Veterans Medical Advisor
Frequently Asked Questions
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Dr. Bash is a member of
and a veteran of the
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How soon should I contact Dr.
Bash?
While you can contact Dr. Bash at any stage of your claim, the earlier in the process the better. This could save you years of appeal and possibly allow for a more favorable decision sooner. At what stages of the claim can
I submit a medical opinion?
You can first submit an opinion from Dr. Bash when you make the initial claim. If your claim is denied, or if the decision falls short of your expectation, VA allows you time to submit a Notice of Disagreement (NOD). It is in your best interest to submit a supporting medical opinion with the NOD as well. The VA will then respond with a Statement of the Case—an outline of the reasons and the evidence used in its decision. With an additional medical opinion, it is possible the VA could give you a more favorable decision then. However, if the decision again is not satisfactory, the veteran can file an appeal and request a hearing with the Decision Review Officer (DRO) as part of the appeal. Often the DRO will look at all of a veteran’s evidence, including any further statements from Dr. Bash, and approve the claim as submitted. (Please note that the Regional Office and DROs are limited in the types and amounts of disability awards that they may authorize.) If the decision still is not in the veteran’s favor, the DRO will state exactly what evidence is needed to approve the claim. Then this evidence must be taken before the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA). The BVA will take a further look at all the evidence and decide about the claim. It can decide to approve the claim, remand the claim (send it back to the regional office with instructions about what to do differently), or deny the claim. If the BVA denies a veteran’s claim, the veteran then can hire a lawyer and go through the courts. At any of these stages, you can have Dr. Bash submit more medical evidence. For further details about this process go to http://www.va.gov/vbs/bva/y2000.pdf. What if I need him to appear
before the board?
Dr. Bash is a seasoned medical expert witness for hearings at the BVA
level. If your claim goes to |
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