Full transcript: Today, we're going to be talking about Death Benefits and the new PACT Act which is the promise to address Comprehensive Toxics Act that was passed in August two thousand twenty-two. Hello, my name is Zach Evans. I'm a disability Benefits Attorney with Woods and Woods Attorneys in Evansville, Indiana. DIC essentially is a type of benefit for surviving spouses, surviving family members of veterans of our armed forces. The ones that we work most commonly are cause of death cases. So these are the types of cases where a specific condition that was either the primary or contributory cause of death for a veteran is service-connected and then the widow is eligible for a monthly maintenance payment and tax-free compensation from the VA. The reason that we are going to be revisiting this right now is because of specific provisions within the PAC Act. The one that is most important for Surviving Spouses of Veterans is section two oh four. Essentially this says that older death benefit denials that could have been granted due to changes in presumptions and there are several of them are eligible for effective dates as if the new law was in effect at the time of the submission of the original claim. So what this mean is even if you were denied in the past, let's say you lost a spouse and you applied for death benefits you applied for cause of death with the VA and they denied you, they have to take a new look at those previous denials no matter how old they are and they have to view those previous denials as if these new law provisions were in effect at the time that they told you no last time. A presumptive condition is a type of condition that does not require a medical nexus opinion we have other videos discussing what a medical nexus is but basically it's a professional opinion from a medical expert that says condition X is related to a veteran service and because of that the cause of death should be considered service-connected if a condition is presumptive you don't need that piece of the puzzle you don't need a medical expert to go on the record for you and say I reviewed all records. There's a lot of research that supports this. The chronicity of his disease and how it progressed fits with an exposure of this type either to Agent Orange or fine particulate matter from burn pits. This is a really important distinction here. Uh these presumptive conditions are very important for surviving spouses of veterans and finally, the VA is going to be forced by Congress to take another look at these previous denials. Surviving spouses of Vietnam Air Veterans are most likely to benefit from these rule changes. This is because of the alarming rate at which we're losing Vietnam Veterans. The biggest two categories are surviving spouses of veterans that served on Royal Thai Air Bases and Veterans that died of complications from hypertension or where hypertension was a contributing factor. If you were previously denied for death benefits and still have a copy of your spouse's death certificate, look to see if hypertension is listed as either a primary or contributor secondary cause of death. Other conditions on death certificates that could be impacted by hypertension are heart disease, stroke, aortic dissection, kidney dysfunction or kidney failure and COVID-19 infections as well. Hypertension is commonly listed alongside COVID-19 on death certificates. Usually, updates to the law, what we call a liberalization results in more stringent restrictions on effective dates, not this time. Surviving spouses who weren't previously eligible now are and the VA has to do a look back to that initial denial I expect to see the VA Regional Offices grant some of these claims if they're forced to take another look what I do not expect is a correct effective date I see the VA fumble effective dates too often in other areas of my practice to trust that they'll suddenly start getting these new decisions right. Some of these denials could have been within the past few years. But some of them that are years in the past also need to be reassessed by the VA. If you lost your loved one 20 years ago, the VA still owes you a second look and a shot at that old effective date. That could mean a huge amount of past due benefits. If your spouse died of complications from other agent orange presumptive conditions such as diabetes, coronary artery disease or certain types of cancers but was denied due to not having served in country in Vietnam, those should be looked at as well. Especially if they served on a base in Thailand. Even if an earlier effective date of this type is unavailable, given the updates to the types of conditions that can be service connected, advances in our Understanding of how chronic conditions interact could still land you forward-looking payments of about $1, 400 a month in tax free compensation benefits. If you're a spouse of a Vietnam Air Veterans who is unfortunately passed away, give us a call. We need to look at your old denials for these death benefits. The PAC Act is opened up a possibility for you to be granted based on the previous denial. This is an exceedingly rare condition in this law usually you cannot reach that far back in terms of effective dates and we don't want you to miss out on your benefits. It's taken long enough for congress to acknowledge that these changes needed to happen. So go online at Woods Lawyers. com or give us a call. Again, my name is Zack Evans with Woods and Woods Attorneys.

Does the section 204 provision apply to the previous Gulf War presumptives like undiagnosed illness as well or only the new PACT act additions?

Does this PACT Act only apply to presumptive illnesses? I've had two denials and my final appeal is actually awaiting decision in Washington at the court there. I was working with a veterans Advocate I guess you call him and my application was put in I believe in 2016 or 2017 I can't remember now. The issue with me being denied is that I only had one treating Doctor Who Would submit information because it had been so long that they had seen him. When I first inquired about applying I was not encouraged and the second person I talked to said I should apply but that was several years after my husband's death.

What about husband died 5 years ago but have not claims any benefits when he was alive even he was 68 when died. Now I'm trying to find ways how we can fet help and claim what are possible we are untitled with. Heard that it's to late for me since i waited long not to file for any claims as a survivor of a US Veterans who served in Vietnam War Era twiced and discharged as Honorable. Can i have any advice please please.

How about may sister in-law she is married a veterans last September 9,2019 but he died last july 20,2020..what step she can do to avail spouse benefits?

My brother was a Vietnam era veteran he died last month his wife is blind she has been married to him for over 40 years and he was her only income how or what paper work does she have to file

Before my husband died in June 2006, the VA had given him 100% disability status. After his death, his status went down to, I am told 10%. I receive 50% of his former benefit. He was given a Chpt 51 Mental Health status under WI statues by a judge, but when I submitted paperwork to the VA, they ignored this. He was also addicted to the Oxyconton they sent in 3 month supplies, so much so that he became self-injurious and went all over the SE portion of WI seeking this drug from hospitals. All his medications were removed from his record after he died. He contracted MERSA at the VA in Milwaukee, and I was refused an autopsy because of this. The ME ordered him to be cremated with 48 hours after his death, and no one contacted the VA about an autopsy, which I was later told they would have done. His military status was known as he was given a VA funeral. I am told that I qualify for nothing more than the month check of less than $900 that I receive. If I go to work, I lose the check, regardless of how long I work, even if only part time.

What if my husband didn't die from service related to service 20 years retired.

What about a surviving adult child-mother died of gulf war chemical exposure.

Why is your transcript all scrambled? I prefer reading transcripts because it’s faster to get information.