DND/VA HELP PLEASE!

[schart28]

One advice I can tell you is too feed your VAC lawyer with information even if they have access to it. It will speed up your review.

 

[retiredgrunt45]

When i was medically released the release clerk put me in touch with the legion, best decison i ever made. I had initially been turned down by the VA and was on appeal when i was released. The legion put me in touch with a lawyer who dealt with personal injury cases and she had done quite a few military cases in the past and had won every one of them. VA lawyers are OK, but they tend to be biased and don't always give their best argument on your behalf. The legion has a list of lawyers who will sometimes do Pro-Bono work if they think your case is strong enough.

Number 1 is to have everything documented, doesn't matter how big or how small, write everything down, dates, times, names, ranks , places etc. Keep this in a journal or log form. Handwritten entries are prefered because its more personal. The more information you have the stronger your case will be and the less holes the VA will be able to poke through it. Deal with facts not speculation.

Number 2 If you get hurt make damn sure a CF-98 and an incident reports are completed within 24 hours and keep a signed copy of both on your own file. If you were taken to a civilian hospital keep copy(s) of any treatment(s) surgery etc, given and any paperwork pertaining to your stay, admission and release from the hospital. Also doctors and nurses names is a biggy in case you need a witness list.

Number 3 Document names, ranks of any persons who where present and witnessed the accident, have them write out a signed statement while its still fresh in their mind as to what happened, circumstances and how it happened. A witness list is a big asset when dealing with the VA. If your case goes to court these witnesses will be your biggest asset.

The VA is no different than any other government agency, its a huge black hole with tons of beaurocracy and red tape and sometimes it seems to take forever to get anything done. "Take a number and have a seat"

 

[teddybear]

Well, I hope that change is coming.
My dh, Mcpl. Paul Franklin and I are currently in the middle of this with the VA.  You would think that his case would be pretty cut and dry.  The man blew up in Afghanistan, he has no legs, 100% disability.  Right?  Perhaps not. 

My husband was Sgt. Darcy Tedford. He was killed in Afghanistan on Oct 14th, 2006. You would think that this case would definitely be cut and dry!! I am still waiting for the 75% top up of his pay. Apparently they have to "investigate" his military service, pay and rank. As of the week before Xmas, the claim was still in progress in PEI. It took 2 months for the Sudden Death Benefit to be awarded - again they had to investigate!!  :
If it takes this long for something sooo simple to be awarded, I can't imagine how long it takes to be awarded a medical pension.
Good luck to all of you with claims still pending or on appeal.

 

[simysmom99]

Well, we just had our review prior to Christmas.  Seems that our VAC lady (using that word a bit loosely) had to make sure that Paul still had no legs.  I am at a loss for words on that point.  We did however get informed and approved to extra compensation due to his level of injury. 

 

[muffin]

To the last 2 posts - I can't imagine how incredibly frusterating this process must be! This is rediculous!

There is someone on another thread looking for ideas for news stories... this would be a good one.

 

[retiredgrunt45]

My condolences to you and your family Teddybear.

Have you been in touch with the Legion?

They can help you in ways you can't imagine.

Here is the contact info for the dominion command branch in Ottawa.
Give them a call, thay can help you with your situation.

The Royal Canadian Legion
Dominion Command
86 Aird Place
Ottawa, ON
K2L 0A1

Phone: (613) 591-3335
Fax:    (613) 591-9335

Good luck.

 

[RHFC_piper]

My husband was Sgt. Darcy Tedford. He was killed in Afghanistan on Oct 14th, 2006. You would think that this case would definitely be cut and dry!! I am still waiting for the 75% top up of his pay. Apparently they have to "investigate" his military service, pay and rank. As of the week before Xmas, the claim was still in progress in PEI. It took 2 months for the Sudden Death Benefit to be awarded - again they had to investigate!!  :
If it takes this long for something sooo simple to be awarded, I can't imagine how long it takes to be awarded a medical pension.
Good luck to all of you with claims still pending or on appeal.

You're right, it should be easier for those in your case... That seems almost unacceptable.  I hope it works out for you.

I have recently recieved information on my own claim (from the friendly fire incident in September 06);

The verdict is; I am not currently eligible for a 'favourable' claim.
I was told by a VAC / DVA rep to put in a claim asap, once I returned home from Afghanistan, so that it would be processed immediately.  Others who have been through this process advised to wait for various reasons; No long term diagnosis of disability, no diagnosis of PTSD, no loss of income, no need for support for medical needs.

The VAC / DVA rep advised having each wound assessed individually, as each of them caused a large amount of damage. I won't go into detail, I'll just say it's going to be a long road to get back to normal mobility, and there are no forcasts for long term issues (besides having trouble at airport metal detectors).
So I filled out a mountian of paper work for each one, and submitted it. About a month later, I recieved a call from a DVA claims rep, who informed me that my claim was currently 'unfavourable' for the following reasons;
- Disabilities due to fresh wounds don't merit a claim as they are still healing and the full effects are not yet evident.
- No permanent disabilities have been diagnosed (and probably wont be until healing and progress in physio reaches a plateau)
- PTSD has not been diagnosed officially (Still waiting for a session with the head shrinkers)
- There is no loss of income, as I'm still on contract with the regular forces untill they deem that my healing and physio has come to a plateau, conduct a physical and PT review and either medically release me, or deem me fit for duty and return me to my reserve unit.
- There is no need to provide for medical care, as the military covers it.

Because of these reasons, my claim as it stands now, would be 'unfavourable' and I would be appealing it forever.  And if the claim ever went through, it would be extremely low.

There are upsides, though.
- Weather I am released or not, DVA / VAC will cover any losses due to lack of employment, and will cover re-education if I can't return to the field of (civilian) employment I was in before deployment.
- Now that my application is in, it is just a matter of submitting it for process once conditions are met.

I must say, I was a little disappointed when I was told all this, but I understand it, and I sort of makes sense.

But, IMO, the families of the fallen should not have to wait.  They should be priority, followed by soldiers who's disabilities are very apparent (loss of limb).

The next issue I have is the 'lump sum' Payment instead of pentions.  My issue is simple; I have unknown metalic pieces in my body (which may or may not be; casing from the ammo fire at us, debris from the ground or surrounding area, or depleted uranium, which was possibly fired at us)  which could cause unknown long term effects... not to mention the other wounds to both legs and arm (which already effect mobility)... What happens then?  They say they will re-assess the claim and adjust as needed, but that just doesn't seem reasonable. Maybe it's just me, but it doesn't make sense.

I hope the system becomes more streamlined and efficient as time goes on, as there will be more and more soldiers in these situations as things progress in Afghanistan. 

 

[Rescue Randy]

The reason that they are providing lump sums instead of a pension is that we lost the pension when they brought in the New Veterans Charter.  The CF did what they could to get better benefits for the troops, but were steamrolled by the Liberals supporting VAC as they wanted to make it look like they were doing something for the troops.
One thing that needs to be repeated loud and clear is that you do not have to be a Legion member to call the Service Officers of Dominion Command, Royal Canadian Legion - and the bulk of the guys working there are retired military.  They will help you.  The phone number and contact were provided by Retired Grunt 45  two posts before this one.

 

[Centurian1985]

The verdict is; I am not currently eligible for a 'favourable' claim... 

Make sure you take note of previous advice - get copies of all assessments every doctor makes, so you have supporting statements for when you submit your claim again.  A lot of paperwork gets sent between centers and doctors that you wont see unless you ask for it.   

Just make sure you dont get released without getting into a education and/or retraining program first!

 

[manhole]

Don't forget the Army, Navy & Air Force Veterans in Canada (ANAVETS).  I am the Service Officer with our local unit and have 39 files on the go at the moment........I have been doing this for a number of years and some bureaucrats still amaze me with their lack of knowledge.  Don't give up.......keep at it.  It is very unfortunate that these claims can't be processed in a timely fashion and with a large dose of common sense by the VAC staff!  Use whatever resources you have at hand to pursue your claim.

 

[Corvin]

:rage:
I just got a cheque from VAC today, there was no letter, just a stub claiming it was my "Disability Award", $12786.46.  I called VAC and was told that's my 5% "award".

I injured my back during training 3+ years ago and am now being medically released.  I cannot stand nor sit for long periods (read more then 20 minutes standing and more then 60 minutes sitting).  Just this morning when I went to change my 3 week old daughter I experienced severe pain when I went to lift her up (she's somewhere around 10-12 lbs).

How does that only qualify me for 5%?  I intend to fight this thing as hard as I can, but I just needed to rant.

Also, $255,729.25 as a max?  I'm only 28,  if I was able to work until I was 60 that's only 5% of my current salary with the CF, why have we allowed the charter to become such a mess?  And is there anything that we can do to fix it (the charter I mean, my back just needs to be replaced).

 

[riggermade]

I feel for you and fight it, get a lawyer.

I was turned down for osteoarthritis in both feet, both knees, right hip, both shoulders and degenerative disk disease in my back.

Their excuse was it was due to aging, I'm 44.

Couldn't have any thing to do with 21 years wearing a maroon beret and jumping.

 

[3rd Herd]

Corvin,
thanks for the post. Just had one of my appeal boards in regard to this issue/injury. Let you know what the results of are in the standard four to six weeks.

riggermade,
they split the osteoarthritis issuses into a seperate claim. To be handled at a later time.

 

[Corvin]

I still haven't received a letter explaining the appeals process.  So I've got a couple of quick questions for anyone who's gone through this before.

First, what do I do with this cheque?  Can I spend it and they'll just take that out of any further settlement I'd get (it can't get any lower then the 5% they've given me).

Second, how do I appeal?  Do I need any additional documentation?  Can I have a non DND doc take a look at me and give them their assessment?

Thanks guys, I'm just pissed off, impatient and waiting for a letter.

 

[3rd Herd]

Corvin,
if you go to the site home page and use advanced search, "VAC, Disability" etc you will be able to find all the threads on this genre. More information and links, plus you will be able to see who on site has some "expertise" in this and then be able to PM them. 

 

[Greymatters]

Have you not had any previous contact with a VAC lawyer?  Someone should have been keeping you updated on the status of your claim and the fact that you would only get 5%. 

Back and head injuries seem to be the toughest to prove.  Be prepared to get appointments with at least 2 or 3 civilian specialists, specifically identifying what limitations this causes you in relation to work and everday life, and be prepared to have the DND review crew challenge their assessments.

 

[Long in the tooth]

I guess I'm relatively lucky.  Blew my knee out on course reqr emergency surgery, so my documentation is water tight.  I was almost forced out but worked hard to stay in shape.  I'm currently getting a 15% disability by monthly deposit which I toss into my RRSP.  As it stands now presently there's just a one time payment; I prefer it monthly although the total amount would not differ much.

I just had an MRI done of my back due to incredible pain.  The results were a non chalant "your spine shows some degeneration, probably due to age" - and humping a ruck for 19 years wouldn't have anything to do with that, would it?

I wish you well in getting a higher settlement.  I believe that 20% is about the highest you can get without demonstrating some life altering incapacity.  I've advised lots of members and have found that DVA was tight until about 1996 (when the WW2 vets really started having issues) and became more lenient with claims.  Since then, unfortunately, the program has been taken advantage of (I overheard members DAGing discussing on how to work a PTSD scam on return).  So once again a sad few have ruined it for the rest of us.

 

[Corvin]

Have you not had any previous contact with a VAC lawyer?  Someone should have been keeping you updated on the status of your claim and the fact that you would only get 5%. 

No, I haven't heard from anyone at VAC, save for the guy I called and was told that the cheque I have in my hands is for the 5% diss award and that a letter "has been sent".

I got the cheque on Monday, and still haven't seen a letter (it's Friday night as I write this).

My main question is since I've just moved (a relocation on release) I could really use a vehicle, if I cash the cheque am I going to be able to appeal still or do I send it back with an appeal?  If anyone could answer that or explain the appeals process I'd be grateful.

And as for searching, that was the first thing I did when I got the cheque with the "disability award" notice on it, it didn't come up with anything useful.

 

[the 48th regulator]

What about SISIP, has your military case manager informed you of the details responsible with regards to them looking after your needs?  They are to provide you with a monthly payment, as well, as retraining in the form of paying for education.  Further, if you are found to have a permanent disability, they can provide with a  permanent monthly payment, reviewed on a regular basis.

Let me know if you have been offered the above sources, if not, we can offer advise on how to put you in touch with right people.

dileas

tess

 

[Greymatters]

What about SISIP, has your military case manager informed you of the details responsible with regards to them looking after your needs?  They are to provide you with a monthly payment, as well, as retraining in the form of paying for education.  Further, if you are found to have a permanent disability, they can provide with a  permanent monthly payment, reviewed on a regular basis. 

I gonna be pretty pissed if this is another soldier whose unit did not inform him of what benefits he/she is entitled to before dumping him on civie street...