Community Update

VA Claims Backlog and How to Beat It!

As many know, our Veterans Administration is having a tough time keeping up with the massive influx of Disability Claims from the OIF/OEF veterans processing out of the military. Of biggest concern to VA Secretary Eric Shinseki is the more than 1 Million claims still in processing status over 125 days, the target for completion by VA Standards. I recently had my claim completed by the VA Regional Office in Hartford in just 7 months (217 Days to be exact), with fair results. The key to a timely return on your claim is to treat it as an investment. Nobody buys stock in a company they have not done their due-diligence on, and the same should count for your VA Claim. Many veterans expect large percentages for disabilities that they have, but do not approach the evidence-gathering with a clear picture of what is needed, and end up getting less than they deserve. PTSD is one of the most common contentions being filed in Disability cases, and it is usually a guaranteed approval as long as the veteran was deployed, or can prove that some other incident that happened while in service caused the condition. The approach is what matters. Too many times, military men do not want to look weak or inferior to their comrades, and pass up any chance of getting treatment while still serving, for fear they might be looked at in a different light than the Tough and Ready combat warriors that they are. To them, reaching out for help is a sign of weakness. This mentality is counter-productive when it comes to the VA Claim Process. They need evidence of a traumatic incident in order to approve a PTSD Claim. Without it, you lose out on the benefits you deserve.

The VA has very strict guidelines to adhere to when processing a claim. They fall under Chapter 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), section C. This has almost every contention that can be filed for, what they look for, and how they rate it as a percentage of disability. This is otherwise known as the Bible of VA Claims. Study this, and you will learn how to maximize your rating. http://www.benefits.va.gov/warms/bookc.asp

Also, the VA has recently introduced the Fully Developed Claims (FDC) Process, where you present all of your evidence to them at the time of filing. This greatly reduces the amount of time that your claim will be in the "Gathering of Evidence (Dust)" Phase, and allows you to fully present your case to the VA. A note on this, if you misplace or don't include evidence, it will not be considered, so be sure to include anything that might be of value to the process. With the FDC Process, you can include doctors notes, outside examinations (Non-VA), as well as Your Service Medical Records (SMRs) and your VA Civilian Healthcare File (C-File). To request copies of these, send a VA Form 21-4138 (Statement in Support of Claim) to your VA regional Office in a certified, receipt requested USPS envelope. It will take about 8-10 weeks to process.
http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/vba-21-4138-are.pdf

More to come, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!