Service Officer Monthly Update

VA INSURANCE

The VA insurance program has many programs to it. You should contact your local County Veteran Service Officer or American Legion Department Service Officer who will assist you with your VA Life Insurance claim.

BENEFICIARIES

If you now have VA insurance or you do in the future, you will be required to designate a beneficiary. Many times, policy holders forget to update their beneficiaries when circumstances change. Anytime there is a change in your designated beneficiaries status the policy holder needs to inform the VA insurance center. For example, a veteran applies for and receives RH insurance and designates the spouse as the beneficiary. Several years later, the policy holder divorces and remarries but doesn’t change the beneficiary on the life insurance policy. Unfortunately, the beneficiary passes away. The ex-spouse will receive the insurance proceeds because the designated beneficiary wasn’t changed prior to the policy holders death. So make sure you keep your designated beneficiary current on your VA insurance!

SERVICE DISABLED INSURANCE (RH)

If you are a service connected disabled veteran you may be entitled to service disabled life insurance, or RH insurance as it’s called. Once you establish an original service connected disability or a new disability, providing your over-all general health is good, you will be eligible for a $10,000.00 life insurance policy through the VA. You must apply for this insurance within two years from the date you are notified that service-connection has been established. You may also be eligible for a $20,000.00 supplemental RH policy if you are eligible for waiver of premiums due to a total disability, apply for the coverage within one year from the notice of the grant of waiver of premiums and are under age 65. Under the RH insurance program the survivors of a veteran who was incompetent at the time of their death preventing the veteran from applying may apply for a Gratuitous RH policy. So if the veteran establishes a service connected disability or has a claim pending at the time of their death there is a possibility that the VA can still issue life insurance in their name.

VETERANS’ MORTGAGE LIFE INSURANCE (VMLI)

VMLI is issued to those severely disabled veterans who have received grants for Specially-Adapted Housing from the VA. The maximum amount of VMLI allowed an eligible veteran is $90,000.00. The VMLI policy will pay the balance of a disabled veterans home loan at the time of the veterans death.

SERVICE MEMBERS GROUP LIFE INSURANCE (SGLI)

The SGLI program was established in 1965 for Vietnam Era service members. This insurance covers active duty, Guard and Reserve members and can be converted to Veterans Group Life Insurance (VGLI) or a private policy upon release from active duty. The spouse and children of service members can also be covered under the SGLI program.

TRAUMATIC INJURY PROTECTION PROGRAM (TSGLI)

TSGLI is a relatively new insurance program established in 2005. It automatically covers members who suffer a serious traumatic injury in serviced. The purpose of the program is to provide immediate financial assistance to traumatically injured service members. All service members who have SGLI coverage are automatically covered. Payment of benefits depends on the severity of the injury(s). Premiums for the TSGLI is $1.00 per month and is deducted from the service members pay.

VETERANS GROUP LIFE INSURANCE (VGLI)

The VGLI program allows discharged members of the armed forces to convert their SGLI coverage to a renewable term policy of insurance protection after their separation. This coverage is available to active duty, Guard and Reserve forces. VGLI coverage, up to $400,000.00 can also be converted to a commercial life insurance plan.

PROTECTION OF COMMERCIAL LIFE INSURANCE UNDER THE SOLDIERS AND SAILORS CIVIL RELIEF ACT

Service members called to active duty who carry commercial insurance can have their premiums protected for non payment up to $400,000.00 and for up to two years following their discharge from active duty. To apply for this protection of their life insurance, the person needs to apply through the VA by completing a form 29-380, Application for Protection of Commercial Life Insurance Policy.

WAIVER OF PREMIUMS

If you have a VA insurance policy in force and become totally disabled prior to age 65 you may be entitled to have your premiums waived. That is, if you are totally disabled prior to age 65 you may not have to pay any more premiums on your insurance.

GRATUITOUS RH INSURANCE

Unfortunately, there are times when a veteran may pass away before the VA adjudicates the veterans benefits claim and they aren’t able to apply for VA life insurance before they die. In those instances, the survivors may still be entitled to VA insurance proceeds. If a veteran has filed a claim for compensation benefits prior to their death, and if the veterans illness is terminal, a claim for RH insurance should be filed immediately. However, if that isn’t possible, the survivors can file for Gratuitous Insurance, providing the veteran met the basic eligibility requirements for RH Insurance, was not able to apply for the RH insurance because of a continued mental incompetence due to a service connected disability and died before the appointment of a guardian or within two years of such appointment.

(posted 10/09/07)

YOUR APPELLATE RIGHTS

Virtually any benefit decision the Department of Veterans Affairs makes, other than medical care, is appealable. That doesn’t necessarily mean that every decision they make should be appealed but it does mean that anyone applying for benefits through the VA, when denied a benefit, does have the right to appeal that denial. In addition, when the VA does deny a benefit, they are required by law, to provide you with your appeal rights.

Before you decide to appeal a VA decision you should seek the counsel of an authorized veterans organization representative. The representative can review your case with you and help you decide whether or not to appeal. Ultimately though, whether you appeal or not is up to you.

There are several options available to you in pursuing an appeal. If you are dissatisfied with a decision the VA has made you may want to consider requesting reconsideration of that decision. In a request for reconsideration you will need to specifically detail why you believe the VA is wrong in their decision and point to specific errors in law or fact as well as provide any additional documentation to support your request. You can also request a personal hearing with the local VA as part of your appeal. A personal hearing would allow you to sit face to face with a local VA decision maker and either formally or informally discuss your case. The local decision maker, usually a Decision Review Officer, will then consider your testimony along with all the evidence of record and make another determination on your case. You can also request a personal hearing with the Board of Veterans Appeals. The Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) sits in Washington, D.C. and is the final arbiter within the VA system. At the BVA an Administrative Law Judge will be assigned to your appeal. As part of your appeal rights you might want to request a personal hearing before the ALJ. A personal hearing can be conducted either in Washington, D.C. or by teleconference at the VA Regional Office. If you do not wish to have a personal hearing, your appeal can be accomplished administratively which in essence is when your appeal is based solely on a review of the evidentiary record with no personal hearing involved.

The appeal process is very complicated. The VA is governed by literally thousands of laws, regulations, program guides, etc. that make it near impossible for the uninformed to expertly pursue an appeal. That’s why the veteran organizations have full time representatives. The American Legion Department Service Officer is well-trained and knowledgeable on all aspects of VA law and would be able to assist you in determining the best course of action regarding any denial of benefits by the VA. So before you start any appeal you should first contact your local County Veteran Service Officer, choose a Veteran Service Organization to assist you, and then discuss your case with the VSO and together determine what the best course of action would be.

You can contact the North Dakota Department Service Officer at serviceofficer@ndlegion.org or by telephone at 701-451-4646.

(posted 9/14/07)

SERVICE CONNECTION

When you raised your right hand and swore to defend the United States of America, you essentially made a contract with the United States Government. You agreed to serve Honorably, go where they sent you, do the job they asked you to do, and fulfill your obligation. The government also made a contract with you. That is, should you be injured or suffer a disease as a result of your military service, the government would provide free medical care for any disease or disability contracted during your service and compensate you monetarily for it.

While you fulfilled your commitment, we find it extremely difficult at times to ensure that the government lives up to their commitments. None the less, if you were injured during your service you are entitled to medical care and compensation. In VA law an injury can mean anything from a gunshot wound to broken legs to hearing loss. Essentially, any medical malady that occurred while on active duty, can be service connected. Diseases sometimes are even more difficult to establish as being related to your military service simply because many of them won’t show up for years. Examples of these might be radiation exposure, agent orange exposure or multiple sclerosis. Knowing this, Congress passed legislation establishing what is known as presumptive periods for certain disabilities. That is, if a veteran shows up with some disease within a certain period of time following their military service, the law allows the VA to service connect it. But these diseases can sometimes be difficult to establish as service related because many are not diagnosed within the presumptive period, but rather, the symptoms do show up within the presumptive period. So without the help of a trained advocate, the veteran may be denied the benefits they are entitled to.

If you have already established a service connected disability and it has worsened, you may be entitled to increased compensation benefits. Generally, if you simply tell the VA how the disability has worsened the VA will set you up for an examination to determine whether it has or not. But veterans should be aware that if the examination shows your disability has improved your compensation will be reduced. So again, it’s important that you have a trained advocate assist you with this.

If your service connected disability causes some other condition to develop then you may be entitled to compensation for the additional disability. An example of this might be a Vietnam veteran who, because of their exposure to Agent Orange, is service connected for diabetes and then develops a tingling and/or numbness in their feet and legs. This could be caused by the diabetes and it has affected the nerve endings in the feet and legs, a condition known as peripheral neuropathy. If that’s the case, then the peripheral neuropathy will be service connected. Again, the veteran seeking to establish this should have a trained advocate assist them.

Anyone having questions about their benefits, including service connected compensation benefits should contact their local County Veterans Service Officer or the American Legion Department Service Officer. Your Legion Service Officer can be contacted by phone at 701-451-4646 or by email at serviceofficer@ndlegion.org Your County Veterans Service Officers phone number can be found in your phone book.

(posted 8/17/07)

VA VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION

If you are a disabled veteran and unable to work in your chosen field, you may want to consider applying for Vocational Rehabilitation through the VA. VA Voc Rehab will help you receive training in a field that will get you in a job you can do with your disabilities. VA Vocational Rehabilitation is a program aimed at training disabled veterans and enabling them to enter the job market.

Eligibility is based partly on how disabling your service connected conditions are and partly on whether or not those disabilities would preclude employment even with retraining. The first step in obtaining Vocational Rehabilitation benefits is to apply. Once your application has been received you will then meet with the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist to discuss the program. It’s likely you will have to go through some testing to determine the feasibility of you entering a program. Based on these tests the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist will meet again with you and advise you as to their thoughts on what type of retraining you should enter. Your retraining could be through a college program, technical school, on the job training or many other types of training. It all boils down to what type of program you’re best suited for.

Another great aspect of the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Program is that once your finished with your retraining program they will assist you in obtaining employment. You might need to brush up on your interviewing skills, resume’ writing techniques, etc. and they will help you do that.

This is a great program! It’s purpose is solely to assist service connected disabled veterans gain and retain substantial employment. Essentially, whatever that takes, the VA Vocational Rehabilitation program is there to help make sure that happens. VA Vocational Rehabilitation will pay the costs of your retraining along with providing you a monthly stipend.

Your County Veteran Service Officer can assist you in applying for this program or you can contact your American Legion Department Service Officer whose contact information is on our website at www.ndlegion.org

(posted 8/14/07)

BENEFITS FOR LOW INCOME VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES

Veterans with limited income and assets may be entitled to benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Of course there are some basic rules involved with these benefits. The veteran must have served for at least 90 days during a war time period; have limited income and assets; be over the age of 65 or permanently and totally disabled. If the veterans has a spouse and/or children in the house, their income and assets also will count. The income limitations vary from year to year as does the assets so you need to check with the local County Veteran Service Officer or your American Legion Department Service Officer.

Along with is benefit a veteran who is essentially housebound or in need of aid and attendance may qualify for a higher pension from the VA. Many times, veterans and their families struggle with paying for their health care. If a veteran and/or the family have high medical bills they may be able to receive a pension from the VA because of them. Also, if the veteran is in a nursing home, they would be entitled to a higher amount of pension than normal if the spouse remains in the community.

Spouses of deceased veterans may also be entitled to benefits from the VA. Essentially, if the veteran served the 90 days of active duty during a war-time; the widow has limited income and assets; or high medical bills, they could be entitled to benefits. Also, if they are essentially housebound or in the need of aid and attendance, they could qualify.

As with any benefits application, you should seek the assistance of a trained professional such as your County Veteran Service Officer or American Legion Department Service Officer. The phone number for your County Veteran Service Officer can be found in the government section of your phone book. You can contact your American Legion Department Service Officer at 701-451-4646 or email him at ServiceOfficer@ndlegion.org.

(posted 6/04/07

Are You A Vietnam Veteran?
You May Be Entitled To Years Of Retroactive Benefits!

If you were in Vietnam you were exposed to Agent Orange. That is presumed. What also is presumed is that several medical conditions are associated with Agent Orange exposure. These medical maladies were proven to show up more often in Vietnam veterans than the normal population.

If you were in Vietnam and have any of the so-called presumptive disabilities and have previously filed a claim for service connection because of your exposure to Agent Orange and were denied you may be entitled to years of retroactive benefits.

Long before Congress passed the Agent Orange law in the early 1990’s, Vietnam veterans were showing several medical conditions they believed were caused by their exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. Many filed a claim for benefits with the VA alleging their illness was due to that exposure. Prior to the Agent Orange Act, veterans had to prove they in fact were exposed to Agent Orange and also prove with some degree of medical certainty that Agent Orange in fact caused their illness, an almost impossible hurdle. Most veterans were denied compensation for their illnesses and forgot about it. But then Congress passed what is commonly known as the Agent Orange Act, setting forth a law that would presumptively grant service connection to veterans with certain disabilities. And that list has grown in the years since passage of the original legislation to include certain types of cancers, diabetes, chloracne and chronic lymphocytic leukemia and others. But when these additional disabilities were added, the VA didn’t automatically review every claim that had been previously filed. The veteran or survivors must now reopen their claim to have the VA consider whether they can grant service connection for whatever medical condition they have. But, if the VA grants service connection for a disability, such as diabetes, and the Vietnam veteran had previously filed a claim for diabetes, the VA is obligated now to reach back to the veterans original claim and pay the retroactive benefits they are entitled to.

Every Vietnam veteran should know what these so-called presumptive disabilities are and continue to monitor the list of presumptive disabilities because there may be more added. They can be found on the VA’s web site at www.va.gov If you are a Vietnam veteran or the survivor, and have previously filed a claim with the VA for a disability associated with Agent Orange, you should contact your local County Veteran Service Officer or your American Legion Department Service Officer and see if you might be entitled to benefits. Your County Service Officer will be listed in the government section of your phone book. Your American Legion Department Service Officer can be contacted by calling 701-451-4646 or by email at ServiceOfficer@ndlegion.org.

(posted 5/16/07)

REPRESENTATION

VA benefits are not automatically granted to veterans or other beneficiaries. You must apply for them. And of course, to apply there are various forms that must be completed. Benefit determinations, whether it be for medical care, service-connected compensation, education or any other benefit, is determined by the law. Along with the hundreds of VA laws, there are thousands of regulations and thousands of program guides, etc. For the ordinary claimant to successfully navigate the VA benefit system successfully and be awarded all the benefits they are legally entitled to is rare! But there is help!

The North Dakota American Legion employs a fulltime Department Service Officer. Their Department Service Officer is available to help you navigate successfully through the system. The Service Officer is your advocate at the VA. He knows the VA laws and regulations. He knows what you must do to be successful in obtaining the benefits your are entitled to. He knows what the VA must do to help you be successful in obtaining your benefits. This service is free for the asking. But, in order to assist with your claim, the Service Officer will ask you to execute what is commonly referred to as a power of attorney. This power of attorney form, or POA as it is often referred to, is only good for VA benefits. This form allows the Service Officer to closely monitor the VA’s actions on your claim and ensure that the determination is in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. If it isn’t the Service Officer can intervene on your behalf.

Recent legislation passed by Congress now allows attorneys to represent veterans before the VA. However, most, if not all, will charge for their services. VA law is very specialized and most attorneys are not familiar with VA law and very little attention is given to this area of the law in most law schools. On the other hand, the American Legion Department Service Officer has over 30 years of experience in VA law.

If you, or someone you know has or will be filing a claim for benefits with the VA, make sure you are represented. Someone once said: “An attorney who represents himself has a fool for a client.” Veterans who are represented by a Service Organization generally will receive greater benefits from the VA than those who don’t. So, it behooves everyone filing a claim before the VA to have a Service Organization represent them. The VA form 21-22 can be downloaded through the VA web site. You can also contact your local County Veteran Service Officer to obtain one, or you can contact your North Dakota Department Service Officer by either calling 701-451-4646 or email him at ServiceOfficer@ndlegion.org.

(posted 5/2/07)