Author Archives: John Gately
Separating Migraine Headaches from Fibromyalgia
As with my previous post regarding fibromyalgia and mood disorders, your military rheumatology providers are likely to attribute chronic migraines- even if longstanding in nature- to your fibromyalgia diagnosis. To overcome this tendency, you will need to have your treating neurologist prepare an addendum that specifically addresses how your prostrating migraines differ from the tension […]
Separating Mood Disorders from Fibromyalgia
If you are going through the disability process and are diagnosed with fibromyalgia, there will be a natural tendency for military providers to lump all your symptoms under this diagnosis- even if the other conditions arose much earlier than the fibromyalgia itself. This is particularly true with mood disorders like anxiety and depression. In order […]
What Changes to DOD IDES Timelines Mean to You
In July of 2018, the DOD Secretariat unveiled major changes to the timelines for processing IDES cases. The goal of these changes is to complete 80 percent of all active duty and Reserve/Guard cases within 230 days. Each service is taking its own unique approach to implementing this mandate, but most of these changes will […]
Coast Guard Rolls Out Pilot IDES/VA Program
Until this year, unlike the other armed services, the Coast Guard had not participated in the Joint DOD/VA IDES program and has retained the traditional legacy PEB structure. This structure will begin to change in 2019, as the Coast Guard rolls out its own version of the IDES process at its pilot test sites at […]
THE KEY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUPPLEMENTAL CLAIMS UNDER VAIMA AND REOPENED CLAIMS
For decisions issued after 14 Feb 19, the VAIMA appeal system applies and you will no longer be able to reopen claims with new and material evidence. Instead, you will have to file a supplemental claim if you wish to revisit a previously denied claim. While this will require the agency to issue a new […]
SUPPLEMENTAL CLAIMS UNDER VAIMA
In many cases, you may be well-advised to initially filed a supplemental claim as opposed to going directly to a higher-level review or filing a Notice of Disagreement (“NOD”) with the Board of Veterans Appeals (“BVA”). You can file a supplemental claim seeking benefits previously denied on higher-level review or by the either the BVA […]
HIGHER LEVEL REVIEW UNDER VAIMA
A higher-level review on the Regional Office (“VARO”) level is done by an experienced adjudicator and is essentially a de novo review of the claim. However, the reviewer will only the evidence in the record when the decision under appeal was made. This means that you cannot submit new evidence to the higher- level reviewer […]
OPTIONS FOR APPEAL UNDER THE NEW VAIMA APPEALS SYSTEM
Under the new appeals system created to implement the change enacted by the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act (“VAIMA”), you will have the option of requesting a higher-level review by an experienced adjudicator on the Regional Office (“VARO”) level, file a supplemental claim or go directly to a Notice of Disagreement with the Board […]
MAJOR CHANGES TO VA APPEALS UNDER VAIMA
The appeals systems designed under the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act (“VAIMA”) will go into effect on 14 Feb 19 with respect to all cases in which a Regional Office has (“VARO”) issued a decision before that date. The good news is that his act will require RO adjudicators to issue more detailed decisions […]
