State Vet Rep Relationship With Ro's

[wdroberson]

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Edited October 9, 2011 by wdroberson

[Berta]

“I have also read here on the forum various opinions from others that if you have a incompetent SO you should document and report them to a higher up ( their supervisor ... not God ..... He shall have his day with them eventually ) so that you might save the next poor SOB from having to deal with incompetence. I have to say that I would consider that to be a good general rule unless you have a VSO that is with the State and may have a relationship with the RO's adjudicating my claim and be able to delay it, etc... “

I certainly have been saying that here and have done it.

I started out with a state rep who I had known for many years prior to giving him my POA.I dropped the DAV just before my first award letter and the state rep got credit for a claim he never handled.

I had read somewhere -possibly in an old VBM or at Prodigy Vets BBS that reps who have offices in or near VAROs (as most state reps do) develop relationships with VA personnel that could affect a claim.

The former rep at some point got a promotion to the office they had in the older VARO Buffalo building. He and another rep I had when he was transferred to Buffalo bragged to me how they knew the DROs and everyone there quite well.He has been demoted and the other rep quit.

When I complained to the OGC under 38 UC 14.633 about them and 3 other employees, I had over 30 pieces of evidence (to include many emails from them that showed how incompetent they were and a letter from the director which also proved that point.

Things have changed. They have some excellent state reps now locally and a new director.Unfortunately they dont publish their claims stats anymore on the internet.If you read the annual reports from Chairman Terry of the BVA (I always post the link here) you will see however how ineffective many vet orgs and state/county reps are in overall awards on claims at the BVA when compared t the AL, DAV and VFW.I think state stats have been almost comparable to those claims that had no representation at all regarding awards.

1.”When I ask if they could tell me where I can find that information that details what they are telling me I am told "I don't have time to be doing that for you".

There is no reg like that. They probably have not read the new PTSD criteria properly.

“The final regulation will simplify and streamline the processing of PTSD claims, which will result in Veterans receiving more timely decisions. A Veteran will be able to establish the occurrence of an in-service stressor through his or her own testimony, provided that: (1) the Veteran is diagnosed with PTSD; (2) a VA psychiatrist or psychologist, or a psychiatrist or psychologist with whom VA has contracted confirms that the claimed stressor is adequate to support a PTSD diagnosis; (3) the Veteran's symptoms are related to the claimed stressor; and (4) the claimed stressor is consistent with the places, types, and circumstances of the Veteran’s service and the record provides no clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. This will eliminate the requirement for VA to search for records, to verify stressor accounts, which is often a very involved and protracted process. As a result, the time required to adjudicate a PTSD compensation claim in accordance with the law will be significantly reduced. “

http://www.va.gov/PTSD_QA.pdf

2.Iwas told by the Rep that it is not true and when they make a decision on the reconsideration (re-opened claim), even if that takes 18 mos., that my right to appeal time limit starts then and not when they initially denied the claim. I think he is wrong from all the advice I have learned here and I think he is setting me up for future failure and aggravation.

He sure is- we had a former member who was a DAV rep here and he argued with me over this point. (I think he screwed up some claims regarding reconsideration requests.)

The legal citations I used and a few BVA cases might still be here under the Reconsideration discussion we had . (He deleted a lot of his posts when he left hadit)

Even if the VA appears to be working on a reconsideration request -the NOD time limit still stands.

3.your 'full of S—t' assessment is correct.

If you have the VA PTSD diagnosis and fall into the new PTSD criteria, you can be the best vet rep you will ever have and can use this POA just to handle copies of stuff you mail to the VA.

I do not mean to imply that all state and county vet reps are bad- they sure aren't.

One rep I had temporarily was VERY good but worked side by side with 2 dopes.

He retired because he was completely burned out.

The state rep division I had also got a new Training Director which had to make some big improvements.But that assumes that VA Fast letters and directives and changes in 38 CFR get to each vet rep office right away and then the reps have to have the faculties to read and understand them.

Why did the VA deny the claim?

Can you scan the decision (cover the personal stuff ) and attach it here?

That is why I am asking the question as to what kind of relationships the State VSO Rep's might with the VARO and people that work there rating claims. I am just wondering if they can, and may routinely, develop a relationship with people in the VARO to the extent possible to allow underhanded action to take place?

[toothpick]

I have a question about how close generally are the ties between State Veteran Service Officers and the VARO's?

I have read many posts that make reference to them having 'pull' or, at the very least, some sort of normal dialogue with these RO's and possibly some influence. This has made me apprehensive as to the approach I might take at resolving a problem I have with the State VSO's in the office that I deal with. It has become more and more apparent every time I have any discussion with these two individuals in that office (there are only two as I live in the country) that they are truly incompetent and lack the motivation to further educate themselves in the general claims process. I am now convinced that all attempts by me to develop some rapport and a better relationship are going to fail as have all previous attempts. Now to the dilemma I face.

I had asked him today politely about the POA and what I needed to do and who I could turn to for representation after he had once again rushed me out of his office with not one word of 'REAL' advice and two (possibly three) items of false information and only 5 minutes of his time. He said there was no one else. I said what about the VFW or the DAV? He pointed to a memorandum and contact sheet on the wall and said "that is who we are". In other words, if I called any of those organizations and asked for representation I would be referred to him at the office I was currently standing in. This may be a true statement because the previous time I thought I might need to consider looking elsewhere for representation I called (on two different occasions) the DAV and the VFW and left my name and phone number and told them I was considering having them as my rep's. I have yet to this day ever received a call back from either of them. That might be why.

I have also read here on the forum various opinions from others that if you have a incompetent SO you should document and report them to a higher up ( their supervisor ... not God ..... He shall have his day with them eventually ) so that you might save the next poor SOB from having to deal with incompetence. I have to say that I would consider that to be a good general rule unless you have a VSO that is with the State and may have a relationship with the RO's adjudicating my claim and be able to delay it, etc... That is why I am asking the question as to what kind of relationships the State VSO Rep's might with the VARO and people that work there rating claims. I am just wondering if they can, and may routinely, develop a relationship with people in the VARO to the extent possible to allow underhanded action to take place?

Also if anyone was interested in knowing what kind of things led me to believe they are incompetent then you can read below.....Probably not necessary because it is well known that there are bad Rep's out there. My complaints are not much different than those heard before but I find some of these just basic knowledge they should posses considering the job they have.

1.) I have been told a number of times by both the Rep's that THE ONLY PERSON that can diagnose anyone with PTSD is a Psychiatrist. Not a Psychologist; Only a Psychiatrist. Not to confuse this with the new ruling (July 2010) "VA psychiatrist or psychologist, or a psychiatrist or psychologist with whom VA has contracted" portion of substantiating a stressor. I have referenced that with them in order to clarify what they are claiming but to no avail. They insist that only a Psychiatrist can diagnose it and that is final. When I ask if they could tell me where I can find that information that details what they are telling me I am told "I don't have time to be doing that for you".

2.) I asked for advice on the option of submitting New and Material Evidence and requesting that they reconsider the claim instead of filing a NOD and appealing. I asked how much time I would have for them to act as it relates to the one year time limit on filing the NOD before I lose the right to appeal that claim. I was under the impression, and have read many topics on the subject, that if you choose to go the reconsideration route vs NOD and Appeal or DRO review, that you have to be mindful of the one year time limit from the date on the notification of denial. If you see that it is not going to be decided before that time limit has been reached then you need to file the NOD or you will lose the right to appeal. I was told by the Rep that it is not true and when they make a decision on the reconsideration (re-opened claim), even if that takes 18 mos., that my right to appeal time limit starts then and not when they initially denied the claim. I think he is wrong from all the advice I have learned here and I think he is setting me up for future failure and aggravation.

3.) When I initially learned of the bad C&P Examination results and it was apparent that this C&P was not conducted properly I was told by this Rep that I could not submit new evidence and that I would just have to wait until they denied me and then at that time file an appeal. I have since learned that he was just full of shit and that I could have in fact submitted new evidence and even possibly contested the validity of that C&P and I might have been granted a new C&P Exam prior to initial adjudication. It was not that the Rep did not believe the C&P was flawed considering that a Psychologist and not a Psychiatrist performed the exam and according to him a Psychologist can't diagnose PTSD. Only a Psychiatrist.

See what I mean.....Incompetent ...... In my opinion.

[toothpick]

"Bout all I can say is "well said"

[wdroberson]

I had read somewhere -possibly in an old VBM or at Prodigy Vets BBS that reps who have offices in or near VAROs (as most state reps do) develop relationships with VA personnel that could affect a claim.

He and another rep I had when he was transferred to Buffalo bragged to me how they knew the DROs and everyone there quite well.

Edited October 9, 2011 by wdroberson

[john999]

If you really need representation hire a veteran's law attorney. VSO's state or national have no "pull" with the VA in my experience. What has pull is evidence and knowledge. Most of the elders and long time Hadit members know more that most VSO's.

[Berta]

The Annual BVA reports are all found here:

http://www.bva.va.gov/Chairman_Annual_Rpts.asp

The “Blue sheet” is the rating sheet that reps get. The ratings should be what is in the SOC .However looks like they are using the streamlined process now- including the traditional SOC narrative in one letter.

The VA will not go forward with a claim for PTSD until you have a current diagnosis.

Do you have the results of the PTSD C & P exam yet?

Do you get SSDI solely for PTSD? Or any other claimed conditions?

Each of the other conditions needs a “nexus” to your service. Are they mentioned in your SMRs or on your separation discharge certificate?

The nexus is the link to an inservice occurrence that caused you to have a present disability.

Do you have a diagnosis for Chronic fatigue syndrome?

Are you a Gulf War, Iraq or Afganistan veteran?

If so-have you accessed the Gulf War forum here and read over 38 C.F.R 3.317?

And also was your C & P exam for the other conditions done under the Gulf War Protocol ?

If you are a GWV your claim needs to either fall into te presumptives( 38 CFR 3.17) or have a direct nexus to your service.

It is possible you have fibromyaglia and that causes the joint pain but I am not a doctor and that diagnosis would only help if you are in fact a Gulf War veteran.