself or herself ordinarily clean and

presentable; frequent need of adjustment of any special

prosthetic or orthopedic appliances which by reason of the

particular disability cannot be done without aid (this will not

include the adjustment of appliances which normal persons would

be unable to adjust without such aid, such as supports, belts,

lacing at the back, etc.); the inability of a claimant to feed

himself or herself through loss of coordination of upper

extremities or through extreme weakness; inability to attend to

the wants of nature; or incapacity, physical or mental, which

requires care or assistance on a regular basis to protect the

claimant from hazards or dangers incident to his daily

environment.

It is not required that all of the disabling conditions

enumerated be found to exist before a favorable ruling may be

made. The particular personal functions which the claimant is

unable to perform should be considered in connection with his or

her condition as a whole. It is only necessary that the evidence

establish that the claimant is so helpless as to need regular aid

and attendance, not that there be a constant need.

Determinations that the claimant is so helpless, as to be in need

of regular aid and attendance will not be based solely on an

opinion that the claimant's condition is such that it would

require her to be in bed. They must be based on the actual

requirements of personal assistance from others. 38 C.F.R.

§ 3.352(a); Turco v. Brown, 9 Vet. App. 222, 224 (1996)."

A spouses statement can be very helpful for A & A awards.

The VA rated my husbands stroke (was 1151 now is SC due to DMII) incorrectly (I have CUE pending on that but the ratings do reveal upper and lower right side extremity weakness,

also he could not tie his shoes and needed velcro shows after his stroke,

got lost on a VA day trip,(documented)

had to have van pick him up for VA Day treatment,(documented)

could walk ( after VA said he would never walk again)

but only for short distances, could not drive, write name legibly,handle dialing a dial phone, couldnt use PC well after stroke, didnt carry any money as he could not determine value of coins and bills.

didnt take s shower for 3 weeks while at PTSD inhouse program because he needed my help to determine water temperature,

bent over in a store once and I read in big black letters -Property of the Veterans Administration- across his rear end

(he had put on VA pajamas to go to the store and told me he wore them to see his shrink a few times too and I thought they were light blue slacks he had)

would leave stuff on the stove to heat it up and then walk away and forget it,

I also made statement I had to sell all of my livestock as I couldn't tend to the animals and leave him alone in the house - specially during lamb season which required me to often spend almost the entire night and much of the day in the barn.

Stuff like that is what VA looks for- not every part of the reg has to be met.

I don't know if they will award the A & A but he met the prime requirement of Aid and Attendance-as it was unsafe for him to be alone and he needed the help of others- not for everything- but for the safety factor.