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Could any fellow service-connected disabled veterans, offer any insight into service-connected medical care provided; and reimbursed by the Veterans Administration, in Costa Rica. I have been approved for the VA foreign medical care program, and would like to obtain information of other veterans experiences in regard to this matter. Any information would be greatly appreciated.
[quote=”soldier”]Could any fellow service-connected disabled veterans, offer any insight into service-connected medical care provided; and reimbursed by the Veterans Administration, in Costa Rica. I have been approved for the VA foreign medical care program, and would like to obtain information of other veterans experiences in regard to this matter. Any information would be greatly appreciated.
[By this time I suggest that no active readers are available for you. Use a VFW or American Legion Post as your source. Call them and ask for their “service officer.” These volunteers are trained in VA proceedures and requirements. If it is not familiar to them, they can go to VA references and determine the best responses.[quote=”soldier”]Could any fellow service-connected disabled veterans, offer any insight into service-connected medical care provided; and reimbursed by the Veterans Administration, in Costa Rica. [b]I have been approved for the VA foreign medical care program[/b], and would like to obtain information of other veterans experiences in regard to this matter. Any information would be greatly appreciated.[/quote]
I’m a 100% Service-Connected Vet and am making the move to CR VERY SOON…..I have never heard of this, could you give ME some info on this Foreign Medical Care Program, while you are waiting for responses?
I would appreciate it!
Best of luck!!
Dan.
Dan,
In August 2009, the VA granted me 100% disability, permanent and total disability, with special monthly compensation. Like yourself, we will be retiring to CR, and through online research, I became aware that the VA pays for service-connected disabilities in CR; and around the world. I downloaded the application from online, and mailed it to Denver, Colorado. About two weeks later, I received the approval letter for VA foreign medical treatment. Refer to the following for addition information: hac.fmp@med.va.gov; http://www.4.va.gov/hac/forbeneficiaries/fmp/fmp.asp; telefax: 303-331-7803 and VA Foreign Medical Program Office, P.O. Box 469061, Denver, Colorado 80246-9061.
Hope this helps, it is a pleasure corresponding with a fellow brother in-arms. Take care.
Alfred
[quote=”soldier”]Dan,
In August 2009, the VA granted me 100% disability, permanent and total disability, with special monthly compensation. Like yourself, we will be retiring to CR, and through online research, I became aware that the VA pays for service-connected disabilities in CR; and around the world. I downloaded the application from online, and mailed it to Denver, Colorado. About two weeks later, I received the approval letter for VA foreign medical treatment. Refer to the following for addition information: hac.fmp@med.va.gov; http://www.4.va.gov/hac/forbeneficiaries/fmp/fmp.asp; telefax: 303-331-7803 and VA Foreign Medical Program Office, P.O. Box 469061, Denver, Colorado 80246-9061.
Hope this helps, it is a pleasure corresponding with a fellow brother in-arms. Take care.
Alfred[/quote]
Wow, Alfred, thanks. I’m sure you have also become aware that the VA tells us NOTHING, and what we find on our own is just dumb luck sometimes.
Thank you, this is a teriffic find, and I appreciate your sharing………I’m on it right now!
Hope we can keep in touch!
Dan.
P.S. that link was incorrect, but I got it figured out, here it is:
www4.va.gov/hac/foreignbeneficiaries/fmp/fmp.asp
An easy typo, no biggie, but THANKS for the link, hope this helps someone else as well!
Dan,
Glad I could help. The VA is anti-veteran, as any veteran knowns. I have been battling the VA for five years, in order to obtain 100%. After five denials, two decision review officer hearings, and numerous appeal and medical document submissions; I finally won my award in 2009. VA still gave me the short end of the stick, they only made my award retro to 2007; instead of 2004, my original filing date. I could continue to battle VA for the additional retro, however, after five years of battling the VA; I am exhausted and drained from the paper fire fight! I read http://www.vawatchdog.org every day, this is a great website by and for veterans. Be prepared for shocking news about our VA!
Take Care.
Alfred
[quote=”soldier”]Dan,
Glad I could help. The VA is anti-veteran, as any veteran knowns. I have been battling the VA for five years, in order to obtain 100%. After five denials, two decision review officer hearings, and numerous appeal and medical document submissions; I finally won my award in 2009. VA still gave me the short end of the stick, they only made my award retro to 2007; instead of 2004, my original filing date. I could continue to battle VA for the additional retro, however, after five years of battling the VA; I am exhausted and drained from the paper fire fight! I read http://www.vawatchdog.org every day, this is a great website by and for veterans. Be prepared for shocking news about our VA!
Take Care.
Alfred[/quote]
Alfred, none of this surprises me, it only took me 23 years to finally get my rating…YES, 23 years.
The law, the US Code (US CODE, Title 38 Paragraph 1110, I believe), not the CFR, sets out that Veterans are to be paid to the time of their injury, I was injured in 1978. My claim was finally approved in early 2000 and I was back-paid to only 1995. The VA engages in all these denials and delays in order to PREVENT having to pay like the Law states, deferring to the CFR (Code of Federal Regulations), which isn’t even law.
Then our lovely former president, GILLIGAN, signed an executive order, sticking it further into Vets waiting on long drawn-out claims, stating that no Veteran’s claim shall be back-paid earlier than 1995. (I know WWII Vets still fighting claims)
Yes, the VA is our biggest adversary, I consider myself lucky to have done it in only 23 years when SO MANY deserving Veterans are still fighting the system. The VA hopes we will tire and just walk away, or die somewhere in the process….Dead Vets collect no benefits.
Forget fighting for an earlier effective date, the VA is immortal and we are not, and that is their advantage.(Keep fighting, it just pisses them off, serious.)
Regards!
Dan.
Dan,
23 years! I can imagine what you went through, I only had to deal with the two brain cell idiots for five years. Glad you finally received your earned award! I’m a Viet vet and a legal asistant with 21 years of experience. You are right, VA does not adhear to 38 C.F.R., nor any other regulations or laws. Even with my legal experience, the VA disregarded my legal arguments and medical evidence for five years. With VA disability claims at the one million mark, and raising every day, the VA has ordered more denial stamps, or, merely lost or shredded veterans medical evidence. You made a good point, I will file a claim for the additional retro pay, so a VA claim adjudicator will be required to, but will not, review two boxes worth of my medical documentation. What most vets do not know is that the VA adjudicators are required to process 3-4 claims a day; which means, they only have around two hours to review and process each claim.
Take care.
Alfred
[quote=”soldier”]Dan,
23 years! I can imagine what you went through, I only had to deal with the two brain cell idiots for five years. Glad you finally received your earned award! I’m a Viet vet and a legal asistant with 21 years of experience. You are right, VA does not adhear to 38 C.F.R., nor any other regulations or laws. Even with my legal experience, the VA disregarded my legal arguments and medical evidence for five years. With VA disability claims at the one million mark, and raising every day, the VA has ordered more denial stamps, or, merely lost or shredded veterans medical evidence. You made a good point, I will file a claim for the additional retro pay, so a VA claim adjudicator will be required to, but will not, review two boxes worth of my medical documentation. What most vets do not know is that the VA adjudicators are required to process 3-4 claims a day; which means, they only have around two hours to review and process each claim.
Take care.
Alfred[/quote]
My older Brother is a retired SF. Sergeant Major, a VietNam Vet also, and I can’t even begin to tell you what he has gone through recently. He’s been one of the lucky ones and Agent Orange hasn’t affected him before now, but at 60, he’s starting to have problems and the VA is trying to weasel out of doing anything.
THIS guy is a bona fide hero-type and even tho now he works as a “Governemnt Contractor” He’s having problems.
The VA needs a serious enema, but it will never happen until/unless we can get these Anti-Veteran “Representatives” out of Government
Please, stay in touch!
Dan.
Dan
Will do. I can relate to your brother’s ordeal. If I am not mistaken, the VA has made disability regarding Agent Orange, a presumtive disability grant, for certain related illnesses. I believe I read it at the vawatchdog website, or on a VA site; check my accuracy. Guys in the Navy were having problems with Agent Orange, VA was denying their disability because they did not have “boots on the ground.” The VA hospitals have a Agent Orange clinic, you have to sign into at the VA hospital in your area, they have one here in Philadelphia. You guys may want to check into that also. A friend of mine died about three months ago from Agent Orange. I had to watch him fade away and die, weighing only 90 pounds. He was also a true hero, he was a Green Beret, three tours of Nam; won the Silver Star, for taking out a Viet five man patrol with only his bayonet. The way VA denied and delayed his claims, was criminal. I helped my friend with his claim and the legal aspects, he won his claim a year before he died. One thing I found as a gold mine of information, during my claims research, was reading all the Board of Veterans Appeal decisions, on line, for particular disabilities. The Board decisions basically tell you what you need, to win your claim.
Take care.
Alfred
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