Congressional Inquiry Not Taken Seriously

[VictorE]

After a physical trauma to spine resulted in 18 months of physical therapy the Sec. of the USAF on appeal found me unfit for duty and medically discharged me in 1985. Prior to my discharge I opened a claim for VA benefits and 6 weeks after

getting out the VA turned down my claim saying my records were silent of any disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service. I filed to reopen my claim in 1990, 1999 and 2009 but was denied each time. Last time in 09 the examiner made up that I must have had a form of poly-articulate arthritis that caused the disability that I was discharged for. I recently asked Sen. Jerry Moran who sit's on the Committee of Veteran Affairs in Congress to help me get the VA to recognize the disability that the AF said occurred in the line of duty but Senator Moran's people tell me that he has no power to get the VA to do anything in regard to my claim. I wrote an article where I list all the records submitted to Sen. Moran (at the bottom under comments), check it out and be amaze, I guess Sen. Moran is only on the Committee further his political agenda and Vet's are considered to only be PR fodder to him.

http://www.leavenworthtimes.com/opinions/letters_to_the_editor/x269562020/Letter-Moran-does-not-care-about-vets

[Philip Rogers]

I'd get an attorney.

pr

[Berta]

"VA turned down my claim saying my records were silent of any disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service. I filed to reopen my claim in 1990, 1999 and 2009 but was denied each time."

Do you have a copy of your SMRs?

I never believe VA when they say SMRs are silent because I have SMRs here from some local vets I helped, that are "loud and clear".

(I have attempted to get these vets to come over and pick up their stuff as their claims were resolved long ago- but they prefer to have their stuff stay here because that way they know where their VA stuff is. )

Did the VA deny with this same reason every time you filed?

If you don't have the SMRs you can ask NARA for them with a SF 180.

http://www.archives.gov/

The form is fillable on line or you can print it off. Also you need to print , sign , copy and send the print out they need with the bar coded thing on it to them, if you apply for these records on line.

If I were you I would ask for copies of your 201 file too (Personnel file) as that too might reveal time off for physical therapy.

Unfortunately H/S VAC members really cant do much for specific VA claims.

Can you scan and attach here (cover personal stuff) the last denial you got as to the VA's reasons and bases?

Are you in an appellate status?

“After a physical trauma to spine resulted in 18 months of physical therapy the Sec. of the USAF on appeal found me unfit for duty and medically discharged me in 1985. Prior to my discharge I opened a claim for VA benefits and 6 weeks after ...”

[Testvet]

you are expecting to much from a member of Congress Senator or Congress critter, sitting on the VA committee's or not, they do not have any control over the VA claims process, at the best they have a staffer that handles the contact with the VA, and most of the time it is letters that say

"we are working on it" and each time you get an elected official involved the VARO pulls your C File from where it was and it goes to the "Congressional Reply Office" where it can remain for up to 60 days and then it goes back to the area they pulled it from and it usually goes to the end of the line instead of back in place where it was, sometimes it helps but not very often.

in your case and what you have described you do not need an elected official nor even a VSO after all of this if there are medical records showing your treatment in service and the injury that started the therapy you need a lawyer that knows VA law and get them to handle your case and if there are no records of your injury then you may very well be SOL

[broncovet]

Now there is a suprise...congress critters consider Veterans pr fodder...this has been going on for decades. Veterans are pawns, and all of them promise to help Vets, and none of them do.

Consider our prez...who promised to reduce the Veterans claim backlog while instead he doubled it...along with Shinseki.

The congressman is right...the Va does not take orders from congress. About the only thing the VA will do is to "look into" a congressional inquiry. This is the way it should be...the Va should not have to approve political favorites, or even put them to the head of the line.

The problem is that the VA has no method for resolving problems. They drag on and on and on.

We Vets have 4 tools:

1. Hire a lawyer.

2. Appeal

3. File a Writ of mandamus.

4. Hit em in the media basket. That is, contact the media and complain.

We have had much discussion on hadit about congressional inquiries, and the general consensus is they dont help, and can do more harm than good. A few limited Vets have, however, had some results with their congress critter.

[VictorE]

I have an attorney now, after 3 years of trying to get help from different VSO's, the VSO route was not good for me because the claim is so old and they did not have the time to focus on my claim.

The story from the VA for my denial has changed multiple times over the years from no record in my SMR's to acute and transitory and this last time hereditary childhood arthritis.

I find it hard to believe that a Congressman's family member would be treated this way or that if it was politically advantageous that they could illicit a fair review of the claim. I am just an average Joe with no "juice" to get the attention of a Congressman.

My C file is floating around so I am not worried about it being moved to the end of the line, my attorney filed an appeal with the BVA and we are being told maybe "sometime next year". I have a C&P at the end of this month for a claim opened due to statements in my NOD pointing out the disabilities that I was discharged for are directly service connected. I was medically discharged for Facet Syndrome and Myofascial chronic pain (Fibromyalgia). They opened the claim for Fibromyalgia but ignored the Facet Syndrome again.

I am asking for an inquiry to why my claim of Facet Syndrome has never been adjudicated. I figure since I had a FPEB Board and an appeal to the Sec. of the AF that both found me to be unfit for duty due to a permanent disability that occurred in the line of duty that my disabilities should have been recognized in 85 with at least a 0% rating which would have allowed me to get medical care and vocational rehab.

I remember once reading something in the CFR that Congress can award monetary compensation due to an injustice. Does anyone know where I can find this statute? I might try to use it to shake up the tree a little.

I am trying the Media Blitz but find it very hard to get the media to cover my story. Every once in a while I read some special interest story about a Veteran and their fight with the VA but this is only after the Vet has won and the claim is recognized on it's merits.

[USMC5811]

I read the post by the original poster one time...just read it again and noticed that with the link he provided he also stated in the comments section, under the article he posted, he listed the items that he submitted to the Congressman. I realize that Congressman don't have any control over the VA claim process but I would think, considering the documentation that was claimed to have been submitted by the poster, that he could have at least directed him to someone that actually could help him. I'm wondering after reading what he sent IF it is because he has not provided the VA with new and material evidence = RECENT medical evidence with a diagnosis of the conditions he is claiming that refutes the diagnosis (by the C&P examiner) of it being a hereditary condition(specifically Letter H in bold) and that is why they keep denying him????

This is what the original poster listed in the comment section in reference to what he submitted to the Congressman - I really hope someone is able to help him with his claim or is able to direct him to someone that can help. I really wish I could help, but I'm just learning myself:(

VictorDietz

1 week ago

Report Abuse

I appreciate the positive comments and want to address the one's that seem to be questioning the sacrifice that I made at 24 years of age. I am now 52 and I am homeless, I have no car, no job, my personal relationships are in shambles and I take opiates for pain 4 times a day to help manage the Fibromyalgia that has been untreated and self medicated by me for 27 years. I could not get physical therapy or treatment for my disabilities throughout my whole adult life because my dd214 says 'DISCHARGED DUE TO PHYSICAL DISABILITY ENTITLED TO SEVERANCE PAY' so health care Insurers deemed it a preexisting condition and refused to provide medical care.

I attached to the Congressional Inquiry copies of the following documents:

Attachments:

A)Memo from the Department of the Air Force - Submitted to the VA in Oct 2010 as evidence. This is a investigative memo for the Board to Change Military Records and contains the specific facts about my medical discharge. It states that a Formal Physical Evaluation Board found me unfit for duty due to pain and that I non-concurred with the decision by the FPEB and appealed to the Secretary of the Air Force asking for additional testing. It then states that the Sec of the AF agreed with the FPEB and orders were sent to medically discharge me. It says I served 3 years 11 months and 23 days.

b) Air Force Board to Change Military Records - Hearing held in Washington DC in May 2011. I asked the Board to change my dd214 because the VA keeps denying me my benefits, I said a code on it must be the wrong one. The Board stated that in the interest of justice they overlooked my failure to timely apply for a change to my dd214 (20 years after the 5 year limitation to do so). It states that the AF did everything right during my disability evaluation, they followed regulations during the discharge process and that my dd214 correctly reflects that I was medical discharged in 1985. Submitted to VA as an attachment to the Notice of Disagreement when I filed my appeal in July 2011 and discussed in the hearing I had with a VA Senior Decision Officer in July 2011.

C) DD214 - Dated 4/16/85 and states under Narrative Summary discharged due to physical disability.

D) Medical Record 19 July 1984 - Authored by Chairman of Orthopedic Surgery, Malcom Grow Medical Center. Changed the continuous temporary physical profile limitations that had been in place for 18 months limiting me from lifting more than 15 lbs, no pushing/pulling, no standing or sitting for over 15 minutes to a permanent profile. This automatically put me into the Disability Evaluation process and I had a medical board examination.

E) Line of Duty Determination - Investigation into the causes of my disability states that I suffered a physical trauma to my lower spine while I was in uniform performing my duties as an aircraft mechanic and that I was taken to the Emergency room for treatment. This is a required form in order to receive severance pay.

F) AF Enlistment Medical Status - Dated the day I was inducted on April 1981. It shows nothing wrong with me at the time of my enlistment.

G) Medical Board Report Pre-existing Determination - Date 1984, determined that my disabilities were not preexisting.

H) AF Form Findings of Formal Physical Evaluation Board - states that I was injured in the line of duty that the disabilities are permanent and includes VA diagnostic codes specifying the disabilities.

I) Report of Medical Examination for Disability Evaluation and Altered Special Compensation Examination - Original C&P exam dated 4 weeks after my medical discharge, reflects that examiner altered the medical document with the same fine point pen he signed his name with. He changed the statements I made to reflect what the VA X-ray diagnosis showed, in effect opening a claim for the injury to my spine using evidence submitted by the VA (well within the 12 month assumptive period).

G) Claim Denial Letter Dated July 29 1985 - States that I had to have a disease or injury that was incurred or aggravated in the service for a claim to be successful.

H) 2010 C&P Opinion to Sever Service Connection - States that even though I had diagnosis of Spondylosis, Spondylothesis, Degenerative Disc Disease, Lumbar Strain and Facet Syndrome during my service time, that it was due to a form of poly articulate childhood arthritis and had nothing to due with the trauma I suffered to my spine while I was on active duty. She then says that this is why I had the disability at the young age of 24.

I) Buddy Letter & Family Statements - Buddy letter from my best friend that I grew up with and joined the service with on the Buddy Plan. He retired MSGT and we went through boot camp, training school and ended up sharing a barracks room with when we got orders that stationed us together at McGuire AFB NJ. States I was injured in the line of duty and that I was medically discharged for the injury. Letter from my mom and dad stating that I played sports in high school so I took a physical every year and that I never had back problems until I was injured in the service.

J) VA Disability Claim Opened September 7 2011 because I listed on my Notice of Disagreement that I had been medically separated for For Fibromyalgia and Facet Syndrome and that I am directly service connected for those disabilities. The VA opened the claim for Fibromyalgia and Major Depression Disorder due to pain but left out Facet Syndrome and did not open a claim for it.

K) Statement of Case from the Senior Decision Review Officer which states that I was discharged for what the X-ray by the VA in 85 showed as a disability and denied my request because I did not provide any new evidence. I guess the memo from the AF and the Board findings along with the buddy and family letters were not considered as new evidence.

I want to say that I went through 18 months of physical therapy so this is not a case of a single incident in service and my claim file contains 3 inches of medical reports and examinations that were conducted while I was on active duty by various specialists that the AF flew me to for examinations on my spine.

I do not except that Sen. Moran cares about Disabled Veterans because they have treated me a callous disregard when the facts are supported by old and new evidence from the Department of the AF sateing I had disabilities in 85 and that they still recognize me as a direct service connected disabled veteran.

If he cannot get the VA to recognize the disabilities that I was medically discharged for, then he completely worthless as a member of the Congressional Commitee on Veteran Affairs and his powers of representation of Kansas Veterans are non existent.

Edited August 8, 2012 by USMC5811