How Va Assigns A Disability Rating
VA assigns a disability rating based on the frequency, duration, and severity of symptoms it uses to characterize a certain condition.
A veterans service-connected condition must have a combined disability rating of at least 10 percent for the veteran to qualify for VA monthly compensation. The highest scheduler disability rating VA can assign to a veterans condition is 100 percent, which yields the highest amount of monthly disability compensation.
How Special Monthly Compensation Can Supplement Your Va Disability Rating
We havent talked about Special Monthly Compensation yet. For veterans with severe disabilities, SMC supplements or replaces your monthly disability rating altogether. So if your disability qualified you for SMC-K, you will receive an additional $111 monthly payment. If you qualify for SMC-L through SMC-S, the Special Monthly Compensation rate will replace your regular payment. Dont worry, the new SMC amount will be a higher amount than what you were previously receiving. To learn more about eligibility, have a look at our extensive guide to Special Monthly Compensation.
Va Disability Ratings Are Not Always Permanent
Many disability ratings are temporary. The VA retains the right to reexamine your disability rating at any time. If they wish to reexamine you, you will receive a Notice of Reexamination letter in the mail which will include a scheduled appointment date.
Make sure you attend this appointment or reschedule, as the VA can reduce or terminate your benefits rating if you fail to attend this scheduled appointment. After the VA reexamines your condition, they will make a recommendation to increase, decrease, or leave your benefit at its current rating.
There are times when your ratings may be protected, based on the type of disability, how long you have held the rating, your age or other factors.
Heres more information on VA disability reexaminations and benefits reductions.
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Va Disability Compensation Cola Raises
Note: Increases in VA Service-Connected Disability Rates are tied to the same Cost of Living Adjustments provided by the Social Security Administration. These are the same rates the government uses for determining the cost of living increases for Social Security recipients, military retirees, and federal civilian retirees.
2014 was the first year the VA included amounts above a flat dollar amount. In previous years, the amount was rounded down to the nearest dollar. This change wont make a huge difference now, but if the policy remains in place, it will compound over time.
Here are the most recent COLA raises:
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What To Do When Applying For Va Compensation For Service
Apply for VA compensation before your final out-processing appointment, if possible.
In any case, service members and veterans must supply copies of discharge paperwork, including a DD-214, medical records, supporting documentation for the medical claim and a completed VA Form 21-526.
You may need supporting evidence that shows how your condition affects your ability to work, socialize or pursue hobbies or how your condition has worsened over time, depending on your claim. Medical records and personal statements from family and coworkers who have witnessed your conditions impact on your daily life can help your case.
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Healthcare Benefits For Veterans With A 30% Va Disability Rating
Veterans with a 20% rating are eligible for no-cost healthcare and prescription medications for service-connected disabilities. When it comes to any medical issues outside of your service-connected disabilities, veterans with a rating of 30% are typically placed in Priority Group 2.
Your VA healthcare benefits under this priority group include:
- Free inpatient care for service-connected disabilities
- Free outpatient care for service-connected disabilities
- Your first three urgent care visits are free
- A copay for prescription medications unless the medication is for a service-connected disability
Calculating Your 2022 Va Disability Rates
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has long recognized the value and importance of ensuring that Americas veterans are compensated for their military service. This is especially true when military service has led to service-connected medical issues or disabilities.
To ensure disability compensation is awarded fairly, the VA examines disability rates each year to adjust for inflation and higher costs of living. This ensures disability benefits maintain value over time.
If you currently receive VA disability benefits, its worth taking the time to review the charts presented here that outline new VA compensation rates for 2022. This way, you will know how much disability compensation you will receive each month and be able to plan your 2022 finances accordingly.
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List Of 0% Va Rating Benefits
At the 0% disability rating level, veterans with service-connected disabilities are eligible for these benefits:
- Youll be assigned to VA healthcare as Priority Group 6
- Travel pay to VA healthcare locations for service-connected conditions
- 10-point veteran preference for federal jobs
- Use of base or post commissaries, exchanges, morale, welfare, and recreation retail facilities, in-person and online
- Burial and plot allowance
Although this rating offers no monthly disability compensation, veterans at the 0% service-connected rating level are still qualified for VA healthcare. If youre a veteran with a 0% disability rating, you may be assigned to Priority Group 6. Your healthcare benefits as part of this priority group include free inpatient care. Some of the services below are free if income limits are met. Youll be charged a copay for:
- Prescription medications
- Specialty tests
- Urgent care visits
you might have to pay toward the cost of your care. Your priority group is determined by a combination of factors including your disability rating, income level, qualification for other health care programs, and other VA benefits you may be receiving. )
Va Disability In A Divorce
When a military veteran has a service-connected disability, she may be entitled to receive VA disability payments from the Department of Veterans Affairs. There are several VA disability and divorce issues you should know, from whether any of the disability payments are divisible as marital property to how they are treated for purposes of child support and maintenance.
All veterans with a VA disability rating of at least 10% are entitled to VA disability payments, not just military retirees. However, should a retiree have a disability rating of under 50%, military retirement is reduced, dollar-for-dollar, by the amount of benefits received. So why waive retirement to receive disability benefits? Two reasons – first, VA disability payments are not taxable, and second, the payments are not divisible by a domestic relations court.
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How Va Disability Compensation Is Determined
You must first apply for disability compensation with the VA. It is not an automatic benefit received upon retirement, nor is it guaranteed. Veterans are responsible for arranging an appointment with the VA immediately upon retirement or within a specified timeframe thereafter.
The amount you receive from VA disability compensation is determined by a number of factors, including your assigned disability rating as described below, the severity of your disability, and your number of dependents.
Va Disability And Divorce In Colorado
The Colorado Court of Appeals has held that courts cannot divide VA disability payments as property in a divorce. Tozer .
That limitation also means that courts cannot do some kind of “backdoor” division of VA disability benefits at divorce by giving the non-veteran spouse additional property to make up for not receiving a share of the disability payments. In a 2019 unpublished decision, the appellate court upheld a trial court determination that it could not consider a military member’s VA disability payments for the purpose of awarding the spouse more of other assets:
“Thus, courts may not shift marital property to avoid the requirements of the USFSPA or Mansells holding, nor may they financially compensate a former spouse for not receiving a share of the military spouses disability pay.
For a more in-depth discussion of Copeland, see our blog post Veterans Benefits for Divorced Spouses Not Divisible.
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How Much Compensation Can I Receive Without A 100 Percent Disability Rating
The VA disability compensation schedule runs a broad gamut. With a 0 percent rating which signifies a minor disability that has a minimal impact on your ability to work youre not eligible for any monthly compensation. But even with a 0 percent rating, you can receive free VA healthcare for your service-connected condition and other ancillary perks.
The 2019 VA disability compensation schedule for a veteran alone is as follows:
- 10 percent rating: $142.29 per month
- 20 percent rating: $281.27 per month
- 30 percent rating: $435.69 per month
- 40 percent rating: $627.61 per month
- 50 percent rating: $893.43 per month
- 60 percent rating: $1,131.68 per month
- 70 percent rating: $1,426.17 per month
- 80 percent rating: $1,657.80 per month
- 90 percent rating: $1,862.96 per month
- 100 percent rating: $3,106.04 per month
Who Is Entitled To Va Compensation For Medical Issues
Veterans who apply for VA disability compensation must have medical conditions that are the result of an injury or disease that was incurred or aggravated while on active duty or active duty for training or from injury, heart attack or stroke that occurred during inactive duty training, according to the VA.
Such disabilities may apply to medical conditions such as Lou Gherigs Disease, mental health issues including post-traumatic stress disorder , and more, according to the VAs guidelines.
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Annual Cost Of Living Adjustments
VA does a regular review of its benefit payments with an eye on making Cost Of Living Adjustments to the rates when warranted. These adjustments are intended to help the payments keep up with inflation and other economic factors. These COLA changes operate at the same percentage as for Social Security benefits.
Changes To Va Disability Pay Rates & Va Disability Compensation
Changes can occur to veterans disability benefits rates when the VA decides to reexamine the veteran. The VA retains the right to reconsider the disability rating at any time. You may receive a Notice of Reexamination letter in the mail that includes a scheduled appointment date. It is critical that you attend this appointment.
After the VA reexamines you, it will make a recommendation to increase, to decrease, or to leave your veteran disability compensation at its current rating.
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How Can I Qualify For A Higher Pay Rate
To qualify for a higher pay level, you have to have your individual condition ratings increased to increase your Total Combined Rating. If the VA assigned an incorrect rating to your conditions, you can appeal their rating decision, providing proof that you qualify for a higher rating. If your conditions have worsened since you last applied and now qualify for a higher rating, you can submit a new claim, checking the box for an increased evaluation.
Burial And Plot Allowance
For deaths from a service-connected disability : VA will pay up to $2,000 toward burial expenses for deaths after September 11, 2001, or up to $1,500 for deaths prior to September 11, 2001.
For non-service-related deaths : VA will pay up to $796 toward burial and funeral expenses for deaths on or after October 1, 2019 , or $300 toward burial and funeral expenses , and a $796 plot-interment allowance .
If the veteran is buried in a VA national cemetery, some or all of the cost of transporting the deceased may be reimbursed.
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How To Get A 100% Va Rating The Three Ways To Reach 100%
There are three main paths to get a 100% combined VA rating:
- If the VAs fuzzy math calculation puts you at or above 95.00% or higher, the VA will round you up to 100%.
- One of your conditions might be rated at 100% out of the gate.
- If your disability renders you unable to maintain substantial gainful employment, you may receive the pay and benefits of a 100% VA ratingeven if your combined VA rating is below 100%. For example, a Vietnam veteran might have a 70% rating because they suffer from cancer due to Agent Orange. But if the chemotherapy treatments and hospitalizations make substantially gainful employment impossible, they may instead be deemed Unemployable, which is also known as Total Disability Individual Unemployability .
Applying For Va Compensation Benefits
When applying for VA benefits, supply as much supporting information as possible, including how the injury or illness occurred, any medical treatment you received, current health status, and how your life has been affected by the injury or illness.
You will need to fill out VA Form 21-526, Veterans Application for Compensation and/or Pension, or apply online using VONAPP. Be sure to provide a copy of your DD Form 214.
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Disability Compensation Rate Table For 2020
Disability Percent
|
$18,320 |
$92.32 |
Not only has and will the number of veterans receiving Compensation increase over this period of 11 years while at the same time the population of veterans will decrease but the average yearly amount will increase faster than the CPI. Over these 11 years, the benefit will increase by an average of 4.3% per year while the average CPI inflation rate is estimated at 2% per year.
These increases are primarily due to aging veterans on claim getting more disabled, an increase in special monthly Compensation benefits, a higher percentage of Gulf War veterans making claims as well as Vietnam veterans who are getting older and making agent orange claims and finally an increasing number of hearing loss claims.
Make Sure You Get All The Benefits You Deserve
Regardless of what state you live in, its important that you pursue the monthly compensation payments due to you for disabilities connected to your military service.
Most veterans are underrated for their disabilities and therefore not getting the compensation they deserve. At VA Claims Insider, we help veterans understand and take control of the claims process so they can get the rating and compensation theyre owed by law.
Our process takes the guesswork out of filing a VA disability claim and supports you every step of the way in building a fully-developed claim so you can increase your rating in less time!
If youve filed your VA disability claim and have been denied or have received a low rating or youre not sure how to get started reach out to us for a FREE VA Claim Discovery Call, so you can FINALLY get the disability rating and compensation you deserve. Weve supported more than 15,000 veterans to win their claims and increase their ratings. NOW ITS YOUR TURN.
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List Of 50% Va Rating Benefits
One of the most significant advantages of a 50% rating is that VA healthcare becomes totally free at this level. Additional 50% rating benefits include:
- Monthly disability compensation starts at $958.44 for 2022 and increases with eligible dependents
- No cost VA healthcare and prescription medications under Priority Group 1
- You could qualify for Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay or Combat-Related Special Compensation if youre receiving military retirement pay and 60 years or older
Benefits that still apply from the 40% level include:
- Travel pay for all VA healthcare at 41.5 cents per mile for 2022, not just care for service-connected conditions
- Possible Veteran Readiness and Employment support
- Burial and plot allowance
- VA-backed home loan fee waiver
- 10-point veteran preference for federal jobs
- Use of base or post commissaries, exchanges, morale, welfare, and recreation retail facilities, in-person and online
What Your Va Disability Rating Means
The VA distributes benefits on a sliding scale based on your level of disability. The more disabling your medical condition, the more money youll receive in compensation.
The VA uses the disability rating system to put a number on what it perceives as your level of disability. The rating schedule runs from 0 to 100 percent in increments of 10. A 100 percent rating is the top of the schedule, indicating total disability. With this rating, youre eligible for the maximum VA schedular benefit, which, as of 2019, is slightly over $3,000 per month.
When you submit your application for review, the person who decides to approve your appeal also assigns you a disability rating. The more compelling the supporting documentation in your file, the better chance you have of receiving a higher rating.
For a free legal consultation, call
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How To Obtain A 10% Va Disability Rating
Veterans must file a VA disability claim to obtain a rating. The claim describes the nature of the veterans disability and usually includes evidence to support the claim in the form of the veterans service records and medical records both during and after service.
The VA reviews the claim and assigns a disability rating based on the type and severity of symptoms that accompany the disability. More symptoms that occur more frequently or with greater severity usually result in higher ratings.
Division Of Va Disability Payments After Deposit Into Account
Once deposited into a marital account, however, disability payments may potentially be divided in a divorce, particularly if they are commingled with marital funds. In Green, the husband commingled his VA disability payments into a bank account with marital funds, and the trial court divided the account as a marital asset, including the disability deposits. The husband appealed, and the Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed.
Had the husband segregated his disability payments in a separate account, and not combined them with any other funds, he likely would have ended up with that account set aside to him as his separate property. Moreover, federal law also has an anti-assignability clause, which prohibits VA disability payments from being assigned:
Payments of benefits due or to become due under any law administered by the Secretary shall not be assignable except to the extent specifically authorized by law, and such payments made to, or on account of, a beneficiary shall be exempt from taxation, shall be exempt from the claim of creditors, and shall not be liable to attachment, levy, or seizure by or under any legal or equitable process whatever, either before or after receipt by the beneficiary.
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