Va disability & C&P question regarding veteran with suicide risk

[Lagin02]

So my husband is going though the VA disability process. He began treatment in April doing CPT which aggravated his symptoms immensely. In May, he was fired from the job he has held for 8 years. In June, he was put on disability leave from his National Guard unit after command became aware of his suicide risk and they have mandated that he continues the therapy which is only making the situation worse. He has been in for 15 years and most likely will be medically chaptered out which has worsened his depression significantly. Due to his suicidal thoughts I am trying to manage this financial crisis as best I can because I’m afraid he is being pushed over the edge. He just stares off into space and sits in our basement. I filed for VA disability at the beginning of June because prior to all this he was our only source of income. I left my job a couple months before he was fired because my income was not enough to cover daycare after our son was born. I can’t leave him alone with the kids in the state he is in right now. I payed off our bills for a couple months with our savings but we only have a month left before we will be homeless. I also expedited his claim due to financial hardship in June. His claim seems open and shut to me. He did is C&P exam in July 31st but the VA still haven’t received the report (it was a VA doctor that did it not a contractor).  I called on Thursday to ask where it is and was told “it’s not ready yet” by the office where it was conducted. 

My understanding is you must prove three things:

The stressor:

His stressor occurred in Iraq in 2007. There was a CID investigation due to the circumstances around the event and there are still people in his unit that were in Iraq with him and knew what happened. I don’t want to write details because it would defeat the purpose of confidentiality but there is no denying that it was extremely traumatic and involved death and serious injury of service members in a small convoy. I also have a memorandum signed by the commander sending my husband to the combat stress unit in Iraq after the incident when he became suicidal. In my mind there is no denying the stressor. 

A current diagnosis: 

He is currently under treatment for PTSD at the VA doing CPT and is on medication. His team wants him to do an in-patient program in Chicago but as it stands with our impending homelessness, it just isn’t an opinion right now. 

The Nexus: 

He marked off symptoms of ptsd on his demobilization paperwork and stated he encountered stressors. In his periodic health assessment 6-month and also 1 year follow-ups for his Iraq deployment it shows he endorsed every symptom of PTSD and one Depression question. He was supposed to be referred to mental health according to this form but for whatever reason it slipped through the cracks. His current treatment is focused on the events that occurred during his first deployment. 

I called the VA homeless assistance line and was told that they will place my husband in transitional housing but me and our children (6-month-old and 9-years-old) will need to “find somewhere else to go.” I called the White House VA line and was told “I am so sorry but I don’t know what else I can tell you to do” His ebenifits portal broke 6 weeks ago due to duplicate files and was supposed to be fixed 3 weeks ago but is still broken. I have called veteran resources but all in our area require we have a “resolution” if they assist which we don’t because I don’t know if or when he will start to improve. 

So if your still with me, I have a couple questions: 

How long does it take for the doctor to send a C&P exam? Is it normal that it wouldn’t be don’t weeks after the exam? 

What are the chances that this will be resolved before the end of September when we will be homeless? If we do become homeless how do we follow up with the case with no address? 

Will the transitional housing be able to make sure he doesn’t follow through with his suicidal thoughts? I’m afraid that separating our family and having to toss everything we have build over the last 10 years will push him over the edge and I won’t be there to make sure he is okay. 

Is there anything else I can or should be doing? 

Is there any chance he could get better soon? Like it gets really bad but than starts then better? He has a bachelor’s degree and if he stops staring off into space and having these episodes he could get a job paying good money or I can work and he can watch the kids. I can’t imagine throwing everything we own in a dumpster, having my family torn apart, and taking my kids to a homeless shelter. I don’t even know how to explain it to my 9-year-old. He always struggled but at least he was functioning by numbing everything and isolation prior to opening this can of worms. We were financially comfortable so I just don’t understand how things got so bad so fast.

[ShrekTheTank]

39 minutes ago, Lagin02 said:

 I have thought about contacting the news but I feel so humiliated that we are in this mess. 

The VA is the one right now who should feel humiliated!  They should be stepping up to help you figure this out, not making you have to make a mountain out of it.  I would save this closer to that breaking point, but do what you have to, to keep your family safe and secure!  

Edited August 18, 2019 by shrekthetank1

[ShrekTheTank]

https://www.needhelppayingbills.com/html/oakland_county_michigan_homeless_pr.html

here is one

I know there are also other nonprofits which can also help out with housing.  They may or may not advertise for veterans.  

https://communityhousingnetwork.org/other-services/veterans-resources/

I assume you may have tried these already.  

Edited August 18, 2019 by shrekthetank1

[Lagin02]

SSVF requires that you are able to maintain your finances after they assist you. I tried contacting them when our gas got shut off last month (not a super big deal because only our dryer runs on gas and I can hang dry clothes) and the HUD-VASH program requires you have income. Veteran support grant takes 90 days and they also require you be able to support yourself if they pay what’s past due. Volunteers of America is the one that gives out HUD-VASH certificates which we don’t qualify for due to not having any income but they can place my husband in a shelter. I have found two that can help but one takes 6 months which I don’t have (VFW homes) and the other (Vets Returning home) is a shelter but we can stay there together however there aren’t any woman or kids that typically stay there. My only hope is that he gets his disability approved before the end of September. They are estimating it at September until I filed for it to be expedited for hardship then they added 2 more months so November. Do you think there’s no hope it could be done before September? 

[Lagin02]

17 minutes ago, shrekthetank1 said:

The VA is the one right now who should feel humiliated!  They should be stepping up to help you figure this out, not making you have to make a mountain out of it.  

The guy I talked to at the VA on Friday said “it’s not like we’re sitting here twittling our thumbs. It’s already been flagged for hardship, you just have to be patient, the ETC is November.” At that point, I started crying because it was September before I expedited it. I told him it’s hard to be patient when you children are about to be homeless and I asked him if there was a process for contacting us when we are homeless since they won’t be able to mail anything to us and he just said “no, is there anything else I can help you with?” I don’t know who was worse, this guy or the lady from the VA homeless line who said that they could put my husband in transitional housing but me and the kids would have to “find somewhere to go.” How is there no program for this situation? I’m assuming it happens pretty frequently with the wait times.  

[ShrekTheTank]

Looks like you are doing everything on that side you can.  I would really start to push the Mayor/gov and the senators.  Trust me if they want to they can make it happen very fast!  I would call everyday maybe a few times a day!  They can make the VA move faster.  I would also call WH hotline and let them know of your situation and make sure they hear you will be homeless at the end of September! and you have 4 children!  1-855-948-2311.

Also if it is all men at that shelter I would say that might not be a good place to go, but I could be wrong.  

[ShrekTheTank]

sadly this is one area where I have seen gaps before.  Who are your represented by?  VFW, DAV, or AML ect?

This guy sounds like a real ass!  Sorry for the language, and I would be more colorful.  Some of them are able to help out and sometimes you can find a great VSO who will bend over backwards to help you!  It looks like you have reached out to some, so in my mind it is time to go above their heads and push the envelope with the government!