Other than honorable discharged veteran wins rare VA appeal

Connecticut Veteran Wins Rare VA Appeal
By PEGGY McCARTHY
Connecticut Health I-Team Writer
The Hartford Courant
July 15, 2012

At 55, Stephen Norko says he was at "the lowest point'' of his life. Homeless, unemployed, and feeling sick, the 17-year Navy veteran couldn't get medical care at a VA hospital because he had an "other than honorable'' discharge.

"They wanted nothing to do with me,'' Norko said.

A VA health care worker, who met Norko at a homeless shelter, encouraged him to do what few veterans have done—fight the decision that denied him VA medical care. He became one of a handful of veterans nationwide to appeal a health eligibility decision in the last two years.

This year—with significant legal and political support – he won.

Advocates for veterans say they hope the case will prompt other veterans with "other than honorable" (OTH) discharges to seek VA benefits, which many assume are out-of-reach.

"It's a big myth out there that an OTH is automatically ineligible," said Michael Taub, who works with veterans in the Homeless Advocacy Project in Philadelphia and has been spreading the word that vets with other than dishonorable discharges may often be eligible for VA medical care.

Statistics show that appeals such as Norko's are rare. Official figures from the Veterans Health Administration's Health Eligibility Center in Atlanta show only six appeals were filed nationally through the central office in the last two years, including one in New England. Of the six, two were successful, three are still pending, and one was withdrawn by the veteran, according to the Eligibility Center. Norko's appeal, which did not go through the central office, is not included in those numbers.
read more here