Bva Denies My Cue For The 2Nd Time

[john999]

The BVA denied my CUE for the second time today. My CUE was on remand from the Court to fix some technical errors, but I thought they might reconsider. So now I am pretty sure my lawyer will take it back to the court to get a decision on the merits of the case. How long, Lord, how long?

John

[jbasser]

Hi John.

One thing we do know about the VA and its branches. The VA and the VBA are the same entity under different guidelines.

Still the BVA works for the VBA and it is the VA so get this thing to cort to get a outside answer from someone who does not answer to the VA / VBA/ BVA.

Basser

[Hoppy]

I just spent 1/2 hour typing a reply in word and the board will not allow me to paste it into this post so I attached the file. I hope it works. Nope it will not let me attach a file. What happened to the board? I fooled it by making a post then pasting my word document after using the edit feature on my original post asking what happened to the board.

This sounds like the type of claim where they have allowed evidence to be added to the file for the purpose of reviewing the original claim. When doing the review they weigh the added evidence against the existing evidence at the time of the original decision and determine if the added evidence would have changed the outcome.

I am sure your attorney will have no problem advancing an argument the the opinion of an unidentified psych tech cannot rebut the opinion of your treating doctor. When making this type of assessment there is a fine line between the raters interpreting the evidence and the rater actually playing doctor. I have often thought it would be beneficial to have a doctor review the file and make a determination as to the significance of the added evidence. This might be the type of case where this would be beneficial. A doctor could explain the significance of the evidence addressed from the perspective of a medical professional.

According to my old SO who was a rater for 20 years, the raters often hide what is really on their mind until they are forced to play all their cards. There could be something else that they actually gave weight to, such as a hospital discharge report, and the wording they used in the denial is just a vague smoke screen. If I remember correctly you were hospitalized. I have assisted several veterans who were hospitalized for psychotic symptoms. Their hospital discharge reports stated that the psychotic symptoms had resolved at the time of discharge from the hospital. The hospital discharge reports should address any improvement and a prognosis. If the evidence added to your file was a hospital discharge report and it says you were psychotic and totally disabled then this is a valid representation of your disability until such time there is reliable evidence to the contrary. If the evidence added to the file was not a discharge report. I would get the hospital discharge report and see how it and any other evidence developed between the time of discharge from the hospital and the original decision weighs against the evidence added to the file.

I am sure you are aware that the current rating schedule says something to the effect that a veteran can appear functional and still be totally disabled due to a mental condition. The opinion of the psych tech does not say much. I wonder what the rating schedule said back in the seventies. I do agree with jbasser that you need to get outside the VA system to get an objective assessment of your case.

Edited January 16, 2012 by Hoppy