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 Military Veterans Guide To Disability Compensation and Pension Benefits -- A Compendium of Resources and Knowledge For The Disabled Veteran -- 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 need your guidance and advise.

My husband has been following your columns for years now and told me you’ll be there to answer questions for such a time like this. I have 2 questions:

1. My husband came out of the army in 1964 100% disabled and went directly into the VA system at 100% disabled. In 1967 he availed of the Voc rehab after which his benefits was reduced to 50%. In 2001 at age 60 requested readjustment through VFW as power of attorney and was restored to 100% - permanent and total and has no future exam date. Today, he is 68 and still worries that the VA will come again and mess with his benefits. Is there any possibility at all that it can happen – for his peace of mind?

2. As a spouse, I was approved of CH 35 educational benefits. The problem is my application and approval was done when we were in the Philippines in 2006. Decided not to go to school there and came back in US this year. When I presented my approval to the VA rep in Texas A&M, Commerce, TX, she accepted without any hesitation and started certifying me for the classes I started taking. My first class was in June 8, 2009, got my first check Aug. 28 but only for $456. (Philippine rate is ½ of $915). My question: Knowing how bureaucratic the system is, what is the best way to request correction/adjustment without messing what I’m getting? I called but cannot talk to anybody. I e-mailed, no answer yet. I contacted a Texas Veterans Counselor but all he can do is give me the same phone no. I want to do it right the first time, so please guide me. Thank you so much for all your help to the veterans and their families.

Reply;

Please give your husband my best wishes and thanks from me for his service to our country. I also must applaud you for taking full advantage of the benefits owed you and furthering your education. I know the system is challenging to navigate and it sounds as if you've each done a great job of doing just that.

He has very little to worry about. At his age, for VA to try to take any adverse action to reduce his benefits would be almost impossible. Having said that, some new kid trying to gain a pat on the back for himself could try and it would be within the rules for him to do so. When VA says "No future exams are scheduled..." the word "scheduled" is key to understanding how the game is played. That statement doesn't say, "No future exams will ever be conducted..." and they can do so at any time if they believe there has been improvement that would warrant an adjustment to the rating.

If that very unlikely event were to happen to your veteran, it would be an easy appeal and I'd be happy to help with that. Bottom line, I believe that there is less than a 1% chance that will ever come up.

In your case you're making the error that happens all to often to a majority of veterans and dependents. I urge people that they should never call VA nor should they ever email VA. The only acceptable way to communicate is by certified letter, return receipt requested.

While the telephone call is forgotten the very second that you hang up and the email rolls off the screen, a well written certified letter has a certain amount of punch that nothing else has. The folks on the other end recognize that you have evidence of your request to them and they're more likely to treat it with some respect.

Have a look at my Veterans Benefits Guide for some hints on how to write a powerful letter to the VA. That's available to you by clicking here http://tinyurl.com/5wxapm

Send a copy of the letter you write to both your Regional Office as well as the Buffalo, NY office.

I'll guess your file is at the Waco RO...

Department of Veterans Affairs
Waco Regional Office
1 Veterans Plaza, 701 Clay Av.
Waco, TX 76799

Write to Buffalo at...

Department of Veterans Affairs
Buffalo Regional Office
130 South Elmwood Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14202
ATTENTION: Chapter 35 DEA Division

If you have paperwork with correspondence from other addresses, use those instead.

Be persistent. Every month that this is not resolved, write once again and be sure to make the notation "Second Attempt" or similar.

If this isn't resolved in 6 months, reply to me here and we'll go to Plan B.

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Jim;

I don't know if you remember me but I have even more good news. While I was fighting my way through my appeal one of my former soldiers came to me and asked about how to file a claim. He'd broken his back in Iraq among other things so his case was more severe than mine I felt. I had already fired my SVO at this point.

I advised him based on my experience, but really you were advising him. We went through you archives and put together a much better claim than I had. The key point I kept beating home was that this was his claim and he had to get educated and be responsible for the whole thing. He had to know what was happening and not trust anyone to do anything for him or assume for his benefit.

Long story short, he hit a homerun. He got exactly what he asked for, other than the retroactive date. Some of the matters he filed for came back at 0% but like I've always said thats OK if that is what they really should be. We ended up at exactly the same place, just he did it out of the gate and I did it after a three year frustrating appeal due to a crappy initial application.

You struck another blow for freedom.

Reply;

Thanks so much for sharing that. Let's give credit where credit is due! YOU are the guy who passed on your knowledge and experience to a buddy who needed you. When you did that you fulfilled that obligation we all have; To see that no veteran is ever left behind. Your leadership and your initiative exemplify the best of the best of us.

I salute you sir.

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Jim;

Thanks for all your good work on the website. Please give me your opinion on the issue of an error (CUE) in a DRO/De Novo IU claim I just received a SOC from VARO HARTFORD, CT on September 4, 2009.

The VA sent V.A. FORM 21-4192 to my last full-time employer, the U.S. Postal Service as part of my claim for I.U. The Postal Service returned the form back in December of 2008, and completed employment information on the WRONG PERSON ?

The VARO/DRO subsequently was told that I am currently working as a postal clerk in spite of the fact that I have been retired on OPM disability since SEPTEMBER 2000, almost nine years ago! This was a critical error in the decision review process going against me, the veteran.

How do you suggest I proceed in this case to expedite, and correct the CUE situation? I have already done two things. 1. made a FOI request for the copy of the VA FORM 21-4192 that USPS screwed up on. 2. INFORMED VARO IN WRITING immediately, requesting they reconsider without prejudice from an obvious administrative error on the part of USPS human resources or other personnel involved in signing off on the VA FORM. This is a typical SNAFU between two agencies. Your guidance would be helpful.

Reply;

Your situation isn't all that unusual. It's a shame but I repeat that to many veterans each day. This is why we have coined those terms, FUBAR & SNAFU. Documents in the wrong folder have become pretty routine. VA is at least consistent in that they rarely seem to notice that you aren't Ms. Alicia Jones, a 26 year old female veteran of the Iraq war who lost a leg in an IED event.

This is an "administrative error" and probably doesn't rise to the level of CUE. So you understand, CUE is a much misused term in our community. CUE is strictly a legal concept that requires a number of distinct parameters to be noted as such. I never touch a true CUE claim and even many of the lawyers I work with won't handle those...they recommend a specialist.

So...knowing that yours is an administrative error, it should be easy enough to correct. I say "easy enough" but of course that doesn't always happen.

You're already working the correct path to have this corrected. You must write to the RO ASAP and tell them exactly what you see happening. You must state your case in the form of an appeal and be clear, "I am appealing your flawed decision because...".

You should request a de novo review by the Veterans Service Center Manager (that's the RO's boss) as well as a personal hearing.

You must deliver that via certified mail with return receipt requested only. I strongly urge veterans that they should never communicate with VA by telephone, email or fax. Only certified mail will provide you with the record you may need in the future.

Most important, leave any and all emotion out of the writing. While it's very tempting to tell them that they are fools for screwing up your case and then ranting on about your rights, nobody at the RO cares. The guy or gal who reads your letter and then sees that you're correct will be as irritated as you are. It's just more of the same to them and means more repeat work.

Keep your letter to the point, strictly factual and use bullet points. Be as brief as you can and make it as cut and dried as anything VA sends to you.

You can learn more about writing a strong letter to VA by visiting my Veterans Benefits Guide at http://tinyurl.com/5wxapm

Once you've done those things, be patient. Read War & Peace or become a grand master at chess or whatever it takes to keep your mind off of the VA while you wait. Don't write or call VA every week telling them you want to know why it's taking so long. With your junkyard dog tenacity at making your point and the patience of a Saint, this will eventually be corrected in your favor.

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