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Reference

Expediting Cases

Initial Setup Changes

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Phase 2: Setup the Case

When the Setup Complete date is entered, it should tell you that the Onboarding Coordinator has gathered all of the initial intake information to complete all of the necessary information before we receive VBMS Access to the case. Here's a quick checklist of the information that should be completed that you can rely on when the Evidence Coordinator begins to develop the evidence:

Step 1: Confirm you have all the information you need.

• Employment Tab - make sure all of the following information is input:
• Service Tab - make sure the following information is input:
• Strategy Tab - make sure all of the following information is input:
• Treatment Tab - ALL places where the client treated with the following info:
• Medications Tab - ALL medications the client is taking with the following info:

Step 2: Create the Strategy for the Case.

Review the veteran’s case to evaluate what claims to file, including:

• goal for the case - what is important to the veteran?
• treatment history - what conditions affect them the most day-to-day?
• active problem list - pull most recent CAPRI records to see what the veteran has treated for / what he’s diagnosed with
• active medications - are there any potentially secondary conditions for side effects of a medication the veteran is taking for a service-connected condition?
• potential exposures - are any of the veteran’s conditions potentially linked to an exposure in service?
• most recent Code Sheet (in VBMS) - what has the veteran applied for in the past?

Developing the Evidence.

At minimum, you should work on one statement for each claim we are filing or intend to file. The VA has recognized several disabilities that are capable of lay observation, which means sometimes just submitting a statement could be the difference between a denial and a grant!

<aside> 🧠 Pro Tip

Don’t limit yourself to just statements. For example, if the veteran was exposed to toxins, is there a journal article online that talks about toxins in the same area the veteran served in at the same time?

I once used weather records to show the weather was below freezing while the veteran was stationed in the DMZ for 3 months to support his frostbite claim the VA kept denying because his service records were lost.

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Types of Evidence You Could Submit

Statements

Rep Statements

Requesting Private Medical Records (PMRs)

Other Types of Evidence to Consider:

Employment 🚧

Nexus Statements

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Step 3: Discuss Your Strategy with the Client.