25 Year Long Service Connected Disability Denied After C/p Exam.

[ardodd]

This epic battle began 25 years ago when I was Discharged from USMC with a Medical Discharge for Bilateral Patello Femoral Syndrome in both knees. I filed when I got out in 1990, or so I thought I filed, according to the VA. I am not getting any help from VA on it at all. But I will move on and let that be my battle to prove.

All of this supposedly began in 1990, but it was not until 1999 when the VA said I filed a Claim. So I will just go from there, I supposedly submitted a Claim then. But in 1999 I was Denied my Claim for Disability and supposedly they sent me a letter telling me I was Denied. This was after signing the private hospital and doctor release forms. Of which to the knowledge of all these places they were never contacted.

So forward to 2010 when I Appealed that decision in 1990 stating they never Reviewed my Medical Records from the Military and from private hospitals and doctor's. Plus I signed the Release of Medical Records form again. And yet I was sent a Denial of Claim stating I had not provided any new material evidence. So in 2011 I Appealed that again and was told that after Review I had not provided new material evidence supporting my Claim. I was frustrated so I just dropped it and did my best to work until 2014 when I was struggling to keep employment and unable to perform daily task. And after being involved in automobile accident I tried in 2015 to go back and try to resolve this 25 year problem.

You may ask why are you know deciding to finally set down and try to resolve it?

Until now I did not understand all the laws and complications this process has. So after filing an Apeal for all the years I had been Denied and taking this matter to some Senior Board members in Washington,D.C for help and and guidance from the VBA. I was unclear of any of it. But my biggest Question has always been to the VA. First why was I not processed when I got out and was paid Severance for my Disbility. Second why have I been denied a C/P exam if they say I had no new material evidence if I signed the Forms for them to get the Medical Records. And the biggest clue for me was during this year when I filed an Appeal and was told that it would take between 2weeks to a,month for them to have my Service Medical Records scanned into the System.

Hello that is like handing me a Loaded Gun. Why would they need to send off to St. Louis for my Service Medical Records after Denying my Claim for over 25 years. I have been told by every VSO,RO and every VA rep that they have access to that file and it was used to Decide my Claim. Ok, if they had it then why did they need, more Importantly why did I send by email a scanned Certified copy of my Service Medical Records for them to use in my Claim this year. It was not until I sent them my certified copy did they let me have a C/P exam. And after 25 years do you honestly think that I would have the exact same symptoms and disabilities as I did 25 years ago. Why of course not, after all human,bodies and disabilities change.

But according to the C/P examiner in his Nurse Practioner wanting to play doctor said that my condition now was not what I was Discharged from the USMC for. And that what he diagnosed me for is not debilitating. Honestly where do they get these people from. He did not do a full exam,and his Non-Board Certified Orthopedic opinion is what 25 years of frustration has turned into. But I am Appealing this poponderous and unethical wisdom.

Sorry this so long but I felt it needed a merit of background, I have left out a lot of details to make it shorter. But my question is two things.

1) Did or does the VA have to grant or give a Veteran a C/P exam if they were Medically Discharged? This was in 1990

2) If the VA did not have to grant me exam even back in 1999,2010,2011 and it would of proved my Claim why would they still not give one and state I did not provide new material evidence even if I showed them records of not one but two arthroscopic knee surgeries as proof?

3) The biggest Question I have is how can the VA Board make any Decission without using my Service COnnected Medical Records and why would they not even acknowledge that I was Discharged from the Service with the Disability?

I would like to say that 2weeks ago I witnessed some VSO's shredding old folders from a filing cabinet. I asked what they were and they told me they were just old folders or files over 7 years old and they had to go. So I am,asking how is it that if someone like me wants to Appeal and old Denialxand might need the proof of the doctor's notes or something from it that was missing or not included. Why would they not scan and record all the information onto a CD or external type hard drive for cataloging. I am just asking has anyone known of this to happen and later the VA says,they never received anything. Kind of makes me wonder why the VA says they never got my 1990 Claim and says I did not try for Disability Compensation until 1999. What your thoughts on it?

[ardodd]

Thomas you are correct as I have found several things in my C-file where evidence was submitted and never sent out to the RO. And it is not even funny as they spend more time covering stuff up than actually setting down and looking at it in the correct way.

But again they are VA and we are the enemy.  

[Guest]

Unfortunately a lot of veterans go through this. "When I got I was told to make sure I had copies of all my records and any paperwork that would help when I got home. Admin made me copies of all Service Records, Medical Records, Dental Records and made sure each single piece of paper was certified and signed. They even made triplicates of the discharge paper work with the severance pay, travel pay, and VA forms for disability that were already filled out and signed to turn in."

Since you have  a copy of your C-File look for this signed paperwork.  I hate to say it but the paperwork could have been completely filled out but never sent in to VA.  If this paperwork was sent in around 1990-1991 it should have a VA date stamp and that would/will be your proof.  If your records do not have this date stamped paperwork then it is no way that you can get VA to go back that far.  Also keep in mind that just because a soldier is medically retired, VA is not obligated or responsible to process a claim on their behalf unless the soldier/veteran actually files and submit a claim. Yes, VA gets away with a lot of stuff but you have to go through your C-File page by page to make sure the evidence is there or not there.

[Sgt Cox]

From personal experience and from my vets that come see me have said is that all claims are denied the first time unless you specify exact pages in your records you want to use for evidence because they see so many claims they don't have time or want to spend the time to review every single page.  If you specify for example Military Medical Records page 487 or Yakima Memorial Hospital records page 32 and why you want them to look at that page(s) you can usually get the claim pushed through quickly.  And in my case since the VA is treating me for the items I'm claiming so I will not have to go down town to see another doctor.

As for the shredded stuff they should have only been their copies.  You should have been given a copy of all the paperwork for your own file by them also.

Edited May 4, 2016 by Sgt Cox

[ardodd]

You are 100% as I did not follow up with my claim in 1991. I only had on my the way the guy set there and just laughed at me for wanting to file on a 20% Claim in 1991. Which if I remember correctly it was only around $50-$70 a month. He thought it was funny and told me it would take 10 years to pay it back ( severance pay ). So yes it is absolutely my fault for not following up early than 1999 when i felt it should of paid off the severance pay.

In all things I would like for them to go back to 1991 when I was discharged but I know it will not happen. Shoot I am having enough trouble getting it now from 1999 forward. So yes I know in my heart that if at the most it is only going to go back to 1999. That is the original claim for compensation and yes the Claim went in and 10 days later it was denied saying although there was a service connected disability for which I was discharged for, there is no current disability. I requested a examination as at the time I was going to a couple of doctors. But I asked them to get assist in getting the medical records which they did not do. Already went through my C-file and have nothing. Even asked the RO about it and he told no they did not have to assist me at all.

I even sent them Codes that showed they even without the medical evidence they had to accept my lay statement and all I had to prove was there was painful motion. Well one month after the RO denied the claim I went to VA hospital where they took X-rays and the examiner stated there was swelling and effusion and that it needed to be checked and seen if it was connected to service. Nothing was ever done about it.

Now both examiners claim that has never been any swelling or effusion. No ankylosis or any kind of problems related to my knee's. I ask myself how can they set there read the report and still claim there has never been any thing wrong with me. And that is even after looking at the medical records and seeing the photos the doctor took during the arthroscopic knee surgery in 2009. But they insist that my knee has ever bothered me to any extent that it limited the motion of my knee's.

I just feel and know that no matter what I bring into the evidence they will not accept it. And if they do it will be like the FCA ( Functional Capacity Assessment ) Test that was done it 1996 where they stated that I had trouble squatting,standing,kneeling, and a prominent limp on one side. All of which affected my healing of my lower back and caused it to actually heal in the wrong way. And now it has caused a whole spine to start buldging disc from bottom to top. 

That is not including all the other conditions I filed for. Just like Abestosis from when I was on the LSD Spiegel Grove not once but twice was on it for almost 10 days. And lived in it during Hurricane Hugo which hit South and North Carolina in 1988. We were returning from Puerto Rico when it hit and had to lay over in Miami til it cleared the coast. But we were held in our quarters during that time.So yes we were not only exposed but had to stay in it and breathe it 24 hours a day.   

[Buck52]

Back in 1991 

The 20%  comp rate was around 153/157 monthly.

 

 

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Edited May 4, 2016 by Buck52

[ardodd]

17 minutes ago, Buck52 said:

Back in 1991 

The 20%  comp rate was around 153/157 monthly.

Buck52 i feel you are correct on that. That is just what I can remember as it was almost 26 years ago when it happened and he may of been only saying at 10% instead. Or it could of been to just discourage me from filing.

After reading some of these post I think maybe the VA is right I don't deserve a darn thing. After all I am not a combat veteran. And back then it was not that big a deal as the government was cutting back on troops with budget cuts. And yes I wanted to stay in there and hopefully retire, but honestly they probably did me a favor by discharging me.

I really just want to crawl back into my little hole and stay there and forget all this ever happened.Most of you have suffered enough in service and fighting for your right to have medical care with lots of you suffering from injuries that have changed your lives. I think maybe that guy that laughed at me was correct in his assumption that there really is more deserving veterans that need help way above me. And all of this is just being selfish.

Sorry to of bothered everyone..    

 

 

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