ptsd Confused About Ebenefits/documents/letters

[SecondChance]

I have a question. I submitted a paper claim to the VA with one issue....PTSD/MST. I have a date of claim of 2/11/2013. I went for a C&P exam in July of 2013. Ebenefits just updated and now says in the preparation for decision. Here are my questions.

1. My AB7 letter is blank. It has my name and everything, but it has always been blank about dates. When does that update?

2. I usually send all my documents via snail mail, but I sent my private doctor docs via the uplaod feature on ebenefits and printed out the screen. I got nervous and sent them snail mail. I know they have not gotten the paper copies yet. My question is that on ebenefits it says They requested infor from me but they never recieved it and that the item was closed. But they "closed" it in 9 days. Did they get the uploaded docs from ebenefits or are they going to decide my claim before they get the docs?

3. I keep reading about an AB8 and AB$ letter. What are those? SHould I have them? When will I get them?

4. How long does the Prep for decision stage last? My claim is in St. Paul MN.

5. I sent an inquiry to IRIS on 8/1 and it is now 8/11 with no reponse, should I assume IRIS is pointless?

6. I tried calling the VA and the person I spoke to literraly said "I dont know what ebenefits is, you might want to write us" I was jaw dropped and appalled. Really VA. REALLY?

If anyone can answer these for me that would help me a lot. I have been told that MST claims are different then regular PTSD claims, but isnt the process the same.

Also, I got a copy of my CP exam and that "doc" put me at 30% but my private doctor, who I have seen for a very long time, filled out the form and put me at 70%. Will the VA ignore my doc and only listen to the VA doctor?

For me, I just need someone to tell me something solid or semi solid. I know each RO is different but the standard shouldn't change right. Thanks for all of your help.

[carlie]

Welcome

[Slowlane]

After you cruise this site for several days or weeks you will discover that you are the "norm" or you are more informed than most of us.

[GuaymasJim]

Welcome to hadit!

I am truly saddened by the fact that you suffered MST by another member of our military. There is a great deal of media scrutiny about MST right now, so I am going to go against my better judgment and suggest that you contact your elected officials in Congress AND the media. MSNBC commentators like Rachael Maddox and Mellisa Harris-Perry run with this topic almost every week. If you can reach either of those two extremely intelligent women or their staffs, you could generate some very powerful support. They both have web pages, so give it a shot. This is not a political statement, but the Republicans have talking points for "town hall meetings" with constituents to debunk the charges of a "War on Women" (WOW) while the Democrats have their talking points to confirm that the WOW exists. Regardless of which side of the aisle your elected officials sit or what your own personal political views are, this is a hot button item and both the Rs and the Ds want your vote. I suggest that you use that as leverage!

This is going to come as a disappointment, but almost nothing coming from eBenefits is accurate or even relevant. As you can see, the VA phone line isn't much better. You cannot depend on either. You can use IRIS, but make sure you choose a "written" reply.

You can find the AB8 and AB$ letters are found at the same place you found AB7 letter. I have too many windows open right now to go to eBenefits and check.

Now for the nasty part. Neither your C&P doctor or your private doctor's % estimates are worth a hill of beans. Neither one of them should be discussing % with you. If during your C&P, you gave the examiner a completed DBQ from your private doctor and the examiner accepted it, that could--repeat could--be a benefit to you depending on who wrote it and what it says. Usually (can I use that word when discussing the VA?) the opinions of the medical professional with the highest credentials will carry the greatest weight with the adjudicator--say a psychiatrist's opinion will out weight a nurse practitioner's opinion. You are claiming PTSD as a result of MST, so according to the new (2010) rules, your PTSD dx has to come from a VA "professional." The evidentiary requirements for MST are different. I am going to try to upload a fairly complete explanation.

Good luck to you and I hope you get all that you deserve.

VA MST PTSD requirements.pdf

[SecondChance]

Thank you for your input. As ironic as it is, the incident in itself was documented in my record. So the information is there. I have my private doc records and the Cp exam. I hear that a lot of claims like mine are denied for various reasons. I know I would appeal it and the timeframe my claim is at is a bit better than most, I am not sure if it has to due with which RO i am at or the typre of claim but, it's been a rollercoaster ride. Another question though.

When I went to my CP exam, the "doctor (I use that term loosly) was down right degrading. He stated a few times that my "issue" could have been avoided if I didn't join the military so I shouldn't be looking for compensation. I have already submitted papers, talked to his "boss" and etc. Is this really how the VA system is? Is the majority of VA workers angry and mean and degrading. All interactions I have had with the VA have been horrible at best.

Thanks again for all your input.

[GuaymasJim]

SecondChance, it's either my warped sense of humor or I have completely loss it. While researching something else, I ran across this jewel and thought of your post. It is an actual VA description of how they want disability exams to go. Doesn't seem like they succeeded in your case does it?

VHA DIRECTIVE 2013-002

DOCUMENTATION OF MEDICAL EVIDENCE FOR DISABILITY EVALUATION PURPOSES

2. BACKGROUND

a. VHA supports the Veterans Benefit Administration (VBA) in its mission to provide compensation and pension benefits to eligible Veterans, in part, by assigning personnel to conduct disability examinations including claims for service connection or claims for increased disability benefits. This process is a major responsibility for VHA and is of great importance to Veterans and other stakeholders. VHA’s goal is for Veterans to describe the disability examination process as “informative, supportive, caring, and even delightful.”

Edited August 13, 2013 by GuaymasJim

[harleyman]

6. I tried calling the VA and the person I spoke to literraly said "I dont know what ebenefits is, you might want to write us" I was jaw dropped and appalled. Really VA. REALLY?

I work for the regional office, I saw this post yesterday so I thought I would find out when VA employees will be trained or shown how eBenefits works so we can answer questions for the Veteran. I was told we should start getting training on this program in October.

Ebenefits was a program WRITTEN FOR VETERANS to allow Veterans to be able to watch their claim progress and submit electronically their evidence, and have a "real" time look at their pending claims progress.

VA employees DO NOT USE Ebenefits, this programs pulls "select" information the VA is allowing Veterans to see. Right now in my opinion it is nothing but a pacifier or "feel good" program, that does not work well and is NOT reliable, except for tracking where your file is currently, such as the file is in development phase, rating phase, authorization phase or completed. And it may be useful for submitting evidence, this allows the Veteran to look at the same evidence the raters are looking at (once everything is scanned into the system, which is going to take a while). This is the start of the paperless system, but VA uses a program called VBMS, not ebenefits. Is Ebenefits worthwhile or not, you be the judge? I'll know more in October after the training introduction about this interactive program.