Jim,

Have you heard anything about this? I'm trying to get a copy of the letter. A friend wrote this email to me:

"My uncle called me last night.. he was in Vietnam rated at 100%... he received a form letter stating all veteans rated at 100% were going to be reveiwed... He has been rated for more than 20 years so it will not affect him.... makes you wonder how the VA can pull all those claims to reveiw them but can't process the ones that are pending..."

Reply:

Your friend's uncle didn't receive "a form letter stating all veteans rated at 100% were going to be reveiwed".

This is a frequent Internet rumor with no basis in fact. I get this question 2 or 3 times each week from concerned veterans. He probably got an email from a buddy and he told her about it and now it's become an official act by VA.

On the surface it makes no sense. Why would VA, with budget crunches and a backlog they can't get past, pull in a guy who is rated over 20 years? Unless they suspect fraud in his original filing, his rating is one of the very few protected ratings that can't be modified.

VA routinely monitors all veterans who are rated at any %. That they are required to keep an eye on those who are 100% rated makes good sense. The 100% rating is where the money is. Remember that even P & T veterans may be reviewed. There is no such thing as "permanent" at VA. The law requires that VA rate a veteran for the moment and not on a past or future condition. If VA has any reason to believe that a condition has improved, they are required to examine the veteran and propose a new rating.

The phrase "no future exams are scheduled" in the award letter indicates that the rating is seen as permanent. However, that phrase doesn't say "no exams in the future will ever be conducted", it just says they aren't scheduled.

Veterans over the age of 55 and veterans who have conditions that aren't likely to demonstrate measurable improvement may never be called back for a reexamination. TDIU veterans aren't likely to be reexamined unless they are working at gainful employment or they fail to remit the required VA Form 21-4140.

Veterans who have conditions likely to improve with proper treatment are routinely reexamined. Veterans who have mental health conditions are more likely to receive reexaminations than others. Vets who have treatable cancers (prostate cancer for example) are almost always assigned temporary ratings and reexaminations.

The VA, as well as the veteran, should always keep in mind that the ultimate goal is treatment and rehabilitation when possible. Nobody wants the "permanently and totally disabled" label if there is any alternative.

The VA disability compensation benefits system is complex and many misunderstand just what's happening. A lot of veterans rely on the "chain" letters that arrive in their email because it comes from a friend who got it from a friend.

Internet rumors abound and experts on benefits may be found in chat rooms and at local gathering places that veterans frequent. They're usually wrong.

Tell your friend to fax me a copy of that letter her uncle received. Only then would I begin to suspect something was brewing at our VA.