Claims Flow Chart 2011

Attached below is a handy little wallet sized guide to understanding your VA claims. I say wallet sized if you shrink it down to carry it or fold it up. If you have one of those magnifying glasses with the light built into a credit card size this works really well. For the rest of us heppers with a world of vision problems-not. You will notice what seems to be,at first glance, a virtually automatic denial at the VARO level -actually is. We included the leisurely DRO scenic route for dreamers and believers of stories that start out “Once upon a time…”. It leads to the same Egyptian river but consumes another valuable year of your life before you start down the regular appeal path.

The Remand and Yes paths are drawn uphill because they travel very slowly. There is no impetus to give money away to welfare cheats and Vets. The denial path goes straight down very rapidly because thats where 85% of them end up.

The Supreme Court path depends on if they really want to hear it. Most times they don’t so it can end rather unceremoniously at the Federal Circuit. The VA Secretary has the right to appeal your win at the CAVC up to the Fed. Cir. or the Supreme Court. So, just because you win at the CAVC doesn’t mean VA is finished with you.

A remand does not imply a win. It means they screwed up and have to do it over again. That can mean another denial under a new ruling and the appeals process starts all over again brand new. Seem like a circus? It is. An incredibly slow, boring, dull circus with a lot of clowns mouthing the word “No!”.

A win, on the other hand, often can result in a lollipop with no lickable lollipop attached to the stick (0%). When that happens, you start the appeals process all over again for an increased rating unless you were smart enough to ASK for a “compensable” rating in the first place.

The Appeals Universe is a dangerous place to be for the novice. There are Black Holes that can make appeals stretch out into light years. That’s right, Joe Veteran. You don’t want to go there without your new, patented Claims Flow Chart by Noodledude from the Speigal catalogue -Chicago -60609. You’ll always know where you are and where you’re heading with one of these. Get our new, improved CFC365 version with on board GPS for accuracy to within a year for just $99.95 more! Take the guesswork out of your claim. Amaze your Vet friends. Group discounts are available for VSOs.