Service Disabled Veterans Insurance

[paulstrgn]

I am 100% P&T. I have called the toll free number for the VA life insurance and have been given conflicting information. The first person I spoke to said I am not eligible to apply for the waiver of premiums on a $10,000 life policy because I am working, the second person said I need to apply for the waiver and see what they say. He said I may or may not be given the waiver, he said you won't know until you apply.

Does anyone have the SDVI for $10,000 and is employed get the premiums waived? I only want to apply if the premiums will be waived. I am also under 65 and it has been less than 2 years since my last new disability.

Thanks

 

[Vync]

20 hours ago, blahsaysme2u said:

perfect explanation as usual @Vync. i will use this in my appeal as well...

this will should be easy wins...and sounds like this should go to the supreme court to have it documented so M29-1 can be updated/revised/changed to reflect the actual regulations...us merly winning appeals is not going to change anything. even having CAVC wins will only give precedent and not official changes- and we probably wont ever get there bc we should/will win our appeals. SAD!

Yes, these should be easy wins, but it might not need to go to the supreme court. The CAVC or Federal Circuit would be the next stops before the supreme court.

If I win my CUE on the S-DVI waiver, I plan to asking my VSO's attorney to contact VA leadership and require the insurance division to change M29-1 and all documentation, web sites, forms, and pamphlets to accurately reflect the law. If the VA truly did the right thing, they should self-CUE all S-DVI waiver denials solely based on the veteran being employed. Honestly, if I do win I would then expect the VA to try and appeal their loss to the CAVC (so much for non-adversarial).

[blahsaysme2u]

just an update on my appeal:

 

i filed my appeal(msg me if you want to see what was filed). i never got a response so i called- it was just sitting there and the supervisor was shocked(since October/2022)
no one has read it or taken action on it. i have requested my appeal before judge. the supervisor kept wanting to argue that "you cant get a waiver if you are working sir" and i said "ma'am with all due respect i understand what your rule book says but thats not what the law says and hence why i am appealing and need to go before an appeal judge" 

so we shall see...on side note they resent my original denial from January/2022. not sure why? i may need to call back to make sure they understand that i appealed that decision in 0ctober/2022. 

[Vync]

@blahsaysme2u Yikes! I would say that's crazy, but it is more of the same old routine. They also left mine idle because Janesville did not know that it needed to go to the insurance facility. Either way, you have due process rights to appeal, per your denial letter. The odd thing is the insurance division works somewhat different than the rest of the VA.

I had my BVA hearing in December, but was surprised to learn they did not certify the S-DVI portion even though it was on the same form as the other stuff. My VSO and I just decided to wait and see on my CUE and deal with the insurance later.

 

[blahsaysme2u]

Thanks for the update...ill keep you posted if I ever get any action or response on my single appeal item for the waiver...maybe that will make things easier? Probably not but fingers crossed 

[broncovet]

I can see how this waiver appeal is problematic:

Of course you have to have the SDVI to try to get the waiver.  This means you will likely be making the premium payments all along, and, if your waiver appeal is approved, you should/would get those premiums refunded to you.  

Who wants to hand VA $50 per month(or however much) , "hoping" that you may get that money back all while inflation is eating away your purchasing power of all the money you have invested "without any return at all".  

This creates a lose/lose situation for Veterans:

1.  If your appeal is unsuccessful, you lose.  

2.  If your appeal is successful, you lose all the interest/purchasing power of your money during VA's long appeal process.  

    I have a real problem with this whole idea.  Of course, benefits are similar, you never get interest on those, either.  The difference is, that YOU have to invest YOUR money, while waiting on VA's slow cumbersome process.  Its inherently unfair to Veterans.  

     Trust me, you pay interest on VA loans, and heaven help you if you owe the IRS money, they not only get interest, but they tan your hide and require your firstborn also, if you pay late.  

    

[blahsaysme2u]

i totally get it- but in all honesty- im not doing it to save 50 bucks- im doing it out of principle and for those vets that come behind me...i want them to deny me...i want to take this all the way to CAVC...this needs to be changed...the VA too often gets away with things in a manual/reg book that is in opposition to cfr 38 or at best vaguely out lined enough to follow the law. THIS NEEDS TO STOP!

whats sad is there is president- as has been shown already, that M29 is wrong is using employment as a test for permanent and total disability. 
 

as far as the back pay, there were 2 cases listed but the citation is missing,...maybe you slueths can help me track it down:
 

Quote

*Premiums paid but waived under former § 802(n) of this title must be refunded and may not be applied as
premiums for a period subsequent to the expiration of the waiver. 1948, A.D.V.A. 794.

*In any case in which a claim for premium refund complies with the conditions of former § 802(n) of this title
the claimed refund must be allowed, notwithstanding the fact that the insurance to which it relates has been
surrendered for cash. 1947, A.D.V.A. 751.

i also tried using chat GPT to assist and it referred me to 3 cases i cannot find but it insists are real, that deal specifically with M29:

Quote

 

I apologize for the confusion. Unfortunately, as an AI language model, I cannot provide actual links to cases or websites. However, I can summarize the cases and provide relevant information. 

Abato v. Principi is a 1999 case in which the court ruled that the VA's requirement for veterans to be "gainfully employed" in order to be eligible for S-DVI Insurance Waiver of Premiums was arbitrary and capricious. 

Sabonis v. Principi is a 2001 case that followed the same line of reasoning, stating that the VA's reliance on employment status as a determining factor for waiver of premiums was in conflict with the purpose of the program. 

Tatum v. Shinseki is a 2010 case in which the court ruled that the VA's M29-1 manual, which stated that employability was a factor in determining eligibility for S-DVI Insurance Waiver of Premiums, was not binding and that the decision should be based on the permanent and total disability of the veteran.