Veteran/child Of Nam Vet Exposed To Ao

[Andyman73]

Well, I done gone and did it. I was at Leb. VA for C&P for knee increase. While killing time I spoke with the Enviro. Health rep. Gave her a copy of my DD-214 and my father's. Also a copy of the page of my original VA rating letter that stated spina bifida of S-1. She is excited because I am her very first Child of AO. I also spoke with the Bennies counselor, who put in my AO claim, and officially stamped it as received. I am his first as well. Guess I'm #1, huh? I pointed out to him that my proof is the VA's own X-ray and rating letter!!! He said that the regional office for this type of claim is in FL. And he's got no idea what kinda time line we're looking at, here. She was talking to the other person in the Enviro health office, about medical workups and said that I shouldn't need the same kind that a non-Vet Child of AO would need, since I'm already in the VA's system. I'm nervous and excited to see how this will play out. I hope and pray that the burden of proof has already been met, with their own X-ray, and they accept and qualify my claim.

I wonder if this will then stand as proof for secondary SCD I may be dealing with. I welcome any and all comments. My Dad, on the other hand, is not sure if he wants to put in his own AO claim. Or any of the laundry list of SC and denied SC claims. When I spoke to him, he seemed like maybe he didn't want to face this giant one more time(VA). I think I may have opened a box that has been sealed and hidden in the farthest region of his mind. Just writing this now is making me feel horrible, what kind of son am I, to release that Dog of War in his mind?

Dang...

[Berta]

ebenfits isnt always up to date I guess....

I am leary of the info there sometimes.

I had 53 historic items showing when I first enrolled and now they are gone and only the 2 last awards are there.

After I contacted Ms. Hickey (in Feb I think I was)

everything on my pending issue CUE disappeared.from ebenefits ..

[Buck52]

What is the age limit for the children of a Vietnam veteran? if any?

and if the Vietnam veteran don't have any presumption AO disease but his son/daughter does with no military can they file a claim?

I always wondered about this?

................................Buck

[Buck52]

Ms Berta,

I never trusted ebenefits to many mess-ups with it for me.

its more convenient but is it worth the stress when something goes wrong or they delete/lose some important documents.

eh!.....jmo

..................Buck

[Andyman73]

Buck52,

I understand it to be that the AO Nam Vet's kids don't have to be Vets themselves to file a claim, just that the VA is the one who handles it. When I first self-identified to the Enviro Health rep, she didn't assume I was a Vet, then I told her, and she was a bit surprised at that.

As for the ebenefits thing, when those claims were listed as denied, I had received a rating letter that showed what was denied and what was accepted. That was matching what was on ebenefits. But I sure hope it is as Chuck75 is surmising, that the AO SB claim triggered an automatic appeal/review of my other claims.

Will keep youse guys updated.

Semper Fi.

[Andyman73]

Been a little while, but there has been some recent, if only very slight, movement on this claim.  I received a packet in the mail from the AO office in Colorado.  They wanted me to fill out a SB/AO claim form and submit whatever evidence, to include proof of Daddy's Nam service.  So I filled it out and will mail it off tomorrow, certified/registered/return receipt/green card mail. 

Previously I had only the first official awards letter from 1999 mentioning SB @ S1.  But I found a copy of a C&P exam I had, whilst still on AD.  And at the end of the doc's notes was an addendum for radiological findings...first on the list for my back was Spina Bifida S1.  And this was about 10 weeks before my EAS.

So that's that.

[FormerMember]

What level of disability are you claiming due to the Spina bifida? More precisely, what symptoms are you listing (i.e. IQ below 90, incontinence, etc.)? Seems they may take a dim view of granting anything compensable if you were able to serve in the military. Remember, the presumption of soundness attached to you unless it was annotated in the induction physical that you had spina bifida. 

From what I have gathered reading the SB ratings cases, the effects must be apparent and disabling at the Level one stage early on. If they resolve over time, the rating decreases. 

Edited February 6, 2016 by asknod