Veterans' Advocate Jim Strickland answers questions from VA Watchdog dot Org readers.

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Veterans' Advocate Jim Strickland provides regular columns for VA Watchdog dot Org.  If you would like to contact Jim about his columns, you can email him here...  The archive of Jim's articles is here...  To find an answer to a specific VA benefits question, use the VA Watchdog search engine... click here...  And, be sure to use Jim's:  "A to Z GUIDE OF VETERANS DISABILITY COMPENSATION BENEFITS" click here...  JIm's series for new vets, "Welcome Home," is also featured on Military.com. And, you can follow Jim on TWITTER here ...

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by Jim Strickland

NOTE:  Letters in my Q&A columns are reprinted just as they come to me. Spelling and grammar are left as is and only small corrections are made to improve readability, ensure anonymity or delete expletives that may offend some readers. This is not legal advice. You should always seek the advice of an attorney who is qualified in Veterans' law before you make any decisions about your own benefits.

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Jim;

I would appreciate your thoughts as to whether I should file for Ischemic Heart Disease as a presumptive illness based on the following service connected ratings assessed September 20, 2005.

SERVICE-CONNECTED RATINGS as they appear in the VA decision:
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, status post coronary artery bypass graft = 30 %
Type II diabetes = 20 %
Peripheral vascular disease, left lower extremity = 20 %
Peripheral vascular disease, right lower extremity = 20 %
Diabetic neuropathy, right lower extremity associated with type diabetes = 10 %
Diabetic neuropathy, left lower extremity associated with type diabetes = 10 %
ED = 0 %

BACKGROUND INFO:
I am 100 % IU and still within the first 10 year period.
I had coronary triple bypass April 1996 which is included in September 20, 2005 rating decision.
I am 61 years of age.
I had coronary quadruple bypass April 2009.

QUESTIONS:

Does the service connected rating of 30 % for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease cover the ischemic heart disease ?.

Also, rating phrase "diabetic neuropathy, right lower extremity associated with type diabetes = 10%" does not specify " type II" although it is spelled out in "Type II diabetes = 20 %" ? Should I have the VA correct this on the written decision ? I need to make sure that if I die from ischemic heart disease my surviving spouse will be eligible for service connected death benefits.

Thanks once again for your previous responses to my previous questions. Your responses have really eased my mind.

Reply;

Ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease are the same thing. This is much like the phrases "high blood pressure" and "hypertension". They're the same thing.

I wouldn't try to correct a simple typo. You could start something that could be worse than the typo you have now.

If you die from a service connected disease your spouse will receive DIC benefits. If you hold your 100% rating for 10 years then you can die of any cause and she's eligible for DIC.

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Jim;

hope you or having a good. We last talk about Blood pressure you told me,ther may be a way to service connection.

Reply;

Establishing high blood pressure as a service connected condition is a challenge. If it wasn't diagnosed while you were in service, it's rare to find a reason to have VA make the connection.

The service connection of hypertension doesn't often even pay a benefit. Treatment for hypertension is so effective today that most who are rated are rated at 0%. The only reason to pursue a service connection is to later make a claim that the SC high blood pressure may have caused vascular disease.

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Jim;

I have a quick question (and appreciate any advice you can offer me):

MY Air Force retired husband is dying from Multiple Myeloma. He was turned down for svc connection (VA) approx 15 yrs ago for diabetes and neuropathy because his dischg. papers do not mention Vietnam. The VA suggested he find a former service mate to give a sworn affidavit proving he flew over Vietnam (every night, by the way). My husband refused to investigate further.

He is now in hospital, failing all chemotherapy treatment – how do I find an ex-service mate?

I want to get another claim started – knowing full well my rights are such that as his widow, I would have the right to complete the process for him. ANY advice is more than appreciated.

Reply,

I'm very sorry to hear of your veteran's health issues. Please give him my thanks and my respects for his service to our country. He and you will be in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm afraid that from what you've told me he doesn't have a case for a service connected disability because of the Vietnam service.

The law is pretty clear that for a presumptive benefit to be offered the veteran must have had "boots on the ground" RVN service. Those who flew over or sailed in the offshore waters are not eligible.

However...if he was flying as a part of "Operation Ranch Hand" or any other mission that involved the spraying of Agent Orange, you probably do have a case.

The Air Force had numerous missions (Ranch Hand being the most notorious) of spraying the herbicide AO over Vietnam. If he had any involvement as crew or as a handler of the equipment in other countries where the herbicide was prepared and loaded onto the aircraft, we should investigate that angle.

If we can verify that he was exposed to AO, then we need a physician's statement that it is more likely than not that his current conditions are because of that exposure.

You are correct that getting a claim in now is important. You will be able to continue the claim after his death. I've been managing some of those recently...it's a relatively new change in the law.

Most importantly is that the claim you make today be the correct one. To file incorrectly today will mean a sure denial and years of fighting with VA.

Can we establish any actual exposure to AO?

A little more data and we can decide how to proceed.

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Jim;

About a month ago I received notice that my reopened claim had beendecided (after 1 year in the mill). Much to my surprise, I was ratedat 100%. Oddly though, the decision letter I received was neitherdated, nor did it clearly state "100% P&T" or 100% temporary, etc. I saw on your site that folks applying for other benefits that require a100% rating have fits making the "powers that be" understand that 100%= 100%. The page I saw it on was
http://www.vawatchdog.org/08/nf08/nfnov08/nf110608-3.htm

Do you have any advice on how I should go about getting the VA to generate a letter similar to yours? Do I just ask the VARO that decided my claim, or do I have to spell it out for them? For what it is worth, I moved to a different state while my claim was being processed and am naturally hesitant to reopen a can of worms at a different VARO.

Thanks for providing a great service! I appreciate it and I have learned a lot.

Reply;

I'll never understand the reluctance of VA to write in common English rather than using some sort of arcane code. If you are 100% P & T, why must VA tell you that with "No future exams are scheduled"?

They know that most of us are going to need a letter that says "100% P & T" with a date on it so why do this twice?

The work ethic at VA seems to always demand that every small task be done at least twice, maybe more.

Write to them and spell out what you want them to spell out and maybe within another year, you'll finally get it done right.

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TOPICS: veterans, veterans' benefits, VA, Department of Veterans' Affairs, Jim Strickland, Veterans' Advocate,