It took a Vietnam Vet 28 years to have VA claim approved

You may read this and say "it's great" but when you think about the hell they go through between filing a claim and finally seeing the day it is honored, you'd know how high the price was. It eats away at them when they see everything they have slip away and it seems no one gives a damn.

Local veteran wins 28-year-long battle for disability and medical benefits with the help of Sen. Gillibrand
Published: Thursday, April 21, 2011

By PAUL POST
ppost@saratogian.com

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Vietnam veteran Roger Lefco has finally won a 28-year battle to obtain disability and medical benefits.

The 68-year-old Stillwater resident has obtained $42,000 in retroactive benefits and will get an additional $2,600 in monthly Veterans Administration benefits going forward.

He was forced to leave his job 10 years ago because of war-related post-traumatic stress disorder and has been out of work ever since.

"There is hope for New York veterans," he said. "They should never give up and keep on fighting for what they deserve."

Lefco served in Vietnam from 1963 to 1966, where he picked up fuel, bombs and explosives for delivery to his own base at Phu Bai. In 1970, he went to work for New York Telephone Co. where he stayed until December 2001, when PTSD forced him to leave his job.

Lefco filed his first claim for VA benefits in 1983. However, at that time, veterans were required to document specific incidents that might have triggered the disorder.
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Local veteran wins 28-year-long battle