Did you wait till you were out to get your disability rating? If so, how long before you made your first claim?

No because it was a presumptive health issue . Anyone who was on the ground in Vietnam was presumed to have type 2 diabetes. I had other issues too . Took me about 8 months from start of my claim to getting rated at 60% . SPC (Join to see)

SGT Lou Meza - Lou, my uncle developed diabetes and he was definitely exposed to AO. He was stationed at Da Nang in 1965 and guarded the airport there.

SGT (Join to see) - He must have guarded it well. I flew in in 68 and it was in good shape. We all have AO issues but the VA will not discuss it...

For anyone in country that comes down with any presumptive disease for AO definitely should file a claim. I finally convinced 3 of my buddies to do so and they thank me every day. Being retired the well deserved benefit payments changed their lives.

How did you go about getting back pay? I kept a 30% rating for 15 years. Now I am up to 70%.

SSG Timothy Lanham I never received any backpay. I received severance pay when discharged. Then, I had to ‘repay’ that amount back before I could collect VA disability pay. SSG Timothy Lanham

BOOM! Good for you!

My actual rating adds up over 300% but with "va math" I'm still only getting paid 90% because they screwed me after I had reconstructive neck surgery in 2017. I have permanent nerve damage in both arms and hands and I filed for the nerve damage as a secondary condition because it was caused by my neck condition and when they approved it they approved everything separately so it kept me from getting a 100% rating. That put me at a va 90% then they gave me 50% for migraines but somehow even with va math 90% plus 50% still only equals 90%.

SPC (Join to see) in my case, I was fortunate all my issues were documented for the most part. I didn't need any buddy letters.

I can tell you that buddy letters give your claim more credibility and that credit goes up if said letters are notarized.

You should be consulting the person who represents you before the VA for the things to do in your best interests to get your claims awarded.

I wish I had that kind of luck. The va has been denying me for over ten years now but simply stating that I had it before I enlisted even though they have never provided any proof to support claiming that and I have had several evals that all came back in my favor. This has been up to the Board of Veterans Appeals twice already and the va has still been allowed to deny me by only saying that I had it before I enlisted even though all the proof is in my favor and they literally have no evidence to argue against it.

SPC Joshua Dawson I would hope by now you would have retained legal counsel or at least an Accredited Claims Agent. You don't mention if your case was remanded to the VARO (Regional Office). The court of appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) could be a last option.

My appeal has already been up to the Board of Veterans Appeals twice and the first time the judge remanded it he completely agreed with me and ordered the va to actually prove that I had it before I enlisted because he noted that I had been getting denied for several years already and the va still did not have any evidence to actually support denying me. The va's response to the remand was to turn around and say the exact same thing to the judge, simply that I had it before I enlisted and completely ignored everything he ordered. So it went up to the Board of Veterans Appeals again and even though the va completely ignored everything the judge ordered they remanded it for a second time but this time chose to outsource and "expedite" my appeal. My appeal was "expedited" April 2020 and since then the va has added 7 requests to the appeal and then turned around and closed them just so they could keep drawing it out. I have had two evals since April 2020 and the va made a request for clarification from a third doctor, all of which came back in my favor. I do have legal counsel hired but they have proven even more useless than a VSO.

Very smart getting a copy of your medical records. I wish I had.

You're fighting an uphill battle but don't give up! It's not too late to pursue a claim.
Some suggestions:
- Find a local chapter of the DAV and make an appointment to see one of their counselors. Go in and introduce yourself and explain your situation. Have a copy of your DD214 with you, as well as all written correspondence you've exchanged with the VA. Ask the counselor if the DAV would agree to serve as your representative in dealings with the VA. Then ask for assistance in filing a Notice of Disagreement (NOD) with the VA, to appeal their ruling that your neuropathy is not service related.
- Research records of the Dept of the Navy regarding operations of your destroyer in the Delta during the period of your service. Look for After Action Reports that your skipper would have filed with 7th Fleet, detailing the dates and times of shore bombardments conducted and the locations of targets, number of rounds fired and type of ordnance expended. Such minutia can help your credibility.
- Write a statement of your case that will form a part of your NOD, clearly and succinctly describing your condition and its progression since your discharge and your rationale for failing to pursue a claim earlier. Then close your statement by attesting to its truth, to the best of your knowledge.
- If you remember the names of former crewmates and can find their current addresses, contact them and ask them if they would be willing to sign a statement attesting to the facts of your presence at the time and location of your service; if so, you can include those statements with your NOD.
- Don't give up!

Right on, it’s never too late! My VSO convinced me that it’s not welfare. They are earned benefits and never too late to file. I harped on 3 of my Nam vet buddies for several years, finally now they get some earned benefits also.