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Wowee this Tricare/Humana change beginning tomorrow I had no idea about is sure loving dumb and annoying. The new TriWest Health Alliance doesn't find my kid in DEERS, and there is no way to look at my DEERS info on DMDC (did that go away?) and the DEERS/ID card office is closed today because it's an AETC family day. Awesome I love this.
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Dec 31, 2024 17:20
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Mr. Nice! posted:Finally got notification back from the VA. They're giving me my MGIB benefits because I qualify post-Rudisill. If you think you might qualify, drop the VA a line at https://ask.va.gov. I am sure some other folks got this email from the VA but figured I would drop it here. I will be interested to see if I get an extra 12 months since I did one 6-year AD enlistment and then three reserve enlistments (3, 2, 3) with a MOB in there. The timing of the email was funny as I was looking into if I had more than my remaining 7 months post-9/11 GI Bill as I am looking to go back for my PhD and before folks point out you shouldn't pay for a PhD, I know, it doesn't work that way right now quote:Dear VA Education Beneficiary,
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Jan 4, 2025 16:49
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Has anyone here had experience filing for va disability for MH issues related to combat? Im about to start, but I got out in 2009. Ive at least signed up with DAV. Any tips would be appreciated. What is more important, witness statements attesting I was there or docs saying I sought help later?
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Jan 8, 2025 18:21
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Mercury Ballistic posted:Has anyone here had experience filing for va disability for MH issues related to combat? I didn't need any witness statements, but I received some treatment before leaving the Army and the deployments were on my DD214. The evaluation was a conversation with the VA therapist (maybe a psychologist?) that lasted maybe 30 min?
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Jan 8, 2025 19:01
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Mercury Ballistic posted:Has anyone here had experience filing for va disability for MH issues related to combat? Do your intent to file today, you have up to 365 days to submit afterwards and have your claim dated back to today. Every day you wait is potentially a day less of compensation. Reference this: https://www.reddit.com/r/VeteransBenefits/wiki/index/ to understand rating criteria, what you need to prove, and how you should go about proving it before submitting anything. Do not assume the DAV rep you get will actually do anything to your benefit in filing. Be your own best friend and do the research. I did a BDD claim coming off active duty myself (with a VA-appointed rep). I did my last claim with a DAV rep who did nothing but make me wait 2 months for a call to fill out the form on the phone that I was already going to fill out to e-file. They were less than useful, the way they submitted my claim was lazy and has ultimately delayed by claims process because I have had to submit a supplemental claim. If you have treatment records (especially those with a diagnosis, especially a diagnosis of PTSD) then those are extremely important for your submission. You can be diagnosed during your C&P (Compensation & Pension) contracted exam that the VA will schedule for you as part of the claim process, but it's best to already have a diagnosis and treatment records. It's also to your advantage to read the DBQ (Disability Benefit Questionnaire) for whatever condition(s) you are planning to claim, and especially to understand the criteria the VA uses for rating MH conditions - the examiner will fill out a DBQ, asking you the questions and examining you in the process, understanding what they're saying yes or no to is important to not sell your symptoms and experiences short. I want to emphasize the compensation claim process is a legal one first and foremost; if you do not meet the language requirements for a condition because of any technicality (ie you don't have a PTSD diagnosis and the C&P examiner sucked and didn't diagnose you) they will deny you. Do your best to present an ironclad case. I would highly suggest your strategy be to compile as many records, statements, etc as possible in support of your first claim. The better formed it is showing diagnosis, symptoms, how it affects you, and with a strong nexus to your service, the more likely you are to get a condition rated. Once you submit a claim, if you are denied, you may submit a supplemental claim to give new and relevant evidence. You may also request a HLR (higher level review) if you believe (with a backable reason) that the rating you received was in error (they didn't look at some evidence because it wasn't listed in your rating letter but WAS submitted, they rated something wrongly based on symptoms, etc). Once you do a HLR, you may not do another for the same claim - the process after that is an appeal which currently takes years.
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Jan 9, 2025 00:23
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Well poo poo... That answer was much better.... What he said.
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Jan 9, 2025 01:48
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Got it, thanks. Already submitted my intent to file. Ive got a witness statement from another survivor and random health records for depression and seeing a councilor at a vet center. Ive got segments of the ncis report and Im seeing the va in feb about getting a formal diagnosis.
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Jan 9, 2025 02:00
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Mercury Ballistic posted:Got it, thanks. Already submitted my intent to file. Great! I'd suggest putting any statements on the VA Form 21-10210 "Lay/Witness Statement - People also sometimes call this statement a “buddy statement.”" I highly suggest you write your own, as well. Talk about what, why, where, when, how it affects you. https://www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/docs/PTSD_Review.pdf This is the PTSD DBQ. Read it and understand what will be asked of you.  If you are found to be suffering from service-connected PTSD this is the section that will heavily define your rating. I want to point out that if you think you don't have symptoms like "Neglect of personal appearance and hygiene", having a bad day on a weekend and forgetting to brush your teeth and shower fits the definition. Suicidal ideation can be any type of intrusive thought, even sorta indirect things like thinking "getting in a car accident right now would be okay" fits the definition. Pretty much everyone I have helped so far with their claim has actually experienced worse and more symptoms than they realized, often thinking that they're normal or just doing their best to ignore them and live their lives. Also highly recommend you claim anything else you might be dealing with from your service. That reddit link includes a master condition list, and really helps to break down what and how to claim things. This includes wear-and-tear on your joints, any sort of physical problems, blood pressure issues, etc. Pretty much anything you're dealing with that could have been caused or worsened by your service, especially anything you have a diagnosis for, and ESPECIALLY anything you have a diagnosis AND military treatment records for. You can attempt to claim things that you believe are secondary to something that was primarily caused by your service, or you can wait and attempt to get service connection for the first thing, then later file a claim for condition(s) secondary to that primary condition. Think a messed up foot that has affected your hip because you walk with a limp, stuff like that. Physical stuff is usually not about pain, but about limitations in your range of motion. However, range of motion includes the limitation due to pain. All of your examinations should include physical measurements, and they should be done as if you are having your worst symptoms, not just how you're feeling that day. So your knee on a real bad day can't really be bent without pain, and you walk with a limp? That's how it is supposed to be assessed. As far as timelines go, for a small sample size in the DMV of a few of us recently submitting claims, expect your examinations to be scheduled for you within 3 weeks of your claim submission. They'll reach out, I suggest you take the first available appointments to get them knocked out. Bring records, statements, everything - plan like the provider has a broken computer and no access to any of it. Know what to expect and what they should be doing and asking you. You'll be paid mileage to attend your exams. If they do a poo poo job, there is a guide in that reddit post about what steps you should take to get a new examination done. Happy to help with any other questions. I've learned a lot about this in the past couple years helping people and doing my own. Unfortunately a lot of it seems to come down to the provider(s) who do your exams, and the rater(s) you get. Best you can do is come swinging as prepared as possible and know how to handle whatever happens.
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Jan 9, 2025 02:23
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That's all great info. Thank you. I've got tinnitus and was exposed to gunfire and riding around in mraps and Humvees so I'll claim that and Ive got a shoulder issue but unfortunately my out processing doc wrote it on the wrong arm. I did seek treatment for it with the va and i suspect it was due to the body armor. I dont know what I can do to show a nexus though. I went to the tbi clinic at Bethesda soon after my deployment and then did some VA screening at ft Belvoir but it was pretty informal. They told me id been "winged" by ptsd but was okay. I feel dumb after 15 years of dealing with issues to finally make the connection in my head that maybe the va can help more. Just wanted to say this bit: "Pretty much everyone I have helped so far with their claim has actually experienced worse and more symptoms than they realized, often thinking that they're normal or just doing their best to ignore them and live their lives." Really hits hard Mercury Ballistic fucked around with this message at 05:36 on Jan 10, 2025 |
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Jan 9, 2025 03:22
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Well I'll be godammed. I'm actually getting money from the 3M Hearing Loss thing. Never in a million years thought it turn out like this. I expected a check for $2.03 when I started this process years ago.
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Jan 31, 2025 15:36
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Bulky Bartokomous posted:Well I'll be godammed. I'm actually getting money from the 3M Hearing Loss thing. Never in a million years thought it turn out like this. I expected a check for $2.03 when I started this process years ago. I never thought that would ever come to fruition. Has anyone been looking through Reddit? I have a claim in process and it “seems” there’s certainly some volatility going on in the past week.
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Feb 1, 2025 02:24
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I submitted my claim on Monday and have been watching Reddit. Ive heard the VA may be left alone more than some agencies but they are like .5 million employees of the VA and so far the plan seems to be to tear it all down so Im expecting a delay.
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Feb 1, 2025 05:10
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Mercury Ballistic posted:I submitted my claim on Monday and have been watching Reddit. Ive heard the VA may be left alone more than some agencies but they are like .5 million employees of the VA and so far the plan seems to be to tear it all down so Im expecting a delay. It's a slow process. https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/va-claim-tracker/onbanekcefgnibhlaiimeadkbdahjpoo is a cool little browser extension a vet wrote that pulls some of the backend webpage information that the actual claims status page doesn't display. This will tell you what step your claim is in, and when it gets assigned temporary jurisdiction (which indicates it is/or should shortly be in front of a rater). Keep an eye out for phone calls and texts for scheduling contracted C&P appointments over the next few weeks. How you will be contacted and scheduled varies by contractor, but be sure when you're given an address you save it somewhere and know where you're going. They're supposed to next-day a packet with the information to you, but about half of mine got to me after the appointment date/time (probably because I take first available).
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Feb 1, 2025 16:36
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Any of you guys know if you can move and still just use the VA in the location where you previously lived? I have been using bridge mental health care and my general mental health intake is Thursday, and so far in three months the bridge team has sent my ADHD meds 8 days late twice and also lowered the dose twice, most recently without speaking to me about it. I did not have these issues in my last locale, and maybe having actual intake will help, but figured I might as well ask the group
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Feb 2, 2025 01:27
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maffew buildings posted:Any of you guys know if you can move and still just use the VA in the location where you previously lived? I have been using bridge mental health care and my general mental health intake is Thursday, and so far in three months the bridge team has sent my ADHD meds 8 days late twice and also lowered the dose twice, most recently without speaking to me about it. I did not have these issues in my last locale, and maybe having actual intake will help, but figured I might as well ask the group My understanding is that you don't have to use any particular VA and if you're set up at one place the only reason you would move is for your own convenience or because you prefer the services you get a different spot. Other than that you're not bound to any particular geographic relation. But if you're going to a different state there may be some difficulty if they coordinate with any state or local programs.
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Feb 2, 2025 02:38
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Grip it and rip it posted:My understanding is that you don't have to use any particular VA and if you're set up at one place the only reason you would move is for your own convenience or because you prefer the services you get a different spot. Other than that you're not bound to any particular geographic relation. But if you're going to a different state there may be some difficulty if they coordinate with any state or local programs. Yeah I just figured it is a better idea to handle it locally but wow, my hindsight, it is so 20/20. Thanks for the quick follow up.
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Feb 2, 2025 02:42
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maffew buildings posted:Any of you guys know if you can move and still just use the VA in the location where you previously lived? I have been using bridge mental health care and my general mental health intake is Thursday, and so far in three months the bridge team has sent my ADHD meds 8 days late twice and also lowered the dose twice, most recently without speaking to me about it. I did not have these issues in my last locale, and maybe having actual intake will help, but figured I might as well ask the group Anecdotally one of my friends is still enrolled with the VA after moving out of state. He does still have a house in the previous state and kept it as his address. It has allowed for continuity with his MH providers, but does occasionally create problems like when they decide to randomly ignore his prescription address and mail his (some refrigerated and quite important) medications to the wrong state. I don't see anything that would stop you from doing what Grip it said above, other than maybe licensing issues if some providers aren't actually legally allowed to practice in your current state of residence. I experienced this not with the VA but with a private provider while I was trying to get transitioned into the VA and needed an interim prescription refill. They told me it was fine because I was transient at the time, but they didn't have licensure to practice in my new state.
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Feb 2, 2025 03:17
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My hope is I can sort it all out when I'm assigned a psychiatrist and in their system proper, but this wasn't exactly a chill process thus far. Having my dose cut while studying for the MCAT on top of things being delayed wasn't a confidence inspiring experience, so I figured I should look into if I can just go back to the way things were.
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Feb 2, 2025 03:24
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rifles posted:I don't see anything that would stop you from doing what Grip it said above, other than maybe licensing issues if some providers aren't actually legally allowed to practice in your current state of residence. I experienced this not with the VA but with a private provider while I was trying to get transitioned into the VA and needed an interim prescription refill. They told me it was fine because I was transient at the time, but they didn't have licensure to practice in my new state. Yes, that is an issue for non-federal employees; no, that is not an issue for VA or DOD providers. All Uncle Sam gives a poo poo about is if you are independently licensed in some state of the union. I cannot wait until the Social Work Compact is signed by more states (or at least NC or MD) so I can stop dealing with multiple state licensure when I moonlight
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Feb 2, 2025 04:00
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Nick Soapdish posted:Yes, that is an issue for non-federal employees; no, that is not an issue for VA or DOD providers. All Uncle Sam gives a poo poo about is if you are independently licensed in some state of the union. Thanks, good to know!
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Feb 2, 2025 04:52
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Submitted my claim on the 31st and have a c&p exam next week. Any advice? Im dealing with MH stuff and I understand it's all rolled up together.
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Feb 7, 2025 05:46
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Mercury Ballistic posted:Submitted my claim on the 31st and have a c&p exam next week. Any advice? Im dealing with MH stuff and I understand it's all rolled up together. I did not submit for MH issues and I have not worked the exam/review side but I am an LCSW so take my advice for what it is When talking to the examiner/provider they will already have what is in your records and then they have a specific checklist from CFR that is how the determination is made. Do not downplay your issues. Do not mask your issues. Do not think about how it affects you on your best day when it is 72*, sunny, and the world is perfect; describe it on when you're in crisis or heightened mood/affect/emotion on a bad day. On the flip side, not that I think anyone in this dead gay forums would do it, do not make stuff up. Good luck with the process; I hope Uncle Sam can do a bit to make you whole from your time in
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Feb 7, 2025 16:42
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Mercury Ballistic posted:Submitted my claim on the 31st and have a c&p exam next week. Any advice? Im dealing with MH stuff and I understand it's all rolled up together. That's really fast. I'm also waiting for a C&P from a claim in December. Still stuck on "gathering information" Let us know how it goes.
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Feb 7, 2025 20:10
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The examiner is not your friend, they are there to do the job the VA wants and that's as many concerns written off as not service connected as possible. Bring notes to ensure you got on everything that needs to be addressed. While I hope your experience is positive and the examiner cares about doing their job the right way, their companies don't get VA contracts by giving accurate evaluations
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Feb 7, 2025 21:11
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Any way to add providers to your MyHealtheVet secure messaging system? Wanted to ask the group before I begin calling the VA or my local system, thanks.
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Feb 11, 2025 20:37
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maffew buildings posted:Any way to add providers to your MyHealtheVet secure messaging system? Wanted to ask the group before I begin calling the VA or my local system, thanks. I've just messaged "My Team" and it got sent to the right Doc. You can pick which specialty and mine was replied from my Doctor personally.
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Feb 13, 2025 01:48
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Had my C&P exam. Doc was a contractor, very friendly and at the end said she was diagnosing me with ptsd and mdd so I hope that's good. Now just to get through the hellscape that is being a gov employee rn.
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Feb 18, 2025 07:36
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VA Secretary answers questions about the DOGE shakeup and assures our benefits are safe: https://news.va.gov/138326/va-secretary-doug-collins-veterans-benefits/ The comments from vets on the page are going like you'd expect. For what it's worth I was still able to be seen in Urgent Care in Boston last week, so not pandemonium yet, but I was getting a general miasma of dread from the receptionists. quote:He clarified that DOGE representatives at VA are reviewing contracts to ensure operations remain efficient and that resources are directed toward services for Veterans. Oh ok, that's all the 19-year-old white supremacist DOGE kids are doing with my psych notes, carry on then.
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Feb 20, 2025 02:07
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It took a lot of back and forth, but everything is finally sorted and I got 10 months of MGIB eligibility now. Thankfully, I still have three semesters in my program and will be able to exhaust it. If you haven't used it, ask.va.gov is really good for actually talking to a person. To recap following Rudisill: If you had more than one period of service, i.e. you re-enlisted, commissioned, or left the service and came back in, you can use both MGIB and Post 9/11 GI Bills if you qualify for each of them with a single period of service. You get up to 48 months of benefits total, so if your P9/11 went past 36 months, that will reduce your MGIB. If you have a program that pays tuition, the MGIB may be a better fit than P9/11. To get your benefits, just go to va.gov and apply for the education benefit. They'll either send you an eligibility letter or a denial stating why. I was initially denial erroneously, but was able to fix it via ask.va.gov. They sent me a request for information that I was also able to respond to online. Mr. Nice! fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Apr 9, 2025 |
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Apr 9, 2025 18:09
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Hoping my claim gets approved before my agency starts the RIF process.
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Apr 11, 2025 06:53
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