ALS and the Military: Benefits Received

My dad died from ALS, or Lou Gerhig's Disease, on October 1, 1986. On October 22, 2009, I published an article about how we discovered ALS "compensation" from the VA through a letter to "Dear Abby" by Fred Campbell. I am happy to report that by determination and patience, my mother now has a regular monthly benefit from the VA.

It took several months and a lot of paperwork, but we did it. Our first hurdle was in finding my dad's Army discharge papers. I had sent in all of the information requested to Missouri, only to find out that the records office had burnt down years ago, taking many of the vet's records with it. For those that served years and years ago, they no longer have their military paperwork. But through our persistence, and using documentation and photos that we had on hand, we were able to get letters from the VA proving that my dad did indeed serve.

With that information, we then sent everything requested to the VA to file for the ALS compensation. About three months went by and we never heard anything. Then a letter appeared in my mom's mail that didn't clearly explain anything, but it seemed like they had approved the benefits. It also had a statement about retroactive pay. Of course, we all read the letter several times, but since it's written in government garble, it was hard to make sense of it.

My mother just assumed that she'd receive a check in the mail soon for her monthly benefits. We had figured that by the way the letter read, her first check would be sent March 1, 2010. Well, during the next couple of days, she just went about her business. She called her bank to check her balance, thinking that her social security check should have been deposited. Much to her surprise, she heard the recorded message tell her that she had about $15,000 in her account. Of course, the first thing she did was to run to the bank and get a receipt, then come over to our house to see if she was understanding it correctly. Needless to say, we did a little bit of celebrating. That just happened to be on Valentine's Day of 2010.

What ended up happening, was that the retro pay had been direct deposited from the VA. It was only for one year, but we have been very happy about it. Come March 1, 2010, her first monthly check was also direct deposited into her account.

It is sad that we have now lived without my dad for 24 years and she won't be getting retro pay for that. I feel since the military caused him to develop ALS, they should pay my mother for it. But, being the government, that won't happen and we must be happy with the benefits received. My mom will continue to get the benefits until she dies. Then from what I understand, my sister and I will then each receive half of the monthly benefits.

My mom also received papers telling her to request repayment for his burial. Back in 1986, that was around $3,000. So, at least she will be getting that money back.

Her monthly benefit is right around $1,000, just like Fred Campbell had said it would be. If you are in a similar situation as my family, please do not hesitate to call the VA at (800) 827-1000 to get in touch with your closest office and to get the ball rolling on your benefits. Even if you doubt it, check into it. This is for any person that has served in the U.S. Military during war or peace times and has developed ALS. It is well worth your time and effort.