Board of Veterans Appeals (Attorney Advisor)

[Anonymous]

The DOC seems to have been updated for FY26. Seeing those numbers makes me feel like I'm drowning even though I'm ahead by several cases.

It doesn't look like it factors in leave yet, but still....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He was terrible. I’d take mason over him all day. That’s how bad the dude was.

Are you referring to Arzeizaga Soto?

[Anonymous]

Is the Board correctly handling time off during the shutdown? I see other feds saying they get put into furlough status when they need leave and that once the government reopens, their furlough time won't deduct away from their accrued leave. But the Board put everyone into furlough status and will be charging accrued leave for any time off taken during the shutdown.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2025/veterans-affairs-disability-claims-fraud/?itid=hp-mv-top-stories_top-table-main_p001_f001

ROFL, so true. But, the question is whether anyone has the political courage to end the gravy train.

Follow-up article today reported that the VA OIG investigates an average of 63 cases a year - less than one per day! - out of a pool of hundreds of thousands of veterans. No wonder some veterans are posting themselves on social media lifting weights and doing backflips while claiming to VA they're paralyzed. There's simply no fear of getting caught.

VA disability fraud has been normalized. Nearly every veteran that I have encountered receives VA disability benefits. All of them worked in office roles while in the military and never served anywhere near combat.

Even my super buff trainer at the gym is on disability. If we send people to the war, they deserve it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2025/veterans-affairs-disability-claims-fraud/?itid=hp-mv-top-stories_top-table-main_p001_f001

ROFL, so true. But, the question is whether anyone has the political courage to end the gravy train.

Follow-up article today reported that the VA OIG investigates an average of 63 cases a year - less than one per day! - out of a pool of hundreds of thousands of veterans. No wonder some veterans are posting themselves on social media lifting weights and doing backflips while claiming to VA they're paralyzed. There's simply no fear of getting caught.

VA disability fraud has been normalized. Nearly every veteran that I have encountered receives VA disability benefits. All of them worked in office roles while in the military and never served anywhere near combat.

Even my super buff trainer at the gym is on disability. If we send people to the war, they deserve it.

I agree that veterans who sustained in war should receive disability benefits, but most veterans who receive disability benefits are not combat veterans. They never saw combat.

[Anonymous]

Not all disabilities are visible and prevent exercise.

And what does combat or war have to do with it? If you don't like the rules, complain to Congress.

And Soto sucked. He was just there to check a box to further his political goals. He cares not about the VA.

[Anonymous]

There is of course fraud and malingering on a massive scale in VA disability. Even if you’re young and healthy, ratings like psych and headaches are based on subjective reporting. Anyone who is willing to lie and is savvy enough to hire a lawyer/claims agent will eventually get to 100%.

I don’t see this ever changing as there no stakeholders in the system with have any incentive to address it. What member of congress wants to be seen as trying to take away benefits from veterans? Even the most hardcore fiscally conservative republicans will never touch that

[Anonymous]

I don't think anyone said that benefits shouldn't be paid unless the disability is visible and/or prevents exercise. I (like most, I'm sure) try to move through my cases without having an opinion on what the law should or shouldn't be. I apply the facts to the law and move on.

But we've all seen fraud in our cases. It is quite annoying. I say that as a government employee and as a tax-paying private citizen. It's even more annoying that there is nothing we can do about it. We have next to no tools to combat it, and with our production requirements we would fall behind if we tried.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2025/veterans-affairs-disability-claims-fraud/?itid=hp-mv-top-stories_top-table-main_p001_f001

ROFL, so true. But, the question is whether anyone has the political courage to end the gravy train.

Follow-up article today reported that the VA OIG investigates an average of 63 cases a year - less than one per day! - out of a pool of hundreds of thousands of veterans. No wonder some veterans are posting themselves on social media lifting weights and doing backflips while claiming to VA they're paralyzed. There's simply no fear of getting caught.

VA disability fraud has been normalized. Nearly every veteran that I have encountered receives VA disability benefits. All of them worked in office roles while in the military and never served anywhere near combat.

Even my super buff trainer at the gym is on disability. If we send people to the war, they deserve it.

I agree that veterans who sustained in war should receive disability benefits, but most veterans who receive disability benefits are not combat veterans. They never saw combat.

New poster here.
Can you explain what you mean by the bolded?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is of course fraud and malingering on a massive scale in VA disability. Even if you’re young and healthy, ratings like psych and headaches are based on subjective reporting. Anyone who is willing to lie and is savvy enough to hire a lawyer/claims agent will eventually get to 100%.

I don’t see this ever changing as there no stakeholders in the system with have any incentive to address it. What member of congress wants to be seen as trying to take away benefits from veterans? Even the most hardcore fiscally conservative republicans will never touch that

Wanna bet?

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2025/10/30/gop-senator-proposes-commission-to-study-va-disability-ratings-system/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He was terrible. I’d take mason over him all day. That’s how bad the dude was.

Are you referring to Arzeizaga Soto?

yes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is of course fraud and malingering on a massive scale in VA disability. Even if you’re young and healthy, ratings like psych and headaches are based on subjective reporting. Anyone who is willing to lie and is savvy enough to hire a lawyer/claims agent will eventually get to 100%.

I don’t see this ever changing as there no stakeholders in the system with have any incentive to address it. What member of congress wants to be seen as trying to take away benefits from veterans? Even the most hardcore fiscally conservative republicans will never touch that

It is illegal to charge people money to file initial claims. Those people who do charge veterans need prosecuted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is of course fraud and malingering on a massive scale in VA disability. Even if you’re young and healthy, ratings like psych and headaches are based on subjective reporting. Anyone who is willing to lie and is savvy enough to hire a lawyer/claims agent will eventually get to 100%.

I don’t see this ever changing as there no stakeholders in the system with have any incentive to address it. What member of congress wants to be seen as trying to take away benefits from veterans? Even the most hardcore fiscally conservative republicans will never touch that

It is illegal to charge people money to file initial claims. Those people who do charge veterans need prosecuted.

Meh, a fool and their money...

It should be legal to charge if you're a lawyer. It's no different from any other legal advice or agency services.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is of course fraud and malingering on a massive scale in VA disability. Even if you’re young and healthy, ratings like psych and headaches are based on subjective reporting. Anyone who is willing to lie and is savvy enough to hire a lawyer/claims agent will eventually get to 100%.

I don’t see this ever changing as there no stakeholders in the system with have any incentive to address it. What member of congress wants to be seen as trying to take away benefits from veterans? Even the most hardcore fiscally conservative republicans will never touch that

It is illegal to charge people money to file initial claims. Those people who do charge veterans need prosecuted.

Meh, a fool and their money...

It should be legal to charge if you're a lawyer. It's no different from any other legal advice or agency services.

It is a law - and lawyers should be in the business of following the law.

[Anonymous]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2025/va-disability-ratings-profit-consultants/?itid=hp-mv-top-stories_top-table-main_p001_f011