Into everyone’s life a little rain must fall. My VRE case worker and I-he who granted me the computer-had a meet and greet this morning. He declined my offer of coffee laced with hemlock. He quickly started circling the wagons when I broached the subject of a NOD and accompanying administrative review of the greenhouse  request in my May 2011 filing.

Mr. H has a propensity to quote the party line without supporting it with CFRs. This should come as no surprise to any of us. It’s ingrained in them. Thus, when queried if I could accept the program with the computer and still file a NOD, he started stuttering. This was not discussed earlier and dissatisfaction was not voiced at the time of denial. His desire was to get the documents signed and beat a hasty retreat. When queried on whether VA intended to include a $200 LexisNexis Veterans Benefits manual (digital-on disc), he said that was vocational material only supplied to VSOs. As my grant was for communication with the outside world, I had no “need” for it. Huh?

When denied last November, it was based on this being an avocational pursuit.  After a lengthy NOD, they approved it this April. The IT guy based his whole rationale for what he was providing me on this website. Therefore when Mr. H informed me that this wasn’t the reason for the grant, he felt very comfortable saying I had no need for vocational interests as I was unemployable.

That brought forth a vociferous explanation that only three people are legally entitled to advocate for a Vet other than himself. A VA approved lawyer, a VSO and another VETERAN are all equal to the task. He became more and more uncomfortable with the tenor of my plaint. When I reached the greenhouse matter, he became visibly upset. Since the two requests are stand alones, they are individually appealable. Much like a comp/pen claim, abandoning it and coming back later to reopen it will be immeasurably harder. When asked to confirm that acceptance of computer would in no way endanger a NOD for the greenhouse, he became evasive and started the “that all depends on what the meaning of “is” is”. I parsed it in several different manners and finally he acquiesced and allowed as it could be done this way but was underhanded and somewhat of a sneak attack.  The idea was to get this ILP thing under control and hear no more about it. Au contraire, ma cher. We have just begun.

I was in contact with another disabled Veteran who contributes to one of our sister Vet’s sites. I idly asked if he hadn’t received ILP benefits when the cat jumped out of the bag. Not only had he received benefits, VA had granted virtually all that he asked for. I cut and paste here:

What I found with the ILP is that in order to get approved for any specific product or service, I had to be able to define why I needed that product. If you have the ILP definition from the VA or CFR, it describes what areas (Needs) should be fullfilled.
Medical, assistive technology, avocational (hobbies) community involvement, recreational, and daily living activities .

They got the following items for me:
ADT Security system with 2 years of monitoring w/alert pendant
Food processor
Several cooking appliances like a small convection oven (we have a gas range, not so compatible with morphine) grill, and a couple other small things
Fishing gear (my Veteran buddies like taking me fishing a few times a year)
Cannon Rebel Camera with 2 nice lenses, backpack, tripod and training tools.
There are some other items as well, like an electric toothbrush and cleaning items. My hands are very arthritic and it is hard to use a manual toothbrush.
A Kindle with carrying case.
A very nice mattress and memory foam topper pad.
It took over 2 years to get 1 item, but once I started requesting items based on my individual disabilities, and some of those requests were backed up by my private physicians, then the IL case manager really started to help.
Took a lot of work, and a lot of research, but was well worth it in the end.

I researched some of this before Mr. H arrived and I was quick to point out why the ILP program existed and what Congress intended when they passed it in 1984. The VA has truncated it and tried to lock it in the attic like a mentally challenged sibling but the information continues to trickle out.

Our fellow Vet proves the largesse is far more forthcoming in Portland than Seattle. This was why I have decided to stand my ground. Using bait and switch to grant and then claim the computer is not to help Vets but to stay in contact with the outer world is disingenuous on their part. Thus no VBM from LexisNexis.

Congress intended this benefit to accrue to Vets whose disabilities were above and beyond those with minor disabilities. Mine precludes going out into sunlight no matter how thick the zinc oxide is slathered on. In winter, the cryoglobulinemia restricts my excursions outside due to the pain in the extremities. Due to the fact that dizziness from the phlebotomies and anemia weaken me every month, I am a captive in my own domain.

VA keeps reverting the conversation back to avocational interests being precluded, but can supply no particulars as to why this is not permitted. Now they have relented. A greenhouse, to my way of thinking, keeps me entertained on site and allows me to live independently by reducing my dependence on Safeway. Mr. H does not share that sentiment so I will have to write another one of my famous letters explaining what the definition of “avocational” is and also recreational pastimes. I wonder if they make an artificial insemination device for fruit trees?  A new reloader with all the dies for my favorite calibres would be in order , too. It would make me truly independent if the balloon goes up and I find myself isolated from society. Why the possibilities are endless. They’re getting off cheaply, too. I put in the indoor shooting range when I built the house.

I think our Portland Vet said it best when he summed it up thusly:

Once you get the idea of why you NEED products, then it gets easy to actually explain it to someone who is not in your condition. That was one of the biggest hurdles I made in my plan, I got the counselor, who is a clinical psychologist to understand that there is no way that he can actually understand the needs I have. Without being totally disabled in my early 40’s, some days not even being able to drive or walk, I got it through his head that the only people who can actually honestly say they understand what my needs are is someone who is disabled in a similar manner, and even then they are not exactly like me and my family so there really is no comparison he can make.

Read them and weep, vA. The new computer comes in two weeks. 5 hours have been allocated for training in five increments. Then we’ll see about the greenhouse and a camera. I actually have a hand me down I’ve been shooting with recently so I may have to give the reloader more thought.