D*** The Va, Wth Is Going On?

[Navy04]

I submitted an IRIS a few weeks ago, and as most of you know my claim has been in the Prep for Decision phase since 12/22/14. Now a month later my damn claim went to Gathering of Evidence yesterday, WTH!!! Now on my Ebennies claim status page it looks like the RO is requesting C&P exams or evidence from VA med Facility, and they have until Mar 15. I am so freaking frustrated, my last 2 FDC claims have been completed in less than 4 months each, and even though a few conditions were denied, atleast the process was smooth. How can we ever get better or relieve stress if the dang VA keeps jerking us in circles like a Merry Go Round. Sorry to ramble guys, just tired of the same crap over and over again. I am grateful that I am 100%, but I want every Ache, Pain and Medical Condition listed in my VA Record in case anything every happens to me, that all.

[GatorNavy]

I don't see where the appeals process is streamlined to be any faster with an FDC. Also, what is the lowball or denial rate as compared to the standard claim?

[Navy04]

Well I made it thru the C&P exams this past week. My PTSD Review exam was hard core to say the least, and I was in there over an hour. Well I just looked at the PTSD C&P exam results on Myhealthevet and it looks like the Doc diagnosed me with a few other mental conditions, and the VA will either continue my 70% or even up my PTSD to 100%. I hope the VA makes the PTSD or my % as a whole permanent. My other C&Ps went ok don't know really what to think of them until I see the Exam Results. I have a few more exams in a couple of weeks along with some kind of ear test, chest x ray, and a Brain Scan. Thank you guys so much for the support you have all given me during these hard times. Happy Valentines Day and God Bless!!!

[georgiapapa]

Navy,

I hope you are keeping a journal of everything you have had to go through with the VA. I will be surprised if you don't get P & T status this time. The "other mental conditions" you mentioned are probably caused by the VA.

Hang in there. You are in our prayers.

Georgiapapa.

[rootbeer22]

Georgiapapa:

My experience with the FDC Program has not been smooth and I have followed all of the rules to the letter of the law. The good news is that I've had a few exams and my claim is moving forward. But, it did not really start moving until I visited the RO. The initial reception was not good but I asked for a supervisor which was very nice and helpful. It was nice to actually have a live person to look at my claim and assist me. For the most part, I,ve found the staff to be very nice but I've heard that many of them are back on mandatory overtime again because the late claims numbers are rising again. I can imagine that many of them are getting tired and it's probably a fairly tough environment to work in. Granted it's been a roller coaster ride and I've committed to writing a newspaper article about my experiences with the FDC, I've learned a lot. One is that a lot of a vets fate with their claims rests on whom the rater is that is working their claim and the complexity of the claim. So, basically the "Luck of the Draw" plays a big part besides having strong evidence. Also, I have an exam that was performed by a nurse that was not done according the rules, I argued and am going to be able to do it again. One issue is that a examiner should not show any bias at all during the exam. She challenged me for not putting in the claim earlier and the innuendo was that I was adding to her workload along with other vets who did not put their claims in at retirement. Although, told her that I did put in a Claim but no one orderd the exams and I got a new high pressure job as I was retiring so it got delayed. Frankly, she did not believe me until I came back two weeks later for other exams and showed her the paperwork. But, she had already past judgment on me and her attitude was reflected in the exam. She left out a lot of very important information like how the contention affected my work and how many flare ups I had in a one year period, she also guessed on a lot of the rom measurements which were not accurate. I was in a bad Tank Accident, had surgery and have not been able to Bend over fully for many many years years and yet the exam says that I can. Besides, the inaccurate exam I felt slighted that bias would affect the accuracy of an exam and in all the years of the military I had never seen that happen before? That all said, I think I'm finally on track now as I move forward. There are people like sec McDonald and The head of the VBA. I'm still amazed that they will take direct emails for Vets and help them and I imagine it keep may of the Regional Offices on their toes?

[georgiapapa]

rootbeer22,

I am sorry to hear about your bad experience with the FDC program. Most of the posts I have read on Hadit regarding the FDC program have been positive, especially when comparing the FDC program with the standard claims process. At least you were proactive and got the ball rolling.

You are on the mark with your "luck of the draw" comment. One vet may have strong evidence and have a C & P performed by an unqualified examiner and have their claim denied while another vet with similar evidence has their claim approved because their C & P examiner was qualified. In my opinion, the VA C & P exam process has shortcomings and is not fair to vets. The VA has no problem using NPs, PAs and general practitioner MDs for exams for a condition which should be evaluated by a specialist. However, the VA will not give any credibility to an IMO submitted by a vet that was prepared by a NP or PA. Also, the VA will only accept a PTSD diagnosis from a VA psychologist or psychiatrist even if a vet has been diagnosed and received counseling for years from a civilian psychiatrist or psychologist with far superior qualifications.

Regarding your comments about vets sending emails directly to Secretary McDonald, I think this is great because he will eventually get tired of the constant emails and designate one or more persons at each RO to assume this responsibility and vets will be able to communicate via email with a VA rep at their respective RO. JMO

I wish you success with your claim.

Georgiapapa.

[Navy04]

Rootbeer, sorry to hear that you have been riding on the VA Roller Coaster of Crap too, there always seems to be free tickets for that ride. My experience for the most part with FDCs has been ok, and 4 claims decided within 2 years, which is a good timeline. I have had to fight certain conditions multiple times with the VA. With me being only 32, I have had to fight twice as hard even though I spent years in OIF/OEF and am under the Wounded Warrior Program. As you can tell from my Signature, if the VA gives me a hard time with all the issues that I have documented and SC, what do you think that are going to do to the average Vet. The VA wants us all to get Tired, Frustrated and Plain Crazy so that we will give up. No way in Hell are we every going to give in. Good luck and keep us posted bud. Georgia thanks again for al the Support and Kind Words, they really mean a lot on my bad days.