diabetes Still Being Droed

[Guest Berta]

My husband's file was immediately returned to the VARO- when they realised they (the local VAMC)not only cant give a dead vet a C & P but they apparently have no doctor there who has the expertise to diagnose diabetes-

(that is- no one there who can provide a quack opinion against a preponderance of medical evidence)

My vet rep is very very supportive (after a BIG rigamorale as to my POA-long story) and he suggested they get an expert doctor in VA Buffalo -OK there too-

The odd part -and I have his full support on this too- is that I have not been given any weight at all to my medical evidence-under

38 USC 5107 ( by the newby DRO.

He fully agrees that I should have had an award under Benefit of the Doubt and Relative Equipoise.

I mailed him some more info yesterday and want him to push hard for my rights under 38 USC 5107 b as a contrary VA med opinion would have to go against the entire American medical community's DMII standards for diagnosis-they dont need one at all---

I asked him to get the DRO to define Preponderance.

Not only do they have the med evifence, they also know I proved that 12-14 other VA doctors provided Rod with "substandard care"over a 6 year period which "hastened " his death as the Sec 1151 award of 1998 states.

What is also odd- I helped a vet get DMII award some months back-(not AO DM) this same VARO attempted to knock down his IMO -he only had one , I have two that support my claim) then the vet called me one morning thrilled that he had seen a local non VA shrink for depression (due to his 12 year battle with VA)

and the shrink stated at the end of the depression stuff that he believed the vet incurred diabetes in service and that VA should service connect him. I had helped him establish a nexus that no one picked up on in his SMRs for 12 years. Even though the IMO doctor reflected the nexus ,they still denied.

I felt for sure that VA would question that IMO coming from a shrink- but they said-

since he had two supporting IMOS, he received SC of his DM. Immediately.

This is the same VARO I am at- with bonafide IMOS (one was VA treating physician) and aside from those, a wealth of medical evidence from the VA itself to support my claim.

It is just like what I went through in the 1990s- now I know my name is on the billboard across the street.

Sorry I have not been here lately- so far so good today- I cannot figure out what went wrong when I tried to post-

I feel like the DRO thinks 38 USC 5107 applies to all VA claimants except me-(maybe she never read it)

I refuse to accept that. They are very shorthanded at this VARO.But a DRO has to be a senior employee with job experience in claims adjudication.I cant imagine how many other claims she buggered in the last few weeks.

It is those basic regs in Duty to Assist laws that-if misapplied early on- can prevent a good outcome or at least stave it off for years---I even had sent them this very regulation along with 32 probative legal and medical reasons why my claim is in Relative Equipose. Guess they couldn't read that either.

Blind Justice probably has gotten PTSD from the VA.

Even though I am griping- I love to see these regulations in action-because they do give us all we need to succeed-if we have the med evidence too.

Edited October 6, 2005 by Berta

[Pete53]

Benefit of the doubt has been misused by VA for years. In fact I think I have only seen the BVA use it.