Mental health IMO

[ShuMan]

I highly recommend seeing Dr. Jaclyn H. Polsky if you need an independent medical option to go with your mental health claim. 

I saw her work and is very detailed and she has a ton of experience working with the VA. 

https://www.soflapsych.com/

I don't recommend someone unless I believe the work they produce is top of the line and Dr. Polsky does produce top of the line reports. 

[john999]

Getting a mental health IMO is a great idea.  It can make all the difference between a 10% rating and a 70%-100% rating.  Mental health ratings from the VA are all over the place.  Depending on who you see for your C&P exam anything can happen.

[flow1972]

I agree with john999.  I sought out a private provider through my private insurance that met all of the VA's rating criteria and specialized in my issues.  She was instrumental in my SC for PTSD due to MST on the first attempt.

[john999]

My lawyer's wife was a former VA psychiatrist.  I went to see her for my appeal some years ago.  She wrote an IME that just knocked it out of the park.  The VA just rolled over and granted my appeal.  For mental health claim get the iMO/IME doctor. Mental health is subjective.  A hostile C&P doctor can just kill your claim.  There are VA C&P doctors that believe that vets are all fakers and frauds.

[Buck52]

I never had to get a IMO for my PTSD Claim...I used the VA physiatrist Doc's and L.C.S.W.  and what all they mention in MyHealthyVet notes and of course my old military records  from Vietnam that I had.

I got approved the first go-round...but this was like 6 years ago

So use your MyhealthVet Notes* as well......you be surprised what they put in them.

[El Train]

I hired Dr. Valette.  A former C&P contract Psych. Dr. with over 20,000 C&P's under his belt.  He wrote up a thorough IME and DBQ for PTSD and TBI.  That got the ball rolling for me to get too 100% PTSD w/TBI (up from 50% ptsd alone).  The subsequent C&P's didn't mention his assessment much (except one C&P Psych. Dr. who did her best, and failed, to discredit his IME), but I know it had it's effect;  otherwise I wouldn't have gotten the C&P's in the first place.  Had it gone to BVA or further, his IME/DBQ would have played a bigger role.  It was nice to have that in my back pocket.  

[ShuMan]

There are a good amount of options out there if you need an IMO. Some claim's do not need an IMO. If you have been seen by your own provider for years, that would be the route to go for sure.