Beautiful state, beautiful location, absolutely horrible regional office to deal with…read more
This review is in regards to the VBA (disability, comp and pen folks), not the educational section here. This is where all the disability claims in Colorado for veterans are routed, and let me tell you, they do a terrible job, to the point of being corrupt. My friend and I are both veterans, both rated 90% now. When I was in Colorado I was at 50%, and the C & P examiners treated me like I was a criminal every time I went in there, no matter what the exam was for (upon appeal to the Board of Veterans Appeals several years later my claims were found to be credible and well documented). My friend, in even worse shape than I was, had been hospitalized several times and was in bank overdraft, struggling month to month. Not only did they not consider raising him from his overall rating of 20% but they proposed to sever his service connection. Just f-ing spiteful and unheard of. Needless to say an attorney picked up his case and immediately got it stopped/reversed (he is rated 90% now).
Out of the 4 VBA employees I've interacted with, three of them were extremely rude/cold and acted like they were angry and hated to be working with veterans.
When I was sent my VA rating/disability decision, it was mixed in with another veterans paperwork, so I saw her name, social security number, everything. I brought this to the local congressman's attention and he mentioned that they'd been making those mistakes a lot, as well as shredding/destroying medical records.
Look, I understand that we have a national budget and not every vet can be 100%, but the Denver VBA folks really seem to have it out for vets and take things way too far. Aside from the usual stall tactics of delaying and not acknowledging very clear evidence that's been provided, they will further convolute the process by pulling dirty tricks like this severance proposal, which is clearly wrong and just expends more time and resources. Their ratings decisions are very subjective in their wording, stating things are personal opinions rather than a more objective approach (i.e. "You have the following symptoms a/b/c, you do not have the following symptoms d/e/f, your rating is therefore assigned at XX%).
I can't even believe they get away on both a local and federal level with doing this to vets, people who have put their lives on the line and had some of the hardest things inflicted on them.
Denver VBA -- SHAME. ON. YOU.