tinnitus Disability/pension-Dual Claim?

[Ascomdepot68]

First some background.

Filed claim for IHD due to AO exposure on 7/6/2010, denied on 4/4/2011.,Appealed with a NOD and requested DRO on 5/23/2011.

Filed claim for DJD, hypothyroidism, tinnitus, left ear hearing loss, seurm sickness ( they came back and wanted to know if I wanted them to consider stroke and heart attack, etc to which I said yes) on 4/28/2011.

Filed claim for NSC pension due to being over 65 and low income, received at Atlanta VARO on 10/26/2011.

Watch eBenefits daily. After 50 days I submitted an iris inquiry because the NSC pension claim was not showing. At approximatedly 1430 hours today received a call (after requesting email response!) from the

St Pete VARO, I had submittted to Atlanta, having moved here in August. According to him a veteran cannot have a dual claim as he put it. He said if I never had filed any sort of claim it would go to Philadelphia

and stand on its own. Since I have a pending disability claim according to him it has to be added as an additional item just like if it were a bad knee or something..

He and I sort of got into it, partly because I won't take anything they say as the gospel. Ended up telling him based on what he was telling me I would approve adding the NSC pension application to the list of

disabilities I was claiming. Sounds sort of strange to me but then sort of makes sense.

Have a call coming in from my Senator's office probably on Tuesday about a long list of problems I have had with iris people and their responses over the past year or so. Just want to get my ducks in a row before

I have that conversation.

So basically I am asking if it is or not possible to have two separate claims in at the same time, one for NSC pension and one for SC disability. Problem is with the time they take to finalize the claim on a SC

application the NSC pension will be stalled until the end of that. Was hoping for the $$ small though it was in the interim. If you can have separate claims, a cite on the particular CFR or whatever would be

helpful.

Ideas or thoughts.

Thanks and have a Happy New Year to ALL!

[Pete53]

At 0% the VA is supposed to consider both.

[sharon]

What he told you is an outright lie. You can file for both at the same time. If you are over 65 you can be administratively determined to be P & T for pension. Otherwise a rating has to be done in order for you to receive pension. The rating for pension can be done before your service connected claim is adjudicated.

[midnight340]

" If you are over 65 you can be administratively determined to be P & T for pension."

"Can be", but do they ever do this??? Does it take forever to do this, if they were to? I am two months past 65, currently 0%, and have a claim in (since Feb 2011) and have a claim in for NSC pension and for PTSD + other disabilities. My claim is now with the rating board, awaiting a decision.

I am hoping to hear soon, but is there any chance I could get a pension while waiting for rating/notification? (I am not working, and have no resources...)

[john999]

Yes, have you applied for SSD?

[carlie]

http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/vba-21-526-are.pdf

IMPORTANT: If you are a veteran who is age 65 or older, or determined to be disabled by the Social Security

Administration, you DO NOT have to submit medical evidence with your application unless you are filing for special

monthly pension. Special monthly pension is an allowance that may be paid to individuals who, due to mental or

physical disability, require the assistance of another person to perform the basic activities of daily living, or their

ability to leave home is very limited

[JT24usn]

Long and short yes you can have a dual

Claim What he was talking anout was if you had pension only it will go to philly Local ro will di dual claims Technically if you qualify under the following information they should be able to administratively grant.

http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/pension/vetpen.htm

http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/rates/pen01.htm

This website is the site for income thresholds. If your income is below that threshold you may have a chance. You can deduct recurring medical expenses ( ins/Medicare)/ not prescriptions ( you can trim those in yearly accumulative). Next is wartime svc. Must have one day of wartime svc. 90 days of svc before sept 1980 or two years active after 1980 or completion of required active duty ( if less than two years after 1980). If you are under 65 a rating needs to be made ( unless already in receipt of ssda). Net worth has to be under $80000. Other than that it wouldn't hurt to file.

NOTE: if married this includes wife income and expenses

Jmo