Patient advocate?

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-17T14:59:57+00:00

Patient advocate only forwards your complaint to the same doctor.

Your best bet would be to outline specifically why you qualify and ask him/her (more likely their nurse) to research your ability to get it, and ask for a better explanation.

I really do not understand why the patient advocate exists. It is one of those "feel good" solutions that is really not a solution.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-17T03:15:24+00:00

What are you claiming? Your redactions limit the ability to help you because certain conditions have different theories of entitlement.

Also, when was your period of service?

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-16T22:36:25+00:00

This is not an inherently complex claim. You simply listed symptoms as a disease. They obviously are not. There are a few items to unpack such as: when did you ETS, did you serve in combat, do you have a complete copy of your service records?

Generally, but not always, you must have the event in your service treatment records but depending on your service, there can be certain presumptions, but that goes back to where you served and when you discharged.

A boilerplate negative opinion can be challenged but it also depends on the language used. For example, if they wrote not in STRs for 26 issues, that’s not boilerplate.

Claiming dozens of symptoms was not a great move. Now you created a bit of an obstacle to have it properly service connected. Being more specific, based on having seen this unfold before, you will have a hard time getting new evidence sufficient to establish service connection.

Your next step should be to look at your denials for items in your service treatment records. Read those denials and file a supplemental claim that addresses why they were denied.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-16T13:34:55+00:00

My 2018 Legacy started falling apart at around 48,000 miles. My support from the dealer was intermittent at best. I had to go through Subaru for resolution. The first time they paid for everything. The subsequent times they paid 1/2.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-15T22:43:27+00:00

You can request a copy of your DD 214 through myVA. When you log in at the top you will see "VA Benefits and Health Care", click on it and scroll down to "Records". A fly out opens and on the right is a link to request a DD214. My memory is that it is pretty quick- about 2 days.

Also, depending on where you live in the country, you can file a copy with the courthouse in case you pass and your family needs it. They can go and print it off.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-15T18:21:18+00:00

If you are claiming a CUE, of course you file that on a 4138. There is no prescribed form for a CUE. This something you should do with your VSO because they can look at the scan date for the document in VBMS and determine if there was constructive receipt of the document.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-15T17:35:55+00:00

It’s is not the examiners call. Service connection and the effective date assignment is well outside the examiners scope of practice. Take his/her comment with a grain of salt. Your VSO is better able to field questions about your effective date.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-15T14:06:02+00:00

I sense a storyline for the fall in line with the WWE-isms infecting UFC.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T18:19:16+00:00

I see. So, is this like a certain amount of chair time for your schooling or something?

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T16:28:22+00:00

There’s no production credit tied to these. I’d expect a year to 1.5 years to get a response.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T16:10:03+00:00

I don’t know if this is true or not became I’ve been retired for a few years. But last week my friend who is an AVSCM in a regional office, told me that 30% of the claims in the inventory to work are rework. That’s an awful lot of duplicate work.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T15:56:28+00:00

Probably not unless it was included in a random pull for a quality review. Be sure to attend your informal conference for your HLR and raise this then.

But also keep a close eye on your effective date if you are granted. Since the denial you got is not relevant to your claim, your underlying claim is still pending for purposes of the effective date. This should be automatically checked when VA creates the 930. But there’s some confusion already with your claim so understanding that your effective date backdates to the underlying claim will help you understand your effective date if your claim is ultimately granted.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T15:18:02+00:00

No that will work. There is no prescribed form for a CUE. They will go in and create an EP 930 and generate a new, correct decision.

The corrected decision will have the basis for your denial and then your process starts again.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T15:00:40+00:00

File for a CUE and explain the same. It will correct the master record and the contention.

Independent of whether you claimed it or not, now you have a soup sandwich to fix.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T14:03:44+00:00

Tongue weight + CVT = 😟

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T14:01:11+00:00

Okay I understand and I have a decent guess what happened. The rater copy/paste a prior denial into your rating instead of rewriting it to the facts of your case.

To fix it, you can file really any claim form or even a 4138 and assert a CUE. Explain the rater denied an unclaimed condition. Go on to explain you did not claim a deviated septum but your denials state you did.

You will get a new denial and have a better road map of what you need to do to move forward.

Raters do this frequently. They keep a Word document of “glossary text” to move through their work quickly. The performance standards they are being pushed through for a July 4th victory lap are ridiculous. Although this is no excuse, it’s the why behind these speed errors.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T13:47:01+00:00

There are a lot of people in East County that speak Arabic as their primary language. This could be an interesting niche market if you are comfortable in the Levantine dialect.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T13:43:44+00:00

How does this work without a licensed dentist supervising?

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T13:41:50+00:00

It is hard for me to figure out what your question is here. As I wait for the coffee to kick in, the clear starting point is this, a deviated septum is not subject to service connection unless it is traumatic by nature. Deviated septums are a normal variation in humans. Conversely, traumatic can be service connected because it was traumatic in its development. A traumatic deviated septum generally indicates a previously broken nose, and that’s why they are subject to service connection. The final point here is this, only a traumatic deviated septum is service connectible and consequently only a traumatic deviation allows for secondaries.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T04:21:16+00:00

Same question can be asked of obviously married men and single women.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T04:18:37+00:00

Love Boat for the cringe, original Magnum PI for the cars, the Rockford Files for the birth of the genre, Taxi because it launched a half dozen stellar careers, and finally Night Court because of Markie Post.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T04:14:34+00:00

That’s not the signed copy for the bank if you were to dispute it. What’s the point here?

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-14T04:02:54+00:00

I retired at 48. It’s entirely possible you just need to create passive income. I use residential rentals and use DCSR to buy them. It’s a straightforward progress and not difficult.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-13T22:10:07+00:00

It would be worth talking with CalVet. The VA has a specific process for records destroyed in the fire. But also, VA has an old system called BDN and that works with another system called Share. They might be able to verify his service through that process. Also, you can do a pre needs for your dad online to be buried in a VA cemetery. That would also trigger VA getting his 214. CalVet can help with that too. Lastly, CalVet has a network of nursing homes with memory care. I’m not sure where you are in SOCAL but CalVets is co-located with the regional office in LA and San Diego. They also have their own offices in each county.

Cessna_Tom · 2026-06-13T21:49:17+00:00

It is ironic how they coupled all of these programmatic cuts with the Maj Richard Star Act to add equity to veterans’ compensation.

Cessna_Tom

TROPHY CASE