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Good meeting with the VA County Office

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Posted 7/13/2013 12:11 AM (GMT 0)
Been many months again, and still nothing from the VA on my Prostate Cancer Agent Orange disability case, so decided to pay a visit yesterday.  Usually, you have to wait an hour or more just to be seen, but luck was on my side and I was the only Vet there.

I got them to check the dates involved on my case, since it has been pending for so long.  I originally filed in October of 2009, hard to believe.  It was sent to Washington DC in December of 2011, on appeal.

It was last November that I was at the county office, and at that time, they asked for a letter from my doctor, as well as some other minor documents.  On that visit, I saw them fax the information to the person in DC that actually had my file.

So, the woman here at the local office, put the phone on speaker, and called the person in Washington.  The first thing they said, was, "we are still waiting for that letter from Mr. Riley's doctor."  I thought the local woman was going to explode.  She explained that it was sent as well as the other documents back in November, some 8-9 months ago.

The person in DC opened my file and found it all, as was stated, and had no excuse why they hadn't even bothered to look at the file in all this time.

Long story short.  My person re-faxed the information, just  to be on the safe side.  The DC person said they were still 2 years behind on processing the appeal cases, including the "hardship" cases such as mine.  However, they promised to look at it now, and see if they can "up" the case (the term they used" to get pretty much immediate consideration.  For the first time, the DC folks asked for my home number, and said they would be calling me.

The way it was left, they are saying that a decision should be made within the next 90 days, and if not, no later than 90 days beyond that.  They said if I don't hear from them in the first 90 days, to call the person with my file directly.

The local agent is still confident that it will be approved, and by then, I will be owed almost 4 years in arrears.

She said absolutely do not hire an attorney at this point, that the lawyers would take 40-60% cut, and really have no abilities to speed up the process.  She said if I lose on appeal, then there is one more step, that does involve attorneys, and if that were to take place, it wouldn't cost me any money.  The American Legion would pay for all legal fees to defend the case, and none of it would come out of my proceeds.  She said at  that point, they almost always win, if it is pushed that far.  She said that most Vets would have given up way before that point, and that the VA is counting on that.

So I felt pretty encouraged for once.  And I am very proud of our county VA office, they have always treated me well and with respect.  Our county office is ran entirely by women vets, the head of the office is a highly decorated Army nurse, who served on the battlefield in Viet-Nam on several tours.

Hope to have some good news soon to report.

David

Posted 7/13/2013 2:13 AM (GMT 0)
Good luck David. I'm guessing that last step, if it comes to it, may be a hearing before an administrative law judge.

That was the third level of appeal for my father's Medicare Advantage coverage determination after complete BS determinations at the lower levels. It was not worth hiring a lawyer so I did it myself (i'm not an attorney but I'm involved in a lot of administrative law). I submitted an extensive brief explaining why, notwithstanding the fact that some people can learn to straight cath themselves, it clearly met the definition of skilled care as defined in HHS regulations and should be covered for my father (a 92 year old suffering from urine retention while recovering from a stroke). The oral hearing was held by phone with an ALJ in Cleveland and there were two representatives (including a physician) from the Medicare Advantage provider on the line who ended up looking like fools with basically no rebuttal after I laid out my case. Several weeks later we got a completely favorable ruling and the provider was ordered to pay for my father's skilled nursing care.

I think your local agent is right that very few people bother to take it that far but if you do and have a decent case you can expect a fair hearing on the merits vs. the non-linear reasoning and closed mindedness you encounter at the lower levels.
Posted 7/13/2013 2:37 AM (GMT 0)
NJS, thanks for your input.

You are correct, it would be a formal hearing before a judge.

I am glad your advocated for your father, and won.

My claim was only ever denied on the thinnest of technicality, and once evidence proving that they were wrong was submitted back in 2010, it has been hung up ever since in Washington.

I was the guy that invoked the help of my U.S. Senator, Lindsey Graham (you see his name in the news all the time). He was very decent, he and his staff, and I have I believe 3 personal letters from him, but even in his position of power, he was unable to do anything directly to get me moved up the list.

He was astounded at the time, when he told me that even "hardship" cases like mine, were backlogged in the "tens of thousands" at that time.

I feel confident that it will all work out in the end, this visit gave me some new hope in the matter.

David
Posted 7/13/2013 3:50 AM (GMT 0)
Hey David
Good to hear some good news coming your way. Hard to understand those kinds of delays. Seems to be lots of folks on here from that era.
Posted 7/13/2013 3:52 AM (GMT 0)
Yep, I am painfully aware how easily things can get bogged down in Executive branch agencies. There are some excellent folks in public service, but the whole system and culture are just not set up for efficiency...
Posted 7/13/2013 4:27 AM (GMT 0)
Hope your Orange turns into Green soon.
Posted 7/13/2013 5:18 AM (GMT 0)
jym - yes due to the age that many of us were dx in our 50's and 60's, there is quite a band of brothers here from the Viet-Nam war time, from all the various branches of the Armed Forces. I am proud to be part of that group. We also have vets from the newer wars too, such as the First Gulf War.

jim - thanks. green would look good after almost 4 years of waiting and fighting.

david
Posted 7/13/2013 7:04 AM (GMT 0)
Maybe they will use IRS rules and pay you interest.

Over those 4 years depending on when you invested and in what, you could have either made a lot or lost a lot.
Posted 7/13/2013 1:24 PM (GMT 0)
Great to hear the news David. My love of the VA is limited and I have had to fight and fight. Now with mets I will wait to see if they still reduce me from 100% to 40% and they will have another fight on their hands.

Michael

Posted 7/13/2013 2:36 PM (GMT 0)
David -

Excellent!

If there is any vet who deserves for the VA to "get it right" for him, it's you.

I'm not surprised that it was a county VA office that seemed to get things headed in the right direction. In my reading on the web about veterans' matters, I see so often that these offices have been instrumental in getting results for people.

Sounds like your claim is heading toward a successful resolution! Good luck!
Posted 7/13/2013 8:00 PM (GMT 0)
David,

Really hope it comes through for you. But some of the VA office treatment you wrote about sounds straight from Superman Bizarro-world.

"The way it was left, they are saying that a decision should be made within the next 90 days, and if not, no later than 90 days beyond that."

Brings to mind the old Henny Youngman joke: "The doctor gave a man six months to live. The man couldn't pay his bill, so he gave him another six months."

Anyway, hope it comes through for you, plus the interest they should owe you for the delays.
Posted 7/13/2013 8:07 PM (GMT 0)
jim - that' a great point about the interest, but will be thankful to get just what is owed to me

Michael - with the mets, no reason they should decrease you, hope that doesn't happen.

81 - thanks my friend. they are true advocates for us "old vets" at my county office, which is refreshing

bobbie - guess that was to cover their back end if the 90 day part doesn't work. after this long wait, even
resolution within 180 days would be a miracle to me.

david
Posted 7/14/2013 2:19 AM (GMT 0)
I'm happy that you are seeing progress, but sad that you have to deal with VA headaches on top of dealing with your health. Wishing you smooth sailing in both departments going forward!

-Gedman
Posted 7/14/2013 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks, Gedman. It's just another matter that takes incredible patience. I knew from day one that I met the criteria for this disability, and there are many other Navy Viet-Nam vets in particular, that have had to fight hard. Especially if you were attached to a land based Naval aviation squadron like I was, that counted as sea-duty (figure that one). But feel confident it will be settled in my favor.

David
Posted 7/14/2013 4:20 PM (GMT 0)
I think the problems in the VA system are attributed to two main causes. First the bureaucratic unaccountable culture that exists. All too common, I sent a registered letter to VA individual in early May; it took three follow up phone calls only to find out 2 months later that she hadn't received it. It was found in the mail room. What company would allow a registered letter to sit around for two months. It takes three of four attempts to even get the simplest thing done.

The second is the amount of age degenerative claims that have little to do with military service that are being filed. A VA rep gave a talk at our club last year and wanted everyone to come in for a hearing test and he could give a 10% rating for lost hearing. What 70 year old doesn't have some hearing loss. Even disability ratings for PC are questionable. I know there is a correlation of AO with PC, but also much higher correlations exist for low Vit D, a high fat diet and age itself. Anyone who has worked on a farm or ranch or on a road crew has had much more exposure to Dioxin than anyone serving in VN. Age related minor claims are clogging up the system and the truly disabled are paying for this dearly.
Posted 7/14/2013 4:35 PM (GMT 0)
David,
This is real progress -- especially now that you have personal contact with the person who has promised to move your case along. Best wishes from a fellow Market Time sailor.

Jim
Posted 7/14/2013 8:07 PM (GMT 0)
JohnT - I find your opinion to be very accurate on all counts. Most VNV were never exposed to AO, or even close to it, but as you know, the criteria only states that you were boots on the ground (even it were for a single day) and have PC. They made up the rules for that.

And yes, no private company would allow things/employees to exist the way things are ran. My doctor's letter had been sitting there in their hands since November, right there in my file, and yet they asked my agent for it. Glad she sent it again, so there would be further delay or another lame excuse.

Jim, that's right, forgot you too were part of the Market Time missions like me. Our tasks were not always the most glamourous, but we sure stopped a lot of enemy traffic in the South China Sea and Mekong Delta area. Here in Greenville, Lockheed still re-furbs the Navy's current fleet of P-3's, and I get to see my lovely planes flying overhead on test runs on a regular basis. Wish there were some way they would let me come on a flight for old times sakes.

david
Posted 7/14/2013 10:50 PM (GMT 0)
David,
As luck had it, after a year at a coastal surveillance center, I ended up in a P3 squadron as my next assignment -- VP8 out of Patuxent River, Maryland. We did three deployments to Bermuda in a little over two years -- a welcome change from RVN. We had the navy's oldest P3A's and also had 2 civilian (retired chiefs) Lockeed reps attached to the squadron.

Jim
Posted 7/14/2013 11:23 PM (GMT 0)
That's great, Jim. After my stint with VP-17, was hoping to go to another VP squadron in Patuxent, as my long time girlfriend at the time lived not far from there. But we know how the service goes, instead I was assigned to the DEG-6, which was in drydock in Boston the entire time I was on-board. Wasn't a drop of water under the ship, yet the Captain pretended we were on the high seas all the time ,lol.

The moment I hear that distinct sound of a P-3 overhead, my head instantly turns in its direction in the sky. Never tire of seeing them, even after 40 plus years. Sometimes I get fooled, because the same Lockheed center re-furbs C-130's, and their 4 turbo props sound a lot a like. Can't believe they are still flying those still, one rugged airframe.

David
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