In this blog we’re going to be talking about buddy statements and how important they are when submitting VA disability claims. We’ll definite a buddy statement below, but let’s start by telling you about a client of mine that was active duty in the Army for 1 year and was in the Reserves for 12 years. He developed asthma because of exposure to CARC, which stands for chemical agent resistant coating. This is what the military used to paint their vehicles.
My client applied for compensation, but was denied. We then filed an appeal for him. The VA couldn’t obtain his C file, which means they couldn’t find his military records. It was ultimately determined by the VA that those records couldn’t be located. Go figure.
To file his appeal, we put together a disability benefits questionnaire and included some supplemental information from his private physician. Recall that to establish compensation for a present disability, you have to show three things. You have to show the existence of a disability, you have to show that it was incurred or aggravated while in service, and there has to be a causal relationship between your service and the disease or injury. The last part is the “nexus” that we frequently mention.
What is a Buddy Statement?
Now let’s define a buddy statement and explain how we get them. In evaluating your claim for disability compensation, the VA must give due consideration to all medical records that you submit. This includes any lay statements or lay evidence, also known as buddy statements. A competent buddy statement is any evidence that does not require the speaker to have a specialized education, training, or experience. In this case it could be a lay person saying they’ve seen my client coughing, which is a symptom of asthma. The VA then has to determine whether or not that is competent evidence.
Lay statements are considered competent when the lay person is able to identify witnessing the medical condition or symptoms of the medical condition. If a Veteran breaks his leg during service, his fellow servicemen would be able to note that the Veteran was screaming and his leg was pointing in the opposite direction. The lay person isn’t giving a diagnosis, they’re just noting what they have seen.
Any kind of buddy statement has to support a later diagnosis by a medical professional. You also need a medical diagnosis. But a buddy statement or collection of buddy statements can support that later medical diagnosis.
Developing this Asthma Claim for CARC Exposure
Once the buddy statements are submitted, the VA will determine if they are competent and credible. Do they believe the witness actually saw what they claim to have seen? In the case of my client above, does the VA believe the reports that this Veteran was coughing and showing symptoms of asthma.
After his service, but during his time as a reservist, he received a medical diagnosis of asthma. So the question is whether he got asthma from his service exposure to CARC. That’s the connection that the VA is looking to make. In this case the Veteran’s MOS was a motor transport operator. He worked in the motor pool painting vehicles, repairing vehicles, and stripping paint. But he was never issued any breathing devices or warned of the potential hazards.
The Veteran reports developing a cough not long after arriving in the motor pool. But he was never diagnosed during his active service. His clinical treatment records show normal clinical evaluations during his active service. But remember that there were no service records. So how do we prove a nexus when the VA can’t find your records? In this case the Veteran had first-hand knowledge of the situation and so was able to testify. But you need more than what the VA calls a “self-serving testimony.”
You have to prove causation. You have to prove that you served and your service caused your exposure, which caused your injury or disability. This Veteran had to prove that his exposure to CARC caused his asthma. This is where we were able to utilize buddy statements.
Using Buddy Statements in This Disability Claim
Friends of this Veteran wrote statements saying that he was a very good athlete, played high school football, and was very active prior to his military service. But after his service, his friends noticed that he had developed a persistent cough. Now he can’t play flag football with his buddies on Sunday afternoons. This is all due to a condition that he didn’t have in high school.
His friends also stated that the Veteran was rarely sick and never had any allergies or breathing problems prior to his service. He told his friends that he spent a lot of time removing rust and painting vehicles in the military. They suggested that he may have an upper respiratory problem because they now see him coughing a lot when they’re spending time together. All of this was verifiable in the buddy statements that were submitted.
His parents were also able to provide buddy statements. They noted that he was an active kid throughout his life and that he had no respiratory issues prior to his enlistment in the Army. They documented his frequent coughing after returning home from service. All of these statements supported what the Veteran was saying in his disability compensation claim for asthma related to CARC exposure.
Additionally, we were able to get more buddy statements from his uncles and wife. His wife noted that she didn’t know the Veteran prior to his active service, but that he has trouble completing simple chores and sitting in the heat causes him to have shortness of breath. She stated that he can’t do long walks, has to use an inhaler, and sleeps with a CPAP machine.
So all these family members submitted competent and credible reports from their observations and conversations with him. They’re not an official medical opinion, but they are reliable accounts of what they had seen. Since the VA couldn’t find his medical records, these accounts provide reliable historical data as to his in-service exposure to CARC and the symptoms he has experienced since.
Medical Diagnosis
Although we had a nice collection of buddy statements, we still needed a medical diagnosis. So we got this Veteran to go to a private physician and get an opinion that his asthma was caused by his exposure to CARC. We got the medical diagnosis, but it was not supported by any facts or data related to CARC exposure. It was just a short and sweet letter, but we needed more than that.
So we went to another doctor and got an additional medical opinion. This doctor actually performed a significant amount of research on his end and provided a detailed medical opinion. He cited research by the VA and the National Institute of Health documenting the respiratory consequences of CARC exposure. This was exactly what we need to support all the buddy statements we had.
Buddy statements are great. But they’re not going to help much unless you have the medical diagnosis to support them. It also really helps if your medical opinion is supported by research. In this case, we were able to put together an exhaustive amount of evidence and help this Veteran win the appeal.
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