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Nehmer Claim
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from Jim's Mailbag...
Email JimJim Strickland is a nationally known advocate for veterans and a member of the Stateside Legal Advisory Board. This column appears with his permission. Jim's opinions are his own.
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NOTE: Letters in my Q&A columns are reprinted just as they come to me. Spelling and grammar are left as is and only small corrections are made to improve readability, ensure anonymity or delete expletives that may offend some readers. This is not legal advice. You should always seek the advice of an attorney who is qualified in Veterans' law before you make any decisions about your own benefits. |
Jim,
I filed a claim for IHD in October of 2009 on the advice of the VFW. With that claim went all the paperwork I had for a number of hospital visits to more the one hospital in which it stated IHD as a cause. Over the last 17 years I have had two angioplasties and two open heart surgeries.
Nehmer has been an issue as I filed in 2003 on heart disease, that one was turned down at that time. I recieved a C & P exam at the beginning of November 2010. Since then I have neither heard from nor recieved anything from the VA. Normally after a C & P the claim is finished pretty quickly. Should I be doing anything to check on this claim?
Reply:
No. There is nothing that you need to do at this point. The fact is that anything you may attempt would be likely to slow down your claim.
Most Nehmer review claims are a bit bogged down. There were some significant errors in the adjudication process that were discovered late last year and many claims are now required to be reviewed a second and even third time.
That you got your C & P exam is good news. You're correct that in a usual sort of claim that would signal that you were close to the end of the process...not so this time.
If you'll save this email and reply to me in May if you haven't heard anything, I may be able to check the status of your claim for you then. With luck though, you will hear before then.
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Comments
Jim, My father passed away in January 2010. I received a letter from the VA stating he had filed a Nehmer Claim, and that I needed to send over some information stating that he was enlisted in the Navy and in Vietnam at the time he recorded on the claim. I did not have the information that was being requested and really didn't know how I would search for it either, however the letter also stated that if I didn't respond within a certain time period, then the VA would continue with the claim and make it's decision upon their findings. I've yet to hear anything from them and how would I check the status of the claim?
...I hope you'll contact me directly at so that we can review the data that VA is asking for. There are many variables to consider but I fear that to ignore this VA request may cost you and his other heirs some money that VA might pay to his estate. The Nehmer class of claims are often paying large retroactive sums to veterans and their dependents.
At the time of my husband's death he was under Nehmer Review due to his heart condition. Neither he nor I knew this at the time. When I submitted my request for spousal benefits I was called and told about the Nehmer Review and asked to submit additional medical records. My husband suffered with this heart condition for 16 years prior to his death.
On March 8, 2011, I was called again and told the paperwork was satisfactory and being forwarded to the Review Board and to expect a decision within 90-120 days.
July 8th will be 120 days and I've heard nothing to date. I've received no spousal benefits since my husband's death in October. Will The Review Board make a final decision within the 120 day period or could I expect to wait longer.
My husband was career Army, Special Forces and served in Vietnam 1965-1969.
Estimates of completion of all adjudication processes at the VA are overly optimistic. The Nehmer process is taking much longer than originally anticipated as VA has learned that many of these cases are very complex. If I were you I'd wait another 60 days or so and only then make an inquiry to the Regional Office where your veteran's folder resides. At that point you may also contact me directly by email at jim912@gmail.com and I'll assist you to investigate the status of your claim. On a positive note, the teams handling the Nehmer class claims are doing a very thorough job of processing these important claims.