Have you been denied for presumptive conditions?

2018-01-25T12:09:01-05:00

Response by SPC Jeff Hogan, M.S., M.P.S. made Jan 25 at 2018 12:11 PM

2018-01-25T12:11:23-05:00

I'm currently working on a post-grad degree and I am wanting to know how many Gulf War vets have applied for disability that is considered presumptive. These would be any listed here:

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/publications/gulf-war/gulf-war-winter-2016/gulf-war-presumptives.asp

Even more specifically I want to know if you had a formal diagnosis of one of these conditions (IBS, Fibro, CFS) and were still denied and told it wasn't service connected.

If you fit into this criteria I'd love to get more information for a research paper I am writing.

Thanks,

Jeff

gulf-war-presumptives.asp

Response by SSG Robert Webster made Jan 25 at 2018 12:39 PM

2018-01-25T12:39:24-05:00

You may want to connect with Ronald Brown at the National Gulf War Resource Center.

http://www.ngwrc.org/

https://www.facebook.com/NGWRC/

https://www.facebook.com/ronald.e.brown.5

National Gulf War Resource Center

The principal purpose of the National Gulf War Resource Center is to:To provide education and support to benefit veterans, active duty personnel and their families. To promote research and provide referrals that will improve the lives of these veterans or enable them to obtain the care and benefits they have earned.

Response by PFC Stephen Eric Serati made Jan 25 at 2018 12:47 PM

2018-01-25T12:47:53-05:00

:-))) The VA.Ran by CIVIDI-TS

Response by PVT Mark Brown made Jan 25 at 2018 2:41 PM

2018-01-25T14:41:20-05:00

Yes I have and continue to appeal. I was in places in Korea that DoD admits were treated with tactical herbicides. I have all but given up. This has been going on for over 10 years now. I have other issues that the VA has rated me "Service Connected" but not at 100%. I am still looking for the 100% rating. I am getting up there in age and imagine I will cease to exist before I make any further progress. The VSO I am working with has warned me that the VA has the option to reevaluate my current rating and could possibly reduce my rating. Now, that worries me and has acted as a damper on my apeals process.

Response by SPC Jeff Hogan, M.S., M.P.S. made Jul 24 at 2018 7:57 PM

2018-07-24T19:57:42-04:00

backstory. I am following this post up almost half a year later. I'm a veteran of the Gulf War and in 1996 I was denied for gastro issues as an environmental hazard because I was diagnosed for IBS. This was before all the help was available on social media and the VFW offered no assistance (nor to their defense did I ask for any). In my mind I thought if I had all the symptoms I would have a case.

I realize it doesn't work quite like that because despite all the symptoms I had no objective medical evidence or treatment. But, they did diagnose me with IBS in 1996. Sometime in 2010 I learned more about the symptoms related to GWI and applied again. Yet again, with no evidence. Just me self diagnosing based on symptoms. I just applied under the general umbrella 'gulf war syndrome".

Again, I was denied -- but, this time I was denied because I had no known diagnosis of IBS. I never caught it and just let it go.

Finally during 2017 I became aware of this form and others and started educating myself. I reopened my 2010 IBS claim this time with current diagnoses of IBS (from a civilian and a VA doctor). Again, I was denied because they claimed it never happened in service.

They forced a nexus when none was required. I reached out to the NGRWC (google it as I'm not sure about putting links here) and they helped me craft an appeal which was quickly granted.

I just forgot on the appeal to ask them to look at effective date so it was only effective as the date of my 2017 refiling.

I suppose moral of the story if there is any is its never too late to file. I did submit another appeal for effective date and hope that will get treated fairly.