Benefits

Question:

I have been receiving 100% for residuals for lung cancer for 6 years recently called in for re-exam was left at 100% this all due to agent orange I still am not P&T should I try for P&T or just wait also will it take another 6 years before another re-exam I am 79. 

Jim's Reply:

You're already Totally disabled...the T of P & T. What you lack is the permanent or the P part of that abbreviation. You likely won't ever achieve a permanent rating...there is no way to try, no forms to complete for that part of the rating.
 

At this point if you're collecting the 100% benefit were I you I wouldn't worry about whether it's rated as permanent or not. I can't predict if or when you may get another exam but again, there is no additional benefit for you so I wouldn't give it any thought. Good luck sir.

Question:

I believe my Parkinson’s disease may have been triggered by the severe contamination of Subic Bay in the Philippines. I was stationed there in 1991-92, the year the base was closed. If the base was in the US, it would have been deemed a major Super Fund Site. It has been closed for 30 years and FOIA requests of water quality and such have proven useless as nothing can be found. Is this a lost cause?

Jim's Reply:

A lost cause? No, not by a long shot. The recent passage of the PACT Act promises a lot more attention to claims by veterans who have been harmed by exposure to HAZMAT substances. This doesn't guarantee that you'll win any benefits but your opportunities to have your claim recognized have increased a lot.
 

File your claim! Tens of thousands of other like you have done the same recently. Good luck sir.

Question:

My husband and I originally married in 1985 and divorced in 1998, remarried each other in 2001, and now are getting divorced in 2023. I would like to know how this breaks down for Tricare, as far as the 20/20/20 rule is concerned.

Jim's Reply:

Eligibility rules are here.

Under the 20/20/20 rule, you keep TRICARE health care benefits for as long as you remain eligible if:

• You were married to the service member for at least 20 years,
• The service member served in the armed forces for at least 20 years, and
• The marriage and the period of service overlapped for at least 20 years.

Question:

Jim, I am at 60% disability for Agent Orange Ischemic Heart Disease. I have now been diagnosed with Sick Sinus Syndrome and am scheduled to have a pacemaker implant in a short while. Should I submit a claim for an increased rating due to the pacemaker or would I be wasting my time? Thanks much.

Jim's Reply:

Yes, you should file for an increase in your rating by claiming the SSS as secondary to the IHD. You'll need to be sure that your cardiologist who is responsible for implanting and maintaining the pacemaker writes a note to that effect in your records. Once that's done, you should be good to go.

Question:

I am 100% P&T TDIU… I am 9 months from 20 years, not that any of that matters to the VA. I debating if I should open a claim to connect my diabetes to my sleep apnea/hypertension. Should I let sleeping dog lie? I understand I don’t gain money but if I pass on, I am concerned that my wife won’t get DIC if I don’t pass from my service connections. Thank you for your service and time.

Jim's Reply:

The 100% TDIU benefit is exactly the same benefit as the 100% schedular benefit and brings with it all the same privileges...including DIC for your spouse. In order for your spouse to be eligible for DIC, you must be rated as permanently 100% disabled for at least 10 uninterrupted years OR die from a rated condition.
 

So if you're going on 20 years, you can be run over by a truck and she'll be eligible for her DIC benefit. 

Be careful who you share this with and watch for speeding trucks. Good luck sir.

Question:

I am new at this PSP disease and Most of the mail I am reading in your mail bag is years old or maybe I'm looking in the wrong places. Is PSP presently listed as something that is worth filing a claim for. I was just diagnosed with it Oct 2022 and am seeing my representative who files my claims for me. She can not find any claim forms at the VA that she can file for this disease. I served in Vietnam in 66-67 as a crew chief/door gunner on a Huey helicopter and of course we flew support for the aircraft that was spraying this stuff and we followed up a few days later with troop support search and destroy missions in that same area. I am presently seeing a neurologist and he said this disease was definitely PSP and I should file a claim for it. How many others from my era or the war in Vietnam have been shown to have a correlation to PSP and Vietnam? I am not presently looking for an attorney to help with my case yet and do have on available thru my group support leader that I see on a weekly basis for PTSD . Any help is appreciated.

Jim's Reply:

The first thing to know is that Progressive Supranuclear Palsy is not the same as Parkinson's disease. While Parkinson's is widely recognized as being caused or contributed to by many factors, less is known about the cause of PSP.
 

I can't account for your representative's not understanding how to file a claim for the disease since the claim would be filed just as any other claim would. The disease is very well known to the VBA claims system as we can see in the BVA decision search results here. If you'll click through that link you'll find many BVA appeals that will tell you a lot about service connection for the condition.

Those are all important to you as you think of filing your own claims...read and learn! The more time you spend reading the results of what others have done, the better your chances are.
 

You can't ask for an attorney to help you yet...the VA won't allow that. You have to be seeking an appeal of a denied claim before you can retain a veterans law attorney to help you. However, since you tell me that your current "representative" isn't able to figure out how to file a perfectly reasonable claim for you, you may want to think about finding another way to get your VA claims in order.
 

I like the DIY method where we file the claim and don't depend on these "VA reps" so much.
 

Good luck sir.

Question:

My physician diagnosed me with smoldering myeloma. Can I file for disability for smoldering myeloma (a form of bone cancer)? I was in the military from 1972 - 1975. I was a tank commander and was around the diesel fumes for at least 30 months. When we were out in the fields we slept in tents with diesel fueled heaters.

Jim's Reply:

Yes, you may file any disability claim at any time. However, winning that claim is a different story. In your case you want to service connect your smoldering myeloma (a pre-cancerous condition) to your military service where you were exposed to diesel fumes.
 

That isn't at all unreasonable but you'll need expert testimony in the form of an Independent Medical Opinion or IMO to make your case. Once you have that, your claim should proceed with no problems. Good luck sir.

Question:

I have prostate cancer. I have a Gleason score of 6. I am a Vietnam veteran. I had C & P exam, but am not sure why. I told the examiner about my erectile dysfunction (ED) and he wanted to know if it was from my enlarged prostate, medicine that I'm taking for enlargement, or prostate cancer. I'm on active surveillance with no treatment as of yet. What do I need to get compensation for ED? It seem all three are related. Thanks.

Jim's Reply:

Did you file a claim for ED? It sounds as if you told the examiner you had ED but you may not have actually written it down in your claim?

If you were denied a rating for ED after you filed for it, you will have to initiate an appeal of that denial. If you haven't yet actually done the paperwork where ED is a part of the claim, that's your next step.

You're correct that all 3 of your conditions are related. The question the examiner asked you wasn't fair though...not really a trick question but I don't think it was a correct way of asking you.

If asked that or a similar question again, your answer should be, "Yes, those are all related but I did not experience any symptoms of ED until after the diagnosis of cancer. I was fine with the BPH and the medicine."

The objective is to prove that one month you were well and happy, the next month...after the cancer diagnosis...not so much.

Timing, as they say, is everything. Good luck sir.

Question:

Hi Jim, I'm a proud Vietnam vet and getting up there. I was wondering if I could set up burial issues now so my wife wouldn't have to deal with very much? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Jim's Reply:

I've long recommended that when veterans like us begin planning our end of life one of the best things we can do is to choose a funeral director today. Look around in your region and think of the cemetery where you'd like to rest and then think of who seems reputable in the funeral director line and make an appointment. Choose your funeral director like you'd choose your primary care doctor. Ask around, get references or just charge right in and interview a few.
 

Almost every funeral director I've met knows the ins and outs of how to get this done with your VA. They do a lot of trade with VA and they have the emails and phone numbers to talk to the right people.

Interview more than one funeral home and don't make any payments...yet. Depending on many variables you can be buried for almost nothing or you can spend a lot of money over and above what VA will pay for. Think about your budget way ahead of time...do you want simplicity ($$) or pomp and circumstance ($$$$$$)? 

A good funeral director will set you up within your budget and consider all that VA can contribute to the event.

Another thing you want to do is to find your regional National Cemetery. Once you learn what is reasonably within distance of you, go visit and meet the cemetery director. Our national cemeteries are a source of pride and respect for us and many choose the perpetual care and respect we receive there. Your spouse may also be buried there with you, either after you pass or before, should that happen.

Planning ahead is smart and saves your survivors a lot of angst. Don't forget to think of how to apply for DIC, get insurance and homeowner documents all together and so on. A will is a priority too.

Good luck sir.

Question:

I have two service connected ratings that I want to file for rating increases. Can I file both at the same time, or should I file them separately?

Jim's Reply:

You may file for both at the same time. Good luck.