No post on this website is meant to be legal advice and the posts on this website do not serve as a substitute for legal advice. Information is power, and we are providing this information to give you, the Veteran, some power. This information is not widely or easily accessible to Veterans.  The information presented on this website is a general description of law and processes; each case is different, and there may be approaches listed here that are not accurate or applicable to your case. Likewise, their may be information that is applicable to your case that is not provided on this Veterans Disability Compensation Blog.

Anyone veteran or veterans’ advocate working with the Waco VA Regional Office knows that it is taking an incredibly long time to process claims.

My Firm has several cases before the Waco VA Regional Office right now.  Here are some of the wait times my clients have experienced; I’ve used these cases as examples because they are  the “straightforward”cases where there is no reason that the VA should be denying part or all of the claims.

Client #1. This client is the surviving spouse of Vietnam Veteran who died of his Agent Orange related illnesses in 2009.  Surviving spouse filed claim for survivor’s benefits in September 2009.  Client received full denial in April 2010. After a timely Notice of Disagreement, a DRO Hearing was finally scheduled and held in December 2011.  After the DRO promised a full grant of accrued benefits and DIC by the end of December 2011, no action has been taken on the case in 3 months.

Client #2. This client is the victim of a Military Sexual Trauma. The initial claim was filed in May 2009 and denied by the VA in May 2010.  After a timely Notice of Disagreement the VA scheduled a DRO Hearing for December 2010.  The hearing was cancelled so that the Veteran could have a C&P (Compensation and Pension Exam in January 2011).  In the 13 months since January 2011, the file has sat on the DRO’s desk and no decision has been written.

Client #3: This client, a Vietnam Veteran, filed a claim to reopen his claim in November 2008. The VA denied the claim in November 2009. After a timely Notice of Disagreement, the VA scheduled a DRO Hearing for July 2011.  The Veteran has submitted additional new and material evidence to support a grant of benefits, but has heard nothing from the VA in the 7 months since July 2011.

Client #4: This client, a Vietnam-era Veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange while serving on the Korean DMZ during the Vietnam War, filed his claim in December 2009, which the VA quickly denied by April 2010.  After submitting a timely Notice of Disagreement, the VA did nothing until this past week, when it set a DRO hearing for April 2012.

Client #5: This client, a Vietnam Veteran, submitted his claim in August 2008, which the VA denied by October 2008.  This Veteran was never given a DRO Hearing, instead it took nearly 3.5 years for the BVA to set a hearing in his case. That BVA hearing is set for April 2012.

A couple of themes from the above:

1) The Waco VA Regional Office denies claims very quickly.

2) The Waco VA Regional Office takes years to simply schedule a DRO hearing.

3) After the DRO Hearing, the Waco VA Regional Office sits on the cases and appears to take no action – in some cases, for over a year.

I have been told that the Waco VA Regional Office has some really good excuses why it is no longer issuing DRO decisions.

One employee told me that the Waco VA Regional Office was handling the back-log of “Nehmer” cases – reviews of claims files to select the proper effective date for Vietnam Veterans with ischemic heart disease due to Agent Orange exposure.

I’ve been told that the Waco VA Regional Office has pulled all of its DROs off their work reviewing files and writing DRO decisions to train several dozen new claims examiners.  If this is true, then these new claims examiners have gotten over one (1) year of training in Waco.

Who knows why the Waco VA Regional Office is taking so long to issue DRO decisions and move perfected appeals to the BVA for hearing scheduling.  Maybe its time for the Waco VA Regional Office leadership to step up and ask for help.  Maybe it is time for the VA Office of Inspector General to come down to Waco and see what is going on there.

I don’t know what is going on at Waco, but I will say that if you are a Veteran trying to recover compensation for the injuries and diseases that resulted from your military service, it will take Waco VA Regional Office years to make key decisions in your case.

It is very important that we note that each and every Veteran’s claim is different. Just because we were able to secure substantial past-due benefits for one Veteran does not mean or imply that we will be able to do so for you.   In some cases, we may not be able to secure you any financial compensation due to the facts of your particular case.

It is best to consult with a lawyer familiar with VA Disability claims and benefits or a Veterans Service Organization to examine your particular case.  If you would like to discuss your VA claim with a lawyer who handles VA Benefits and Disability Appeals in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and all around the nation, contact the Attig Law Firm, PLLC, for a free consultation with a VA Benefits attorney.

The Attig Law Firm, PLLC, and VA benefits attorney Chris Attig, represents military Veterans in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma (as well as all around the nation) before the VA Regional Office, the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) in claims for disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs.