NBC5 PTSD/INCAP Story

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Hello all. My name is Ryan Fitzpatrick and I am writing on behalf of Carol Marin of NBC5 News in Chicago. We are currently working on PTSD story and were wondering if any of you would be able to share your experiences with Incapacitation Pay. If anybody would be able to provide any insight or commentary on the process, it would be greatly appreciated, especially from Illinois residents. Thank you for your time.
 
Ryan,

Thanks for posting this.


PEB Forum readers,

This is a great opportunity to share your story. I have come across numerous Guard and Reserve members who have suffered from delays/denials and an absurd amount of bureaucracy in trying to get INCAP pay. If some of you can shed light on this, it may result in a change.
 
I would like to share my husbands and families story ( We share this handle on this site). My husband is an Army reservist who served in Iraq 2004-2005, and suffered an injury there, he has 13 years in 10 AD. At the time I was employed at two full time jobs, one of which provided our family insurance. We have an adult daughter that is totally disabled. Insurance for her has cost us jobs in the past. While he served I kept both of my jobs. He came home untreated for his injury and was released from AD. The VA told him all his issues were in his head for two years. He woke up one day and couldn't walk, he was sent to polytrauma, and was determined to have lots of back problems, a seperated shoulder, neuropathy, and ptsd. I was so upset I took him to civilian doctors, where it was determined he needed surgery.

We tried to get him on Incap orders because the surgery would keep him from working for at least six months. His unit wouldn't do anything to help him. We used my insurance and paid out of pocket for his line of duty injury surgery. As a result, my boss's premiums tripled. He quit all insurance for dependents leaving my daughter with no insurance at all. My boss then decided I didn't deserve the time off to take her to doctors appointments, and to obtain the dependency determination necessary for tricare reserve select. I lost my job of eleven years.

My husband has been for three fit for duty physicals and been found unfit three times. The VA has him rated at 170% but not permenant and total which means no CHAMPVA, no education, no nothing. The only way we got any help from his unit was me standing there and not leaving until they did the paperwork for his MEB.
He has LOD's for his shoulder, and his PTSD. It has been two years of limbo with the military. We have tried getting help through our Congressman, and the IG. When the congressman inquired on our behalf with the military they blamed us. The IG hasn't responded after three weeks.

I found in his case the unit he's assigned to just doesn't care. When he could no longer play, and the gloom of PTSD was revealed, he became the leper. They are deployed so much, the people left behind to run the show are lazy, undisiplined, and largely untrained in how to do the complicated paperwork. And during war, those who can no longer play are the last priority for an already overstressed command.
 
Ryan,

All too often national and guard members are administratively discharged without DoD disability compensation due to the impact of service connected disabilities. I have helped several guard and reserve members with this issue and have addressed this issue with several senior DoD officials. You can get the gist of the issue on slides 6 and 21 of the brief at this link. http://www.pebforum.com/physical-ev...verview/7450-moaa-wounded-warrior-slides.html

While there has been some degree of success curbing this problem it still happens all too often and there has been no effort by DoD and the military service to identify and correct past cases of this problem.

Please let me know if you would like to discuss this issue for your story.

Thanks,
Michael Parker
LTC, USA (Retired)
Wounded Warrior Advocate
 
Hello Ryan,

Jason told me to contact you in regards to all the issues i have had w/INCAP since oct 2008. my unit has continuosly dropped the ball w/my MEB. i had to file for an extension after the 1st 6 months, because my unit let it expire. it took 3 months to get an approval which ment i went w/out pay for that time and by the time it got approved it it was time to prepare for a new extension. now my unit is giving me a hard time w/the whole thing and they are saying that they don't think it will get approved for a 3'rd time, because it has been over a year. all of this has been no fault of my own. i just dont know where else to turn. filed all kinds of congressionals. the last time i went 3 months w/o pay killed us. now they are doing it again right before the holidays. both me and my wife have good jobs but it doesnt help me since i am being retire from my civ job w/the gov. feel free to contact me @ any time. because i am done w/all of this nonsense. thanks for your time and consideration.
respectfully,
rob santucci
 
Ryan,

My dealings with INCAP are a little different, as I have not been to a war zone, nor do I have PTSD. However, I became ill after receiving immunizations for the Army against the request of my civilian doctor. I am in the National Guard, and being as though I am not entitled to health care coverage, you would think that the Army would at least follow doctors orders. Anyway, after the immunizations, I experienced hepatic encephalopathy, and started having seizures, and debilitating migraines. Because of this I am not able to work my civilian job. At first my unit said that it was my own fault and my own problem. After some writing, and contacting JAG I was put in for INCAP. I got sick in April 08, I did not get paid for INCAP until August 08. At this time I was a single mother with two children.

Well, my doctors requested that I not do anything, as the seizure activity and the migraines were crippling to say the least. I was then informed that I would have to put in for an extension of INCAP pay, but it was denied, and I was then told I needed to have a formal Line of Duty performed. I have not been paid since October of 2008. I have mounting medical bills, as well as other bills that are stacking up. It appears as though, the Army will find any excuse not to pay out for INCAP pay, even if it means killing their soldiers livelihood.

I have been approved for social security disability, but that does not even begin to cover my necessities. I get $1585, for myself and my 2 children, but seizure medication alone costs $1500 for the month. So you do the math. With no health care coverage, and the fact that I do not qualify for Medicaid(if you get SSI you can get medicaid, but if you have SSA you do not), it makes the situation that much harder. If you would like to find out a little more, please feel free to contact me.
 
My experience with INCAP is not too bad. I think all my stars lined up. I aggravated a combat injury sustained in Iraq while on a drill weekend. An LOD Investigation was started that day. However from the date of the injury I was unable to return to my civilian employment, a narcotics investigator, sheriffs department. I had plenty of accrued sick time with the department. That is sheer luck. Had I not had the accrued sick time I would have been floundered. I did not get INCAP for six months. Injured in July, INCAP finally came in in Decemeber. I had two surgeries in that time period. In December I had to get another six month extension through NGB to draw INCAP. So the pay rolled in around Decmenber, thoughts were that, "OK INCAP will be here every two weeks now". That is wrong. Now a wait ensued while NGB approved the extension. Remember INCAP is only granted for 6 month periods. During these 6 month periods a SM conditions can change drastically. I, for example, was pretty bad off physically. An election for sheriff happened while I was deadlined from my civilian work. I ran out of sick time about the same time a new sheriff was elected. The new sheriff decided I had abandoned my job, around the same time I had my third surgery. I was fired. That of course is a different story. So there is drastic change that now, according to INCAP standards I don't qualify anymore. I DON'T HAVE A CIVILIAN JOB ANYMORE I GOT FIRED. This means, if you refer to the regulations, you have no civilian employment that you need to be compensated for. I was covered by USERRA and had hired a civilian attorney to file the complaint. I forwarded this USERRA complaint along to NGB with my INCAP extension request. Like I said my stars lined up. I was approved.

As one can see this could have been total devastation to me and family had it not been for a certain amount of luck. I do know of service members whose stars are a bit cross eyed. Yeah they get destroyed. Seems that INCAP is a daily battle. And it seems, the impression I get, is that a service member HAS TO PROVE he or she is entitled to it (INCAP). I think an LOD Investigation explains everything.
 
Ryan,

I would suggest taking a look at the (very broken) Line of Duty regulations. They impact INCAP pay and I have seen countless issues with inaccurate, delayed, or missing LOD determinations.
 
Jason,

You are right. In my case I had a informal LOD that was approved. Then, I was told that I had to have a formal LOD. Then, I was told that I never got the immunizations, & my medical records disappeared. So here I sit trying to prove my case a year and a half later.
 
Thanks for the reply. I am the producer of the story and my name is Don Moseley. Is it possible to call me? My cell is 773-793-1566.

I would like to share my husbands and families story ( We share this handle on this site). My husband is an Army reservist who served in Iraq 2004-2005, and suffered an injury there, he has 13 years in 10 AD. At the time I was employed at two full time jobs, one of which provided our family insurance. We have an adult daughter that is totally disabled. Insurance for her has cost us jobs in the past. While he served I kept both of my jobs. He came home untreated for his injury and was released from AD. The VA told him all his issues were in his head for two years. He woke up one day and couldn't walk, he was sent to polytrauma, and was determined to have lots of back problems, a seperated shoulder, neuropathy, and ptsd. I was so upset I took him to civilian doctors, where it was determined he needed surgery.

We tried to get him on Incap orders because the surgery would keep him from working for at least six months. His unit wouldn't do anything to help him. We used my insurance and paid out of pocket for his line of duty injury surgery. As a result, my boss's premiums tripled. He quit all insurance for dependents leaving my daughter with no insurance at all. My boss then decided I didn't deserve the time off to take her to doctors appointments, and to obtain the dependency determination necessary for tricare reserve select. I lost my job of eleven years.

My husband has been for three fit for duty physicals and been found unfit three times. The VA has him rated at 170% but not permenant and total which means no CHAMPVA, no education, no nothing. The only way we got any help from his unit was me standing there and not leaving until they did the paperwork for his MEB.
He has LOD's for his shoulder, and his PTSD. It has been two years of limbo with the military. We have tried getting help through our Congressman, and the IG. When the congressman inquired on our behalf with the military they blamed us. The IG hasn't responded after three weeks.

I found in his case the unit he's assigned to just doesn't care. When he could no longer play, and the gloom of PTSD was revealed, he became the leper. They are deployed so much, the people left behind to run the show are lazy, undisiplined, and largely untrained in how to do the complicated paperwork. And during war, those who can no longer play are the last priority for an already overstressed command.
 
Col. Parker, thanks for responding. My name is Don Moseley and I am the producer of the story. Is it possible to give me a call? My number is 773-793-1566. Thanks.

Ryan,

All too often national and guard members are administratively discharged without DoD disability compensation due to the impact of service connected disabilities. I have helped several guard and reserve members with this issue and have addressed this issue with several senior DoD officials. You can get the gist of the issue on slides 6 and 21 of the brief at this link. http://www.pebforum.com/physical-ev...verview/7450-moaa-wounded-warrior-slides.html

While there has been some degree of success curbing this problem it still happens all too often and there has been no effort by DoD and the military service to identify and correct past cases of this problem.

Please let me know if you would like to discuss this issue for your story.

Thanks,
Michael Parker
LTC, USA (Retired)
Wounded Warrior Advocate
 
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