Dealing with a DRO for Veterans Disability

When a request for veterans disability is denied, the veteran has the right to have his or her case reviewed again by a local or regional decision review officer or DRO. The petitioner can request a personal hearing with the DRO, during which the petitioner will provide additional information that will give the DRO more insight regarding the case. The veteran also has the right to have a representative or lawyer present at the hearing.

What is a DRO?

When a veteran requests disability from an injury or condition arising from his or her military service, sometimes a decision maker will deny the claim in part or in whole. Upon a ratings denial, a veteran can seek a review of the denial. To do this, the veteran must file a notice of disagreement or NOD with the regional Veterans Administrative (VA) Office that issued the denial no later than one year after the decision.

After NOD is filed, the VA sends the petitioner an election where he can choose a de novo appeal or a traditional appeal.  If the petitioner opts for a a de novo review, he or she will have their case reviewed by a decision review officer (DRO). A DRO is usually a senior claims examiner who is authorized to review the case from the beginning without additional or new documentation. The initial ratings decision is given no legal weight in the review.

Although the process is non-adversarial, the veteran is allowed a legal representative at the hearing. The representative can ask the petitioner questions to flesh out the case for the DRO. The DRO is also allowed to ask questions to help him or her make a determination.

After the hearing, the DRO can reverse the initial ratings decision in whole or in part. Even a partial reversal by a DRO will allow the veteran to receive benefits faster than with a traditional review.

If the DRO does not reverse the initial ratings decision, or partially reverses it, the veteran can immediately appeal to the Board of Veterans Appeal (BVA).

BVA Hearing

The veteran will file a substantive appeal form (VA Form 9) with the local regional office to request a hearing before a member of the BVA.

There are a few hearing options before the BVA. The veteran can have a hearing at a Washington, D.C. office. The veteran can also request a video link-up between the Washington, D.C. office and a local regional office where the veteran will be present. The last option is for the veteran to present his case before a local board member. The second option is usually the quickest; the third option may be subject to delays because of the limited amount of local judges.

Like a de novo hearing, a BVA hearing is informal. The board member reviews the issues of the case. Again, the veteran can have a representative or lawyer present. The board member, like the DRO, will ask questions to get a better insight to the whole case. The Board can either allow, deny or remand the case back to the regional VA office to request more information for evaluation. After the hearing, the veteran will receive word on whether the case was won or lost.

Find an Attorney

If you are a veteran whose request for benefits have been denied, you can request a hearing with a DRO to have the initial denial reversed. Even if the DRO does not reverse the initial denial, you still have the right to a traditional appeal before the BVA. In both cases, you may request legal representation. Discuss your case with an experienced attorney to determine what you need to do.