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I am a Vietnam Vet (US Army 1970-71) diagnosed with SCLC on 12/12/09. Am about ½ way through chemo/radiation treatment and will have PCI early May.
Would like inputs from others who have gone through this disability process. Would also like inputs on spousal benefits, VA life insurance, representative organizations who provide assistance through this process, and experiences with cancer treatment in VA Medical Centers.
Exercise Cancer Hypertension Surgery TRAPS Confusion Lung cancer Diabetes Stress
Hey there, I am a vet as well not Vietnam but Desert Shield/Storm. I am currently receiving treatment at the Atlanta Area VA for NSCLC. So far the treatment has been above and beyond what I had expected from there. Not only have they taken care of the problem but they are taking care of me as well. I have never seen a better system work for the patient. Additionally most of my doctors are from Emory University, which gives me a bit more of an edge as far as my treatments go.
As far as the life and spousal benefits go, that would depend on your status in the VA system. I am assuming you did not retire from the years mentioned, but you may be injured. Give me some more specifics and I can see what I can do to assist. At my local Am Legion we have a fantastic service officer that is well informed and can assist with things like this. Specifically I need to know if you are receiving benefits from the VA and if so at what % as that would allow us to figure out what level of benefits you should be getting.
I would also recommend you get your Agent Orange Screening if you have not done so, this could raise your benefit if you were in country as well, and could link the SCLC to your service in some way. Ok instead of doing all this here, email me online here and we can discuss more and I can give you my number if you'd like to talk more. ANY VETS Reading this can contact me as well *we have great resources here*
Scott
Ny husband was a Veitnam Vet who served from 66-68 on the ground. He was diagnosed with ex sclc in June of 08. In July he applied for a service connected disability due to his exposure to Agent Orange. He passed away in January still with no rating or pension from the DVA. His claim died with him and I had to file for DIC which I am still waiting to hear on. Nothing works fast with the VA , be prepared for a long wait. Disabled Veterans of America can help with the paperwork. My husbands paperwork was all handled through the New York State Veterans office and sent to the Federal office by them and still it takes forever. He was never treated in a VA hospital so I cannot give you any feedback on that. Good Luck and apply as soon as possible.
sisabella,
Glad to hear from you and the success you have had through VA. Would like to talk with you. I am new to this site so not sure how to email you through it.
Sorry to hear the trouble you are having with the VA. My application was approved in less than 30 days. Not sure why you are having such difficulty. Would be glad to provide any assistance I can.
sclcsurvivor,
How did that happen so quickly? I just took my Mom to see the VA rep this morning to begin the paperwork for my Dad's service connected disability. He was a Vietnam Vet exposed to Agent Orange. Dad was diagnosed in Oct 08 of SCLC and he's had Type 2 Diabetes for 5yrs. He is home with hospice now. The VA Rep started the paperwork process today but explained it will probably take 10-12 months, and if he passes away before it's approved, Mom will apply for DIC which will take 6-8 months. She said they might be able to expedite since he's with hospice now but certainly didn't guarantee. How did you get approved in less than 30 days? I would like to do everything I can for my parents to ease their burden during this difficult time. Thank you.
Sorry to hear about your Dad. Was he receiving VA disability for diabetes? Since he was Vietnam Vet he should have been because diabetes is service connected. I used the State VA representative. Made sure my initial application had my DD214 (which showed Vietnam service) and all medical records from the hospital stay where I was diagnosed with SCLC.
Your Dads claim would have been from the date the VA received the first application. Not sure if your Mom will be able to claim those funds until he passed.
There are several benefits your Mom is entitled to since your Dad died from a service connected issue. These are shown at: http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/dependents/spouse.htm
I am happy to help you in any way I can. If you would like to talk by telephone we can do that also.
Good Luck
sclcsurvivor
My husband is also a Vietnam vet. I found your info interesting. He is a non smoker and never has smoked with sclc the"smoker's cancer", so I am looking into filing for VA benefits for him. Hope we have as much luck as you did getting benefits. I may have to contact you for help if we have problems. I have also found several articles on the internet that have good info. I have always wondered if he could have been exposed to agent orange, and most say ANY Vietnam vet that was on the ground was exposed.
Since your husband served in Vietnam and has been diagnosed with respiratory cancer it is service connected and he is entitled to 100% service connected disability during treatment and for 6 months after treatment has been completed. In addition all medical cost both for the SCLC and even unrelated medical expenses (dental, vision, etc) will be provided by VA facilities or they will pay for outside providers.
Essential to get the application submitted since the clock doesn't start until the VA receives the first submission. Need DD214 stating Vietnam service, medical records proving SCLC (Xrays, CT's, Dr. Notes, etc). State VA agencies, DAV, VFW, etc can help you navigate the system.
Benefits can be found at
http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/dependents/spouse.htm
http://www.vba.va.gov/VBA/benefits/factsheets/general/21-00-1.pdf
I will be delighted to help in any way I can.
Tell your husband hello and thank him for serving.
Good Luck
Thank you! Guess we had better get with it as he has complete his chemo and radiation except for PCI which will start on March 9. I will get those forms printed and filled out.
I really do not want him treated at the VA at least not in OKLA. I am in the medical profession and have been in those hospitals and will not have him exposed to that as long as I can work and we have medical insurance. I don't know if you have been treated in Tenn. in those facilities, but in OK they look good on the outside, but usually have sub standard care.
Thanks again!
The VA is paying for my treatment even though I am receiving it outside the VA system. This is because my treatment was started before the VA got involved so, the VA oncologist said not to change providers in mid stream. Pretty sure you could get the same for your husband. Beauty of this is there is no copay.
Strongly recommend you visit your local state VA office or DAV and have them fill out the papers for you. If your husband can't go you can bring the papers back for him to sign. These organizations know the ropes, vocabulary etc and provide the service at no cost. Be sure and take the documents I mentioned earlier.
If your husband gets his paperwork in before 65 yrs old he can also get free $20K life insurance policy. Can also get relief on local property taxes, free auto license plate, free lifetime hunting/fishing license and a multitude of other benefits.
Happy Days and let me know if you need more info or assistance.
We live in Northern Virginia and I've tried to Google our VA State Rep and can't seem to find one. I'm working on my Dad's package now and I have to give VA permission to obtain my his medical records. No problem, but I asked the VA rep at Quantico if it would help speed things up by us getting copies of the medical records and sending them in the package. She said that VA would still request copies themselves so providing copies wouldn't really help speed up the process. I don't know how far back they need to go but seems like I just need records for the past 8 months, since he was diagnosed with SCLC. Also, answer to your question...we didn't know about the disability coverage Dad could have got when he was first diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes 5 years ago so that part is lost. But I don't think he would have got 100% disability on that, he will now with SCLC...according to the VA rep. Thank you so much for all the information, it's been very helpful!
I think we are going to go to the VA office tomorrow and see how they can help us.
Thanks again, and I will let everyone know how it goes.
Not sure where you live but this link should help you find your representative http://www.dvs.virginia.gov/
I would recommend that you assemble the medical records to submit. They may want to get more but the easier you make it for them to approve your claim the faster they can move. You can go to the medical establishment and get the copies in one day. They will do it by mail and it will take weeks if not months.
Sorry to hear your dad lost the last 5 years benefits for diabetes. Can't fix that but can get it for the future. Not sure how old your dad is but if he is approaching 65 need to get the initial claim in quick if you to get the free $20K life insurance.
Let me know if more questions arise. Will be glad to help in any way I can.
Good luck. Let me know what they say and any other assistance I can provide.
We went to the VA center today and they filled out our compensation form for us on the computer. It was very easy. They said it will be submitted and in 30 days or less we would hear from the VA for more info, much of which I already have ready for them. I am glad we went in because the main form 21-526 that I had downloaded via the internet was an old one. The new one that they did was much less involved. Also, we never ever said "Agent Orange" but when the form was completed, because Tom has lung cancer and was a Vietnam Vet it automatically put it in. The man who helped us was very nice and will be our advocate if we should need one.
Thanks sclcsurvivor! I would have never dreamed Tom was due any VA compensation if I had not read your posts. I did wonder if he could have got exposed to agent orange as he was never a smoker and no cancer of any kind in his family. I will keep everyone posted on how this progresses.
RobinJean, our VA rep. said it would speed things up if we had our records, but we cannot submit them until the VA sends us a letter in 30 days or less asking for them.
Really happy that you and Tom had a good experience at the VA. As mentioned earlier there are a multitude of benefits available to war veterans with service connected disabilities.
You have probably already looked at the VA Website http://www.va.gov/ under the Benefits tab (second link on the left). Check out the life insurance benefit since it is age dependent.
If you haven't investigated state benefits look at Oklahoma VA website http://www.ok.gov/ODVA/Claims_&_Benefits/index.html Here you will see state benefits (i.e. no sales tax for 100% disabled). Tom will be 100% disabled for 6 months after treatment is completed.
Thank Tom again for serving and I wish you guys the best.
Thank you too for serving our country!! Tom was feeling a little guilty for applying for VA benefits, but I told him he protected us and he joined to do that, he sould not feel guilty ever.
A question, does the Va benefit then stop after the six months is up?
After all treatment is completed the VA will reevaluate him. I haven't gone through this process yet so don't know all the details. His doctors will also contribute to the revaluation. I assume if the cancer is still there the 100% will stay in force. If the cancer is in remission they will look at residual effects and come up with a new % disability.
Sorry I don;t know all the details here. Someone else may know.
Good luck
Wow that could be a night mare as our doctor said he will have to be reevaluated every three months for any reoccurance. Well, we will just cross that bridge when we get there.
Thanks again for everything!
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