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Vba Nod Form 21-0958

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carlie

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Go to the following link and click the download button.

http://formupack.com/pdf-forms/federal/va-veteransaffairs/FederalVA_VBA-21-0958-ARE.html

"THE USE OF THIS FORM IS NOT MANDATORY. HOWEVER, USING IT WILL HELP REDUCE DELAYS IN PROCESSING YOUR NOD. THIS FORM HAS SEVERAL KEY COMPONENTS, WHICH WHEN FILLED OUT COMPLETELY AND ACCURATELY, WILL DECREASE THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES TO PROCESS YOUR NOD.
Frequently asked questions:
For what do I use this standard NOD?
Use this form to indicate to your Regional Office (RO) that you disagree with a decision you received regarding
your claim for disability compensation. Examples of these decisions may include entitlement to service
connection, percentage of evaluation assigned, and effective date among other things.
Should I fill out this form?
Only fill out this form if you disagree with a decision issued by your RO. This includes an initial decision, a
decision for an increased rating, or any other decision you disagree with.
Where can I get help?
You can ask the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to help you fill out the form by contacting us. Before you
contact us, please make sure you gather the necessary information and materials, and complete as much of
the form as you can.
What should I do when I have finished my NOD?
You should provide your signature in the block provided at the bottom of the second page. Be sure to sign
every form you fill out before you send it to us. If you don't sign the form, VA will return it for you to sign,
and it will take longer to process.
Attach any materials that support and explain your NOD.
Mail or take your NOD to the RO that issued the decision or notification that you disagree with, which is the
Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ.)
Do I need to keep a copy of this NOD form?
It is important that you keep a copy of all completed forms and materials you give to VA
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In regards to the NOD....My decision for some reason was reached by the VARO in the state i lived in 2 states ago and not in the one where i live and had my C&P exams.

1) Can i send the NOD to my local VARO

2) Can i request my case be adjudicated from now until decision (and hopefully not into appeal) at my local VARO?

3)I will be sending my evidence to Janesville, WI via certified return receipt and Fax from now on.

4) Is there a time limit on how soon after my NOD that i have to send in evidence, or can i just collect it and have it with me at the actual interview? Is it required to submit prior?

5) I already had a hearing scheduled (as mentioned in other posts) in another state (with 2 days lead time) so i sent in via certifed, fax and iris that i would not be able to make it and requested a new hearing at my local VARO.

6) what are pro's/cons of doing DRO vs traditional appeal (Vet board) via NOD

7) i have heard of the "filing for reconsideration" what does that exactly entail and what are differences between that and NOD, etc.

Edited by USMC_VET
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@asknod I did end up turning in the documents to the VA.

Since the time I posted what I had to say back then I have already been to the DRO hearing. But the evidence in question was a FCA ( Functional Capacity Assessment ) Test. This was done by a Private Facility.

Back to the DRO hearing, I went to New Orleans,La. for the hearing and once the hearing started the DRO let me explain all I wanted to explain. And then he finally told me to just go back home and file a NOD for "Earlier Effective Date of Claim" and "Depression and Anxiety" I did and still do not understand why he would not let me know that I needed to do those before coming down there. All he did was grant me a New C/P Exam.

And of course it was at the same facility with a different nurse practitioner that did not even accept the evidence and proof. i even asked her about it and she said they do things their way and that was not a acceptable means of testing for them. So I am still puzzled here. But when comparing the old C/P side-by-side with the new one, they can not agree with each other on lots of things. But the one thing they could both agree on is that my condition now is not what I was discharged with "Patella Femoral Syndrome." But they could agree that it is "Traumatic Arthritis" now. And both of them took the time to mention that it is because I am overweight and not because I 47 now and not 21 years old like when I was discharged.

I did come here to mention names or anything like that. What i feel is that the VA ( C/P Exam employees ) have already made up their mind and since I requested a new C/P exam they no matter what evidence will not change their mind. In the last examiners statement she was giving legal advice and making statements about the VA RO made a clear and unmistakable error in giving me 20% for "Traumatic Arthritis." 

I will try and make this explanation short. I was discharged in July 1991 with "Patella Femoral Syndrome." After being discharged I went to the local VA office and turned my paperwork for disability. Guy in the office just laughed at me and said at that time in 1991 with 20% disability it would take me 10 years to off the Severance pay I got. But said he would send it in if that is what I wanted, and I said I wanted to file it. After almost 9 years ad not hearing anything I felt it was time to start getting benefits or compensation from my medical discharge disability. Wrong. He did not file it and the VA had nothing on it.

So I was forced to redo the paper in 1999 and apply from there forward, since there was no evidence of me filing in 1991. Now the 1999 Filing took 2 weeks and was Denied. Simply put the VA looked at my discharge papers along with the Medical board Review and Findings from the in-service records I had saved. And said there is no current disability. Well when filling out the paperwork the local VSO checked the box that I was willing to come for an examination. The VA said that at that time period they did not have to grant me a medical examination that if i could not provide them with a Fully Developed Claim it would be Denied. I even sent them the doctors I had seen during that time period 1991-1999 and asked them to get the medical records. After getting my C-file I seen where they said that sent me a letter stating that they could not reach that facility and that I needed to get them myself. Would of been nice to of received that letter.

After the VA denied my claim i thought well they wont give it to me so there was no need to keep trying. In 2001 my left knee got so bad I had to get insurance from private sector through my job and have arthroscopic surgery done. And in 2009 my left knee was so deranged and unable to even walk on it with bone fragments behind my knee and in the tendon of the patella, along with worn out cartilage and the femur and tibia bones had spider web fractures in them. And again had to get a private doctor to do the surgery, same doctor did both of them. And at the beginning of 2010 I went back up to the VA local office and asked them about my disability. So we had to start all over again with new file, but the VSO this time was curious as to why they would not service connect me for my discharge and filed a NOD and asked for an exam and for them to accept the evidence.

Short version they Denied the Claim without the evidence of the surgeries and said there was no nexus. Been at it every since then trying to get the VA to let me into the Orthopedic Clinic without any luck. So again in 2014 I went back to the local VA office and filled out paperwork again. Except this time someone had given a person within the VBA to email or talk to and i did and that person was able to contact the New Orleans RO and that is where we stand with the back and forth process of not accepting my medical evidence and for some reason they continue to say they accepted my lay statement but it has never been recorded. 

Right now I am still awaiting the DRO decision for both the 20% disability rating NOD and the Depression and Anxiety Claim, both of which are at the DRO and been waiting for Review and Decision. And somewhere in my heart I feel like they are going to rule unfavorable against me since I went over their heads and to the VBA in Washington. 

@asknod if you would like to see some of the documents and reports I would be glad to have someone help.         

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Ardodd, I'm absolutely swamped with Vets I'm helping. It looks like you have had either very poor representatives from VSOs helping you or a concerted effort by VA to sandbag you. Any time you walk into a RO and flip a claim onto the counter, they file it and date stamp it right there on the spot. They generally ask you if you'd like a copy w/ the date stamp too. So I guess I don't get the 1991 VA clerk saying he'd file it but he didn't. That's against  the law in 48 states. 

As for the 1999 filing, you have to have three ingredients. Sounds like you arrived with two and were lacking a current diagnosis. As I say, I'm looking through binoculars backwards from here. My advice would be to beat feet to a good VA attorney. If you have a c-file semi-up-to-date, it might help the atty. to see the chronology of the claim. Remember, the CAVC doesn't recognize a VSO as being anything more intelligent, legally speaking,  than your dog or cat. If you did all this pro se, I might understand your confusion. But how you got aced in 1991 is a mystery. Best of luck, sir.

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I know this is an old thread but I would like to add my two cents.  Only in the wacky world of the VA can they make a specific form requirement to perfect an appeal.  This is the epitome of 'form over substance' which courts outside the VA frown upon.  The ultimate object is to have the claim ruled on it's merits, not if you have dotted the I's and crossed the T's.

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Well, yes, Sgt Stelmo.  The VA makes it clear its their way or the hiway.  The Nod, now has to be on an approved form, as does TDIU, neither of which required specific forms in the past.  Interestgly, they dont have a "nexus" or "Caluza elements" form, where Vets can list precisely how they meet the Caluza elements...that would give Vets the advantage if they knew what raters are looking for.  However, you can post your Caluza elements here on hadit, and members may opine if they think your evidence meets those critieria.  

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Those were the good days when you could write your NOD on a piece of paper.  My VSO once forgot to file my form 9.  I was told my case was over but I discovered any statement contesting the decision could be a form 9.  I had filed a letter to the VA stating such, so my case continued after the RO ruled my statement could be considered a form 9.

I really believe these new regs are enacted to prevent a case such as mine.

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