Varo Stats - Link

[carlie]

Cool links to check individual VARO's.

Just close out the box in the middle.

Hold your curser over any VARO and the stats come up in the black box below it.

http://cironline.org/veteransclaims

[Gastone]

2 NOD DRO Hearings pending, 2010 and TDIU 2012. Has anybody had any success determining the number of DRO hearings pending and the avg wait time in given VARO's? I've checked new and old Monday Morning Reports and haven't been able to get the DRO data. The VSO's on the same floor as the VA don't seem to be able to give any type of definative answer. I have to believe that the information is available in some VA report, I just can't find it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Semper Fi

[63SIERRA]

VERMONT average wait 174 days with 680 people waiting, this kind of data leads me to believe this back log is a manufactured crisis that is designed to stall claims.

[63SIERRA]

this is what were dealing with , rampant incompetentcy

The Board of Veterans’ Appeals found errors by VA staff in 35,000 of the nearly 50,000 appeals decided in 2011, according to the board’s annual report [PDF]. In 29 percent of cases, the board overturned the agency’s initial decision and ruled in favor of the veteran. In 44 percent, the board said VA staff committed an error and sent the cases back to the agency’s regional office for additional review.

so if they got 29 percent wrong, and 44 percent were sent back because they were in error, thats actually 73 percent failure rate.

that boils down to one in four veterans are getting a fair shake the first go around.

Edited April 18, 2014 by 63SIERRA (see edit history)

[john999]

At my VARO in St. Pete they are receiving about 4300 claims a month and rating about 3700. They are falling 600 claims behind every month and 7200 claims a year. In five years at this rate they will be 36,000 claims behind.

[TiredCoastie]

Great link, Carly. I've always wanted to publish something like this for the disabled veterans community and glad someone did. Having watched the Monday Morning Workload Reports for several years now, it really does matter where you live as to how fast your claim moves. Certainly agree there.

Being pretty familiar with the data available through the MMWR, my local RO's stats don't look like what's been published lately and seem too optimistic - the map says an average of between 180 and a 190 for a claim but the MMWR says around 270 something for this fiscal year and still over 200 if considering this month's speed alone. It also depends on whether or not you look at your local RO or the RO who's actually doing the rating decision, which can differ. For our local RO, they get claims sent in from other ROs done faster than claims they process from submission to decision. The group who built and maintain the map claim that their map will populate with new data each week, but I wonder if that's actually working and how they do the math. Seems like they first published this map in 2012.

http://www.vba.va.gov/REPORTS/mmwr/index.asp

Of course, none of this has any real bearing what's going on with an individual claim, which can move faster or slower than average. If it's my claim, then it always seems to move slower...

[63SIERRA]

when they refer to days waiting are they talking business days like mondays thru fridays or calender days like monday thru sunday? in other words if they say a year is it 365 days?

Edited April 19, 2014 by 63SIERRA (see edit history)

[TiredCoastie]

when they refer to days waiting are they talking business days like mondays thru fridays or calender days like monday thru sunday? in other words if they say a year is it 365 days?

Great question!

[PainterBK]

Great info. But very depressing!

[carlie]

FYI - I do know that they are working weekends, but I do not know

if that counts as how many claims are or are not, being processed.

[PainterBK]

I just wish someone would give an honest answer instead of making

stuff up & changing it on the fly. They should just tell people " We

don't have a clue what is going on with your claim !"

[BlastDaddy]

Should I just cancel my appeal and file it as a new claim to get it finished faster?

I am looking for an adjustment for my PTSD. I nor my doctor felt they rated me correctly at 50%. She felt it should have been 70-100.

Since the appeal has been in I have been hospitalized with two suicide attempts and under family supervision with medications for hallucinations.

[Pete53]

Not a good idea to cancel. If it is deficient add to the claim already in at the VARO.

[john999]

JRT

If you are unable to work due to your PTSD then you should be getting 70%-100%. Being able to work is pretty much the ball game in mental health claims. That separates 50% for 70%-100%. Of course, once you get 70% most will file for TDIU and you will then never work again if you are smart and really ill. I do believe that young vets who are TDIU or 100% for mental conditions are hurt by the VA more than helped. Once a young vet gets 100% for a mental condition they will never work again, and thus become one of the marginalized persons in our society.

[BlastDaddy]

John999,

I try daily to do something creative, I cannot remember much of it and it is hard to even motivate myself to do so. Since I am salary and have been forever I either show or don't show to work. My position is a self made position within the company. I'm afraid if I can't work I will then finally be one of those who just lets go and accepts hands outs. I don't want what is not mine I want what they owe. I am broken from hard use in the service and now I'm paying for it. I can't enjoy my 10 year old son nor my 3 year old daughter. I am currently 50% PTSD 40% Fibromyalgia 10% Tinnitus 0% Shoulder under appeal (evidence never reviewed) as well as 0% for surgical removal of stainless steal rod from left femur. Although the femur was hurt due to falling off a 5 ton during training. It was considered to be a pre-existing condition. and a lot more 0%'s to go wit it.

So I played hard. I also excelled and achieved rank fast. Bad thing was I did not use my sick call like I should have.