The Veteran Thread

[Parker]

Originally Posted by theoddz

Thanks for posting that, Greyson. It is a national travesty that our Veterans have to wait so long to get the benefits that we've earned. It always seems like the nation/political system is forever ready to get us involved in armed conflict, yet is never ready or prepared to take care of us, once the Veteran returns. The VA was in really shabby condition and completely unprepared to care for the Veterans of Vietnam. Again, we see nearly the same and even worse with the VBA (Veterans Benefit Administration) this time around, with OIF/OEF Vets.

I can tell you, from my own personal experience of obtaining my benefits, it is a long, long, lengthy process and most times, nearly every Veteran is denied the first time their claim is presented to the Adjudication Board. A Vet could roll in to the VA as an amputee who had his/her legs blown off in battle and the VA would look at them and say, "No, that isn't service-connected". You know why they do that?? Because they know that there will be a certain percentage of Veterans who will just give up and go away, and that saves the VA a lot of money. Another thing the Adjudication system just LOVES to do, when processing a claim, is to "remand" it and send it back to get "more information". Before the VA and DoD became computerized, it took a LOT longer for this to happen. It took me 12+ years to finally get my full benefits, and that was waaaaaaay too long!!! It just breaks my heart to see our service men and women have to fight the VA like they must in order to get their benefits.

The key to finally getting one's VA benefits/compensation is persistence. You just have to keep at them and keep filing the "Notice of Disagreement" each and every time the claim is denied. Don't give up. Oh, and it also helps a LOT if you get a Service Officer (AMVETS, DAV, American Legion, VFW) to work your claim for you. These guys are provided by their organizations, free of charge to Veterans, for the sole purpose of filing and processing disability claims. They are available at ALL VA Medical Centers and at some clinic locations. Some require appointments and some do walk-in's. If you're trying to get help from these people, call your main VAMC phone number and ask to be connected, or for the phone number, of one of the Service Officers. Don't try to process your claim by yourself. The process is confusing and tends to require many time deadlines. These guys keep track of these things for the Veteran, and most of the time, they have "connections" at the Adjudication Boards that can sometimes speed things up a lot.

Thanks again, Greyson, for posting this!!!!

~Theo~

I actually count myself as lucky because my claim(s) took less than a year each - but to be fair, they werent initial claims but a re-evaluations. I did my initial claim back when I first got out and they decided certain things were service connected, but rated at 0% so I never bothered with it again - until things got decidedly worse and I had to have a hysto. Then I requested a re-evaluation and then another re-evaluation a couple of years later when the complications of that made things even worse.

Now I am playing the waiting game with the SSA - apply-deny, appeal-deny, ALJ-non-favorable, and now we are at the appeals council portion of the game.

I didnt have any help with my re-evaluations with the VA because, for some reason, DAV didnt want to help me out and be an advocate/rep (too bogged down maybe? dunno), but with SSA, I have a lawyer to help me wade through the gobbledegook.

It's a tough fight and sometimes a long wait - and sometimes I even catch hell from people who think I am just lazy and looking for entitlements - but each one of us earned those benefits; so I would encourage each veteran to hang in there and keep fighting for what you deserve.