Next with VERA today…good and bad news.

So I drove 4 hours for an in-person VERA at the Winston Salem regional office. It was well worth the drive. I’m on day 184.

The guy pulled open my claim and asked me what I was concerned about. So I asked him to look at my four deferred claims. The first is my 18 cm scar. He looks and says, looks like they aren’t going to service connect it. I reach into my envelope of military medical files hot off the National Records Center copiers and show him the first page on the stack from 1996 Occupational Monitoring physical (I was an environmental tech according to my TERA memo…I was actually a hazardous waste manager) and on page one it states “17cm scar, gluteal fold, surgical” and the form is signed my a PHS doctor. He says, what the fuck? Let’s look at your other three claims…same shit. His response if the rater didn’t seem to have done much reading of the files.

He says “you’re a TERA vet, you have exposure records, I think you had a lazy rater. This is crap”. (FYI…I had Atlanta as TJ). “Your file is assigned to a rater at Muskogee now (I already knew that TJ was there as of yesterday). Let me send them a message to take a second look at the four deferred items because, as a former rater, I believe these are clear errors. You don’t have a decision letter yet, so we have time to save these and avoid an HLR.”

All I can say is wow! The guy even looked at my overall raw rating and said “One bilateral and you’re at 100%. Here’s what I would do if I were you.” He even suggested having my private PCP sign DBQs for the four deferred claims since there isn’t a decision yet. Yay team!

Lesson learned is when you take the time to meet with a real live VA VERA rep to discuss your claims issues, it’s a whole level of info that you wont get from a VERA call. They aren’t inclined to blow you off when you and your service dog are siting across the desk from them.