Most Encouraging news in a long time!

[Helpingmom]

We applied for A & A for my Mom 8.5 months ago and have gotten a few letters saying to be patient.
On Jan 21st I filled out a 21-0845 and faxed it in.  Later that day I called and had an
official inquiry started.  I was supposed to hear within 5 business days about the status
of Mom's application.  Today I decided to call again because I hadn't heard anything.  I spoke with
a great woman that got very upset when she heard that Mom is 89 years old and we had been
waiting for so long.  She told me that they have "permission", if an inquiry isn't answered, to
make a print out of the claim and take it directly to the managers for immediate processing.
She was awesome and so helpful.  I know, it could be a bunch of bull, but I'm hoping for the best.
She said we would hear by week's end...we'll see.  I'll keep you posted

[vetadmin]

Let's hope that rather than a bunch of BS that you lucked out and got someone who goes the extra mile.

Keep us posted and hope you get some good news shortly.

[VSR]

Just as a heads up, when you call in and they say that they are going to put in an inquiry and you will get a response in 5 days, they are creating an IRIS inquiry.  You can make an IRIS on your own by using iris.va.gov.  VA is required to respond to IRIS inquiries in 5 days, so you should get a response within 5 days.  That being said, VA is also required to expedite all cases in which the claimant is 70 years old or older.  Obviously they can't do that with the workloads they have and lack of funding.

I would suggest to submit your own IRIS since you are more likely to talk to the person who is actually responsible for working your claim.