rk4435 Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 Of course VA math is curious, but I was granted the SC status. My breathing has been continually degrading for years due to burn pit exposure during my Iraq tours. I quit smoking years and years ago, but keep needing more and more inhaler use to make it through each day and had to add a steroid COPD inhaler several months ago in addition to the rescue inhaler. The 30% rating does nothing to my overall combined rating, but it does at least give me the peace of mind that the VA has acknowledged that I have a condition and hopefully it will help me if my lungs keep getting worse. The rater seemed to go out of his way to help me with the breathing condition, while the other C&P examiner for a different condition blatantly lied on the DBQ. The VA is a mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 Yes it is a mess!!!!!!- Congrats on the burn pit award......because many vets are still trying to get conditions they have -tied to the Burn Pits. Were you in a the Burn Pit Registry? Did you have an independent medical opinion to support the claim? "The 30% rating does nothing to my overall combined rating, but it does at least give me the peace of mind that the VA has acknowledged that I have a condition and hopefully it will help me if my lungs keep getting worse. " Your rationale is excellent. Most disabilities, with time , get worse and vets should always file for a higher level of comp when that happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rk4435 Posted November 8, 2018 Author Share Posted November 8, 2018 I did complete the Burn Pit Registry and the VA kept emailing me telling me to get a "Burn Pit Physical." Every time I called to see about the physical the local VA Clinic said they were aware of the physicals but did not know how to obtain one for me. That took two years to resolve. As soon as I got in touch with a patient advocate he immediately gave me the number to call for the exam and I could have been there in days if my schedule allowed it. The actual exam was basically a VA employee reading my responses back to me and typing. Basically it could have been done over the phone. The person pushing the paper told me I should file a claim for IBS, and a letter that arrived weeks later invited me to file for IBS as well. I left wondering why they were advising me to file for IBS, yes it sucks, but the elephant in the room to me is the loss of breathing capability. I did have an independent medical opinion from a pulmonologist that understands the impacts of burn pits. Hopefully, now that it is SC, the VA will be willing to provide my inhalers. BTW, they denied the IBS claim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc25 Posted November 8, 2018 Share Posted November 8, 2018 On 11/6/2018 at 8:55 PM, rk4435 said: Of course VA math is curious, but I was granted the SC status. My breathing has been continually degrading for years due to burn pit exposure during my Iraq tours. I quit smoking years and years ago, but keep needing more and more inhaler use to make it through each day and had to add a steroid COPD inhaler several months ago in addition to the rescue inhaler. The 30% rating does nothing to my overall combined rating, but it does at least give me the peace of mind that the VA has acknowledged that I have a condition and hopefully it will help me if my lungs keep getting worse. The rater seemed to go out of his way to help me with the breathing condition, while the other C&P examiner for a different condition blatantly lied on the DBQ. The VA is a mess. VA DISABILITY RATINGS FOR COPD WEDNESDAY MAY 23, 2018 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is an inflammatory lung disease that causes obstructive airflow to and from the lungs. Symptoms of COPD include coughing, difficulty breathing, wheezing, tightness of the chest, and frequent respiratory infections. COPD is often referred to as chronic bronchitis or emphysema. However, a person can have symptoms of both, or, for example, have symptoms of COPD and not bronchitis. WHAT CAUSES COPD? COPD can be caused by exposure to harmful gases or particulate matter, such as sand and dust. Veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan after September 11, 2001 may have been exposed to burn pits, open-air pits used on U.S. military bases to burn waste. Servicemembers exposed to the hazardous chemicals released from the burn pits may experience severe respiratory conditions after service, including COPD. SERVICE CONNECTION FOR COPD Veterans seeking service connection for COPD will likely be service connected on a direct basis. Direct service connection requires veterans to meet three criteria. Veterans must have: A current diagnosis An in-service event, injury, or symptom A medical “nexus” linking the in-service occurrence to their current diagnosis HOW DOES VA RATE COPD? VA rates COPD based on the results of respiratory functioning tests, such as Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 Second (FEV-1), the ratio of FEV-1 to Forced Vital Capacity (FCV), the Diffusion Capacity of the Lung for Carbon Monoxide by the Single Breath Method (DLCO (SB)), and exercise testing. FEV-1 is the maximum amount of air that a person can breath out in 1 second. FEV-1 is measured against the FEV-1 for a normal person of your size and age. FCV is the total amount of air that a person can exhale after taking a full breath in. Similar to FEV-1, it is expressed in a percentage of the average person similar to you. DLCO (SB) measures the ability of a person’s lungs to transfer gas from air that is inhaled to their red blood cells. The test measure this by testing how much carbon monoxide is left when a person exhales compared with how much they inhaled. This measurement is compared to that of a normal, average person. Exercise testing determines show much oxygen a person’s blood uses when they are functioning at maximum capacity, meaning the maximum amount of physical activity that the person can repeat and sustain. This measure is expressed in the amount of oxygen used by your body weight per minute. VA RATING SCHEDULE FOR COPD VA rates COPD under 38 C.F.R. 4.97, diagnostic code 6604. Ratings range from 10 to 100 percent disabling, and are meant to compensate veterans for the lack of earning capacity caused by their condition. The 10 percent rating requires that a veteran have one of the following: FEV-1 of 71 to 80% predicted FEV01/FVC of 71 to 80% DLCO (SB) of 66 to 80% predicted The 30 percent rating for COPD requires: FEV-1 of 56 to 70% predicted, or; FEV-1/FVC of 56 to 70%, or; DLCO (SB) of 56 to 65% predicted The 60 percent rating requires: A FEV-1 of 40 to 55% predicted, or; FEV-1/FVC of 40 to 55%, or; DLCO (SB) of 4 to 55% predicted, or; Maximum oxygen consumption of 15 to 20 ml/kg/min (with cardiorespiratory limit) Finally, the 100 percent rating for COPD requires that a veteran have one of the following: FEV-1 less than 40% predicted FEV-1/FVC less than 40% DLCO (SB) less than 40% predicted Maximum exercise capacity less than 15 ml/kg/min oxygen consumption Right heart failure Right ventricular hypertrophy Pulmonary hypertension shown by Echo or cardiac catheterization Episodes of acute respiratory failure Require outpatient oxygen therapy NOTE: Veterans can only be rated for one respiratory condition. For instance, if a veteran has COPD and asthma that they believe were caused by service, they can only receive VA disability benefits for one of them. Have another Dr. fill out a DBQ for that different condition and provide a nexus of opinion that states....."at least as likely as not" (equal to or greater than 50% probability) the veteran's condition is service-connected. Then have the Dr. give a clear and concise rationale why your condition is service-connected. Once you get a favorable nexus you can re-open the denied claim if it's past the one year appeal time frame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rk4435 Posted November 9, 2018 Author Share Posted November 9, 2018 They rated me for Dypsnea (shortness of breath) doc25, but I was put on a COPD inhaler several months ago. I'm not sure if the rating criteria is very different for the two. I do know that month by month I'm using the rescue inhaler far more and have trouble doing my job. The dypsnea ID is what I was referring to regarding the helpful C&P examiner, he told me he was adding that code, apparently shortness of breath was not cutting the mustard. The VA has denied the breathing claim two times in the last decade. I am fortunate that I still function at a lower level but it seems to be degrading. The largest problem with the burn pit breathing illnesses is that many still have a somewhat FEV etc test, but have COPD like symptoms, so they are typically denied. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts