Medical evidence Community Care

[jjrbus]

For the last 30+ years I have used the VA exclusively and on occasion they send me to Community Care.  I love the VA and their care,  community care always turns into a cluster    !  

When the VA asks me for medical records I assume the VA has everything and will supply them to claims.   What about Community Care am I responsible for obtaining those records and supplying them to the VA for disability claims??  I recently had a sleep study done by Community Care, they sent their findings to the VA and gave me a copy to hand deliver to my primary care provider because they are a bit skeptical of the VA's record keeping.   

I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea and prescribed C PAP.   It took about 7 weeks and several phone calls and messages to get the C PAP.  My primary care providers nurse finally got it straightened out.  It always seems like they have never done anything before. 

So am I responsible for gathering  up Community Care records and submitting to claims? 

[Vync]

It seems to vary depending on the provider. I have one community care provider that will print the treatment records and hand them to me when I leave. However, another doesn't print any. I thought that those records would end up back in the VA's hands not long after the community care appointment, but honestly have no idea.

[broncovet]

Its your claim, your money, your health, and your outcome.  "If" it were me, I would want to take an extra step to make sure the VA had my records, including those from community care, when I applied for benefits.  So, I would be pro active, probably drive to the docs office ask for them, and take them to the VA.  I dont know how far they are away, but the hour or two you spend doing that could save months or even years on getting yoru benefits timely.  

As an alternative, "if" you have a VSO WITH VBMS ACCESS, you could check to see if those records are there, and apply at the same time AND, review your file to make sure everything else was ok.  

Doing a great job with your records, can save you years or even decades of frustration with claims.  

As one man once told me, "if you dont have time to do it right the first time, when will you have time to do it over?"    I would dot all the i's and cross all the t's  knowing what I know now.  VA messes up enough stuff even when everything is in order WITHOUT compounding the problem by me being too lazy to obtain the necessary records.  

Sure, VA has a duty to assist.  But, if they dont do that, it is not CUE.  And I dont want to depend on a GS5 or whatever VA employee to make sure my money and claims are in order, I would check them myself. to know they are done right.  

Edited May 1 by broncovet