I’ve received more correspondence on the subject of Barry v. McDonough (May 16, 2024) that a body can believe. The more it’s discussed on Reddit and the other “Expert” venues (names withheld to protect the right to remain stupid) the more conflusticated Veterans become. Thus, in the interests of clarity, I proffer this article to dispel the confusion.

Ever since the most modern inception of SMC in 1945-46 and probably since right after the War of 1812, VA Poohbahs have always tried to read a statute as narrowly as possible and grant the least they can get away with. A glaring example is to read §1114(L) and notice there’s nothing in there that says you have to have a 100% rating. But that’s not what the M 21 says. Back in the military days, you and I used to call it Mission Creep.

Well, think of Mission Creep in SMC. But first, let’s identify the AO (area of operations) we’re dealing with. The effect of Barry is strictly within §3.350(f) or what VA calls SMC at the P rate. If you were just awarded SMC at the L rate for aid and attendance (A&A), you’re still in the general “lane” and available to head towards O and up to R1-R2 or… into SMC P.

Failed perimeter breach. Circa 1967

However, the moment you’re granted a K for loss of use of Winky,  or another rating like OSA for 50% for using a CPAP, you begin to split off the path heading towards R1 and will eventually get railroaded into SMC P. SMC P is what we call poor man’s R1. It is not the preferred path to the highest rates… but it can be and I’ll explain that directly.

§3.350(f)(3) is the ground zero of Barry. §3.350(f)(4) will give you one (1) (uno) (nung) full-step bump up from your basic L to M. Then the ½ step, or “intermediate” bumps can be applied. If you don’t have any 100% ratings above what got you to L, then you begin adding up all the ½ step bumps to equal 50% or more and apply them on top of the L. Thus an L for a&a due to your Parkinson’s residuals is the index disease. All  the Barry half -step bumps you use are going to have to be for diseases or injuries that are not related to the reason you got a&a, loss of use, blindness or bedridden in the first place.

Semtex, Det Cord and a Marlboro.

However, it’s not that easy to understand. First, don’t confuse the term “condition”. The “condition” of the need for a&a is for residuals. Think hypophonia (reduced speech volume), face sag (bilateral), swallowing difficulties, resting tremors, et cetera. But the “condition” of loss of use of the upper or lower extremities- even though they are due to Parkie’s- is not pyramiding. §3.350(b) lists the four ways you can get an L which gets this Chutes and Ladders Game rolling. Loss of use of lowers or hand and foot; blindness, need for a&a and bedridden are the four possibilities to choose from. Period.

Cheiu Hoi candidate

So, let’s begin. Imagine you have Parkie’s and they give you an L for a&a residuals. But when they do, let’s say you already have OSA for 50%, asthma for 30%,  bilateral bum  knees for 20%, bilateral pes planus for 10% each and tinnitus for 10%. Right off, the 50% for OSA bumps you from L to L ½. Boom- you’re in SMC P now. If you had a K when they awarded you the L, you would have been pushed into SMC P at that point. So, you’re now L ½ (+ K). VA will record that as SMC P -1.  Add in the bilateral knees (42%) and the 10 for the tinnitus and you’ve created a second Barry bump from L ½ to M. Technically, if the VA bozos actually knew how to do this, the added bump would be P-2. Add in the asthma for 30 with the B/L flat feet for 21% and you’ve got 45 which rounds up to 50 and another ½ step bump to M ½ (P-3). Total score? SMC P (M½+K).

But that’s not the end of the matter. What happens if you get the L for the Parkie’s and you can conjure up five ½-step bumps separate and distinct from anything related to Parkie” and that K for the broken winky  ? Five bumps takes you to N ½. The K pushes you to the maximum rating you can get in SMC P-i.e.,  N ½ +K. When that happens, your maximum SMC P is automatically advanced to SMC O. Or, should I say, VA is supposed to advance you to O. Since they run out of fingers and toes when they try counting to 21, you can understand why that never happens.

Waterproof Marb helmet carrier

But put on your SMC safety belts, kids. This ride isn’t over yet. Think back to that original L for the Parkie’s. If you have reached SMC O via SMC P this way, and your L is for a&a and not blindness, loss of use or bedridden, you advance to Boardwalk and pass Go! for $200- i.e. R 1. Again, this isn’t voodoo SMC. It’s the law. Since VA illegally forbids getting more than one ½ step bump, your chances of ever getting to N ½ (with or without a K) were about the same odds as winning the Powerball Lotto. But with the Barry decision, this isn’t impossible now.

 Allow me to share one of my client’s Code Sheets. Johnny Vet here has been a prolific, frequent filer. He believed the more ratings you had, the more money you got. We know that’s a faery tale from experience. After SMC S, it makes no difference. However, with the changed interpretation of §3.350(f)(3), after you get that L, the sky’s the limit -the sky being R1, of course.

Attached is the CODE sheet as a .PDF. Take your Protein Pill and put your SMC helmets on. The bumps are carefully identified in blue to “see” each of them better.

SMC P to R1

In wrapping this treatise up, I want you to know that SMC is one of the hardest parts of VA law to grasp. You’re taught never to pyramid and then when you get to SMC, you discover it’s perfectly legal. The biggest obstacle is the VA’s M 21. Well, that and the OIG article a birdie sent me several weeks ago. They published it this morning so I’m not breaking any laws showing you the original findings that shook the foundations of 810 Vermin Avenue NW for a few weeks. Fortunately, since VSOs have never heard of SMC, it’ll take a few decades for this to cause any financial problems for VA.

OIG Draft Report – VBA’s Special Monthly Compensation Calculator in the Veterans Benefits Management System for Rating Did Not Always Produce Accurate Results

Because VA has been doing this wrong for 80 years and nobody caught it until now, every screwed up SMC rating where they short-sheeted you in the past can be CUE’d and you can get a retro backpay for it. Holy Shit, Batman. Just think what kind of hole that’s going to put in VA’s future budget. The only hang up I see is you have to still be alive to file the CUE. Surviving spouses, as usual get screwed.

Thumpers. God’s gift to Infantry platoons.

Of course, if you had an extra 100% rating like Bob does above, there’s no need to go down the SMC P road and get umpteen hundreds of percentages for other shit. You should be filing for additional a&a entitlements for the diabetes or the CLL. But that’s another class for another day. I don’t want to confuse you any further.

Today’s show is brought to you by the letters S, M, C and P.