Ready to be rated

[Hucast21]

Hi all,

I called Peggy about my appeal and was told that “your claim is ready to be rated.”

Recently, my lawyer faxed intake my IMO, and was curious if anyone knows the timeframe from “ready to be rated” to a decision.

Thanks,

Hucast21

[Hucast21]

Just wanted to say thank you to everyone for the replies! It is sad that the VA system is clearly adversarial towards veterans, and that we have to continue fighting until we win.
 

When I win my case, I promise I will donate and help out Tbird.

[GBArmy]

Hucast21 You have the right attitude. Whether it's poor training, lack of adequate training, the amount of volume they have to move to meet their "quota", the "adversarial" posture that the raters and examiners have, or whatever, it is just damn hard to get your claim approved and rated at the accurate level at the proper effective date.I saw data published by the VA that said 25% of all claims have an error. I seriously question the accuracy of that finding. But we can win if we keep at it; just takes time,  and unfortunately, some of us don't have enough of it. Keep at it Hucast21. "You don't lose until you quit trying!"

[Hucast21]

11 hours ago, GBArmy said:

Hucast21 You have the right attitude. Whether it's poor training, lack of adequate training, the amount of volume they have to move to meet their "quota", the "adversarial" posture that the raters and examiners have, or whatever, it is just damn hard to get your claim approved and rated at the accurate level at the proper effective date.I saw data published by the VA that said 25% of all claims have an error. I seriously question the accuracy of that finding. But we can win if we keep at it; just takes time,  and unfortunately, some of us don't have enough of it. Keep at it Hucast21. "You don't lose until you quit trying!"

Thanks!

Going by the claims process, VA does not follow its own rules and regulations. An unfavorable C&P exam from a NP should never have more weight to an IME w/ IMO but apparently it does.

[Lemuel]

On 4/9/2020 at 11:38 AM, Hucast21 said:

Update 2:

Just talked to a representative for my lawyer.

I was basically told my lawyer is going to write an argument letter and present it to the BVA hearing judge - citing VA rules, regulations, and other similar cases of how my claim has been unfairly rated by the RO given all of the probative evidence.

The motto of “deny, deny, deny until the veteran quits or dies” is alive and well.

It should not take a veteran to present their case before the BVA to get it right.

It is downright insulting and a spit to the face when a veteran clearly has current disabilities (that are presently being treated) that were diagnosed while in-service and documented in their SMRs.

I find it funny how my least documented disability in my SMRs (patellofemoral syndrome in both knees) was granted when I first filed my claim in 2018. 

Now I know first-hand how most or some of you feel in hadit.

Take heart Huscast21.  Godsey v Wilkie, Vet. App. 17-4361 06/13/2019 CAVC Order has forced a shortened time from your NOD to the BVA.

If it takes more than a year, make sure your attorney files a Rule 21 Petition on your behalf.  Things happen quickly then.  My Rule 21 Petitions were filed in February.  Bray v Wilkie, Vet. App. 20-1323 (01/08/2018 Claim Decision NOD) and 20-1415 (05/17/2017 BVA Remand).  I was one month short for the Godsey class action qualification at the time but the Order also includes future NODs.  The BVA remands weren't included but there are other citations including Godsey v Wilkie.

I received an award letter from the Executive Director, Compensation Services on the BVA May 17, 2017 remand (20-1415) that was being delayed on April 8, 2020 granting a claim that had been delayed from October of 1987 and granting TDIU back to my last full time employment job loss date of September 16, 1985.  At 79, I'm not dead yet.  Spent a number of years in abject poverty saving up that $500,000 plus check that I will get.  Probably wouldn't have saved it any other way.  Now I'll have a nice home paid for with enough income to live well plus full medical for me and my wife.

See my posts by clicking on the green L upper left of this post.  I'll try to answer any questions about how I got to this point and where I'm going from here.  Not finished yet.  Still have a 3.154 1151 medical malpractice claim and a temporal lobe epilepsy claim that will probably go back to 1974 with gradually increasing ratings until 100% without TDIU in 1985 to 2015 when I was appropriately treated and the epilepsy went into remission.  But that was more than 35 years of my most employable life out the door and qualifies for the 20 year permanent status if I can get it.

I'm set for life now and don't need that last.  But I was a Navy Corpsman and leaving veterans behind on the paper trail causes me stress.  I will continue for that reason.  To provide precedence for others.  I started my activism in 1985 on the suggestion of a group therapist in a private conversation.  He said to keep my sanity, since my brain didn't function enough of the time to hold a job, I should try to help others as much as possible to keep a sense of self worth.  

One of the things I'll work on is an "undeveloped claim" for others submitted via Bray v Derwinski in 1988.  I'll claim the submission of the class action denied by the Feres Doctrine was an informal claim for all organic brain syndrome veterans who are victims of the specific circumstances outline in my filing with 2 other veterans.  It was first filed in 1987 and should take all TBI claims earlier than 2008 back at least to 1987 and possibly to the earliest evidence of problems with the veteran's employability.

I now have a precedence to go back.  The Fifth Amendment property rights and the Fourteenth Amendment Section (4) guarantees of veterans' benefits together with the extra schedular 38 CFR sections and my 1987 next of friend claims should be enough to overturn the Congressional TBI limitation date as unconstitutional.  At least it is worth a try and this is the time to do it with Judges and Adjudicators seeing the large bailouts to corporations while veterans have been stiffed all these years.  If the attorney I have won't do it, I'll have to find one who will.