Blog

Many veterans do not realize it, but the VA has partnered with Triwest to provide you with access to retail (i.e. non-VA) urgent care facilities within many communities nationwide.  For example, in my hometown of Virginia Beach, there is an urgent care facility at the Minute Clinic on Laskin Road- 5.6 miles from my home. […]

If your performance evaluations (“evals”)  show that you are a  great performer but your Nonmedical Assessment (“NMA”) shows that you are unable to perform your duties, Navy board members will question this discrepancy and may well rely upon your evals to fit you fit for duty. If you wish to be found Unfit, it will be […]

If you are a Navy or Marine Corps member- active duty or Reservist- undergoing a Physical Evaluation Board, it is critical that you understand the current mindset of Navy board members when reviewing your case.  To cut to the chase, any conditions for which you wish to be found Unfit must be expressly mentioned in […]

I had recently dealt with a case in which a service member on the TDRL came to me for help when the IPEB proposed to reduce a disability rating for a conversion disorder diagnosis, for a variety of different reasons.  This person had been labeled with this devastating diagnosis by military neurologists based upon clinical […]

What do you do if you are a Navy or Marine Corps member being processed through the IDES or legacy systems and disagree with your initial findings by the IPEB as to whether your injuries were combat-related?  There are two options- request a formal hearing before the FPEB to argue this point or waive the […]

If you are preparing for a USPHS Medical Review Board, then the first question is whether you wish to be found Fit or Unfit.  If fit, then your nonmedical evidence should reflect that you are able to perform all your assigned duties despite any potentially unfitting conditions.  If Unfit, then you would be wise to […]

I have seen several persons post questions on veterans-related forums in the past month stating that their cases were “assigned to an analyst” and asking what this term mean.  At the BCMR/BCNR level, an analyst is a person who writes up an overview for the Board members outlining the issues presented, discussing the evidence submitted, […]

    Simple answer, Y-E-S.  If you are a service member on the TDRL or a veteran who is subject to reevaluation of a service-connected mental health disorder, you will find that armed and uniformed services, as well as the VA, take a dim view of persons receiving benefits of 30% disabling or more for […]

Lately, I have had several inquiries regarding the current timeline for processing cases at the Navy PEB, with some callers complaining about the agency failing to keep within the intended IDES guidelines.   Other callers have asked whether this delay means that there is a problem in processing their cases. In most cases, the answer is […]

Under current federal law, Gold Star spouses are prevented from receiving survivor’s benefits concurrently from the DOD and the VA even though they would normally qualify for both.  For now,  surviving wives and husbands of fallen soldiers must choose between one of these benefits or pass one on to their children.  While two bills introduced […]