Reporting for Roll Call ; 18:58 Hrs 6-5-13
Hi LT:
Well, now that we' ve chatted on the side, I now know where your responses to my questions are...and we can move on.
First, to summarize, we've gotten our troop with his VA card, and he/she is ready to continue with the process.
You may, or may not, have gotten together with one of those State advocate groups, like CalVet. But, regardless, you now need to get connected with a VA-Primary Care doctor. From what you've explained, you do so by asking the VA directly, and you will get whatever one is appointed by it for you. Once you have that, your next move is to make an appointment with that doctor for a preliminary face-to-face.
I think we can both agree that the most critical thing is...make sure you keep that appointment...and on time too! In fact...never miss any appointment, no matter whether with you primary doctor or anyone else.I'd even go so far as saying...keep your own log of all appointments, and with whom, and for what...so you have your own "record".
All right, so you meet with your PCDr...now you're on the threshhold. SIDEBAR COMMENT HERE: While my contact with VA doctors has been minimal, as far as I can figure...most are as good as you'll find anywhere else, and most are really there to do their best for you...whatever is medically justified.
The next question is....how does the subject of "disability" come up? I'm curious about what the interaction between a troop and the doctor might be for that. Believe it's worth "dissecting" a bit because that will be the foundation for any claim for it.
CENTURION
