How To Apply For Va Disability After Discharge

The Amount Of Va Back Pay Compensation Will Vary

VA back pay does not come in a fixed amount. The VA assigned percentage of your disability plays a major role in determining how much pay you will get whether rated as back pay or not.

The effective date of your claim also plays a role, and there may be cost of living adjustments that are made to the amount which potentially increases the total.

You Can Still File A Claim And Apply For Benefits During The Coronavirus Pandemic

Get the latest information about in-person services, claim exams, extensions, paperwork, decision reviews and appeals, and how best to contact us during this time.

• Find out if youre eligible for VA disability compensation
• Gather any evidence youll submit yourself when you file your VA disability claim.
• Be sure your claim is filled out completely and you have all the supporting documents ready to send in along with your claim. This will help us process your claim quickly.

What Is A Military Medical Discharge

If you become sick or are injured to the point where military duty is no longer possible, you may be given a medical discharge. This type of discharge is based on a medical evaluation of your condition and can be a lengthy process.

While most military medical discharges are due to physical injuries, mental health concerns also can result in a medical discharge. You can receive a medical discharge for depression or post-traumatic stress disorder .

Whether youre applying for a medical discharge or have developed medical issues after youve separated from the military, you can apply for VA compensation for service-connected medical issues. Conditions that resulted in a medical discharge are often even easier to service-connect because the medical evidence will be strong .

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Myth: Va Disability Compensation Benefits Arent Worth That Much

I wouldnt say that. A 10% disability rating brings in $133.17 per month in disability compensation . That may not seem like a huge amount on the surface. But this is a monthly payment that is also indexed to inflation, meaning it can increase over time.

The higher your rating, the larger the monthly compensation payment. Veterans with a disability rating of 30% or greater can add dependents to their disability claim. This will increase the monthly payment for each qualified dependent. Finally, you may be able to file a new claim for an increased rating if your condition worsens.

Its not just about the money. Having a disability rating may open the door to additional military or veterans benefits. These can often be more valuable than the monthly compensation that comes with a disability rating. For example, having a VA disability rating makes veterans eligible to avoid the VA Loan funding fee, which is a percentage of the loan amount, often amounting to several thousand dollars.

See the VA Disability Compensation Rates Table for More Information.

Myth: Having A Va Disability Rating Will Affect My Future Employment Options

Many jobs require members to be in top physical condition . Some of these careers may even require the member to pass a physical fitness test or other medical screening. In almost all of these cases, the underlying medical condition and your health and fitness will determine your ability to qualify for the job. The fact you have a VA disability rating generally wont impact your ability to land the job. To counter this myth, a VA disability rating may actually give you additional Veterans Preference Points for federal employment .

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Is A Medical Discharge Considered Honorable

A Medical Review Board will review your case and determine the most appropriate course of action, including which type of discharge is warranted and whether you should be separated from the military.

A medical discharge is typically a general discharge under honorable conditions, but the severity and circumstances under which the medical condition began can impact the type of discharge you receive. The details of your discharge will be listed on your DD-214.

If a medical condition is identified right after you join the military and is considered a pre-existing condition, you will probably receive a general discharge, which will make you eligible for most veterans entitlements. A medical discharge isnt viewed negatively and doesnt interfere with benefit eligibility.

Type of discharge is also a factor in determining disability compensation . Its important when possible to have all medical ailments accurately documented in your military record, especially if your injury or illness results in your separation from the military.

Myth: Im Not Eligible For Va Disability Compensation Because Im Already Receiving Social Security Disability Insurance

You should verify this information before assuming you are ineligible to receive both forms of compensation. For example, it is possible to receive both VA disability compensation and Social Security Disability Benefits. There is even a program called Social Security Disability Benefits for Wounded Warriors. There is no rule that states you cannot receive compensation from both sources. In fact, having a 100% Permanent and Total VA rating can make you eligible for expedited processing for your Social Security Disability claim.

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You Have A Postservice Disability Claim

The VA refers to a claim for benefits related to a condition that appeared after you were discharged as a postservice disability claim. It can help to use this terminology when seeking assistance from the VA or from a VA disability benefits attorney. This distinguishes your claim from those relating to conditions veterans had before they served and conditions that appeared while they were serving .

An Attorney Can Help You With Any Postservice Disability Claim

No matter what disability condition you suffer from, if it arose after your discharge and is connected to your military service, then you deserve VA disability benefits. An attorney who represents veterans in disability claims can help you prepare a thorough, well-documented application that proves the necessary connection and gets you the compensation you deserve.

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What Are The Requirements To Participate

What Type Of Veterans Benefits Am I Entitled To With A General Medical Discharge

Certain VA benefits and other military entitlements require certain types of discharges. If you received a medical discharge under honorable conditions, including a general discharge, youre entitled to nearly all of your VA benefits. You may also qualify for VA disability compensation if you were injured while serving, or a condition you had was made worse while serving in the military.

Here are just a few of the VA benefits you may be entitled to:

· VA Disability Compensation A monthly tax-free payment if you got sick or were injured while serving in the military You may qualify for VA disability benefits for physical or mental health conditions that developed before, during, or after your military service.

· Veterans Insurance Benefits

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Pursuing Va Disability Compensation Benefits

The rules and regulations pertaining to VA disability compensation benefits are numerous and complex, but an experienced disability benefits attorney can review your situation, determine how VA disability law applies to your case, gather missing evidence, and prepare the paperwork and legal arguments required to get you the compensation you are entitled to. If you have been injured while serving your country, find out how an experienced VA disability lawyer can help you develop your VA benefits claim. Give us a call today or fill out the contact form on this page.

What If I Have More Than One Period Of Service

If you had two or more periods of service, and one period ended and a day or two later you reenlisted, you may be eligible. If you received “good paper” for the first period of service, and “bad paper” for the second, you may be eligible for disability compensation and health care for any disabilities that occurred or were aggravated during your “good” period of service. If you were injured during the “bad” period of service, you are out of luck unless the VA issues you a good character of service determination.

There is another exception. If, before the end a period of service, the military issues a conditional discharge to allow you to reenlist, you may remain eligible for benefits. Even if you got “bad paper” when you ultimately got discharged, if your period of service preceding reenlistment would have entitled you to an honorable discharge, then you will be eligible for compensation and health care. However, you will only receive benefits for any disabilities caused or worsened during the “good” period of service. You will not get benefits for any injuries incurred after the reenlistment which ended in bad paper unless the VA issues you a positive character of service determination.

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Myth: I Wont Be Able To Join The Guard Or Reserves With A Va Disability Rating

This may or may not be true. The truth is it is possible to join the Guard or Reserves if you have a VA disability rating, provided you are otherwise healthy enough to serve. In many cases, its possible to transfer directly from active duty to the Guard or Reserves without having to go through additional medical screening. If you have a break in service, you may need to go through MEPS again, and possibly even request a medical waiver to join. But just having a disability rating doesnt always prevent you from serving again. Again, its the underlying medical condition that will determine your ability to serve, whether there is a VA disability rating or not.

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About Ryan Guina

Ryan Guina is the founder and editor of The Military Wallet. He is a writer, small business owner, and entrepreneur. He served over 6 years on active duty in the USAF and is a current member of the IL Air National Guard.

Ryan started The Military Wallet in 2007 after separating from active duty military service and has been writing about financial, small business, and military benefits topics since then. He also writes about personal finance and investing at Cash Money Life.

Ryan uses Personal Capital to track and manage his finances. Personal Capital is a free software program that allows him to track his net worth, balance his investment portfolio, track his income and expenses, and much more. You can open a free Personal Capital account here.

Featured In: Ryan’s writing has been featured in the following publications: Forbes, Military.com, US News & World Report, Yahoo Finance, Reserve & National Guard Magazine , Military Influencer Magazine, Cash Money Life, The Military Guide, USAA, Go Banking Rates, and many other publications.

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What Should The Evidence Show To Support My Disability Claim

This depends on the type of claim youre filing. Find out what evidence youll need for the different claim types listed below.

Notice to Veterans and service members of evidence needed: Were required by law to tell you what evidence youll need to provide to support your disability claim.

For your convenience, the information below is a summary of evidence requirements . You can view the official evidence requirements in VA Form 21-526EZ .

Youll need to submit evidence of:

• A current physical or mental disability from a medical professional or layperson , and
• An event, injury, or disease that happened during your active-duty service, and
• A link between your current disability and the event, injury, or disease that happened during your service. Usually we need medical records or medical opinions from health care providers to support this link.

Under certain situations, we may conclude that theres a link between your military service and your disability even if theres no evidence. This usually applies to:

Youll need to submit current evidence from a medical professional or layperson that shows your disability has gotten worse.

Youll need to submit evidence of:

Youll need to submit evidence of:

Youll need to submit new evidence we havent reviewed before thats related to the issue youre claiming.

When To Apply For Va Disability After Discharge

Discharge program. This program allows Service members to apply for VA disability compensation benefits prior to separation. Claims must be filed between 180 to 90 days prior to separation. How Can BDD Help Me? The BDD program allows Service members to apply for their disability benefits before separation.

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You Can Also File A Disability Claim:

File your claim by mail using an Application for Disability Compensation and Related Compensation Benefits .

Print the form, fill it out, and send it to this address:

Department of Veterans Affairs

With the help of a trained professional

You can work with a trained professional called an accredited representative to get help filing a claim for disability compensation.

Filing The Initial Claim

You have the option upon leaving military service to file a VA claim for compensation as part of your final out-processing appointments in many cases, even if you are retiring or separating from an overseas location.

But not all service members will have the circumstance or opportunity to do this VA rules state that a service member can apply before or after leaving military service, though the window for doing so after becoming a civilian may be limited depending on circumstances.

What does this mean?

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How Many Veterans Receive Disability Compensation

• Total number of Wake County veterans who received Disability Compensation: 9,680
• Number of veterans who had a zero to 20 percent disability rating: 2,840
• Number of veterans who had a 30 to 40 percent disability rating: 1,849
• Number of veterans who had a 50 to 60 percent disability rating: 1,571
• Number of veterans who had a 70 to 90 percent disability rating: 2,420
• Number of veterans who had a 100 percent disability rating: 1,180
• Approximate ratio of male to female Veteran Disability recipients: 8.9 to 1.3
• Recipients under age 35: 1,443
• Recipients ages 34 to 44: 1,690
• Recipients ages 45 to 54: 2,144
• Recipients ages 55 to 64: 1,830
• Recipients ages 65 to 74: 2,217

Retirement Pay Calculations Under The Temporary Disability Retirement List

One of two options are used to calculate the benefitwhich one is used? According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the pay is calculated at whichever method provides the greater advantage for the veteran:

• Pay calculated on your disability percentage. This calculation uses a minimum of 50 percent while on the temporary list. This is known as Method A.
• Pay calculated on the years of active service. This is known as Method B.

Your pay will be computed based on whichever is more beneficial for you.

While on the Temporary list, federal guidelines state you must have a physical no later than every 18 months. Those who fail to do so will have their payments suspended until the examination has been performed.

The date you were signed on to the temporary list is very important. According to the DoD, those on the temporary list prior to January 1, 2017 are allowed to remain on that list for a maximum of five years assuming there is no change in the condition.

Those who were placed on the Temporary list on or after January 1, 2017 are allowed three years maximum, providing you condition does not change during that time. According to the DoD, those who are found fit for active duty during this time may be removed from the list and returned to active duty.

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How Va Disability Benefits Work

You may be eligible for disability benefits if you are a Veteran with a physical or psychological disability that you believe is connected to your military service. The Department of Veterans Affairs grants disability benefits to Veterans who can confirm that they have service-connected disabilities. The VA recognizes a number of conditions as a disability, and any of these conditions or a combination of multiple disabilities can qualify a Veteran for monthly disability benefits.

The VA grants benefits to qualifying Veterans who suffer from a wide variety of service-related disabilities. The primary factors that come into play when a Veteran files a claim are the connection between a disability and a Veterans military service and the amount of medical evidence presented to confirm that a Veterans claim is accurate.

If you file a disability claim and cannot verify that there is a connection between your disability and an injury or experience from your time in the military, the VA is highly likely to deny your claim. To give your claim the highest possible odds of being approved, make sure to present any documentation that may provide helpful evidence this can mean military medical records, lab reports, doctors notes, and more.

Combined Rating System For Veterans With Multiple Disabilities

Veterans with multiple disabilities use the combined rating system.

To use the combined rating system, arrange the disabilities in order by severity and locate the intersect of the two numbers on the table below.

The VA rounds the final figure to the nearest to 10 percent.

If the Veteran has more than two disabilities, find the combined value for the first two, without rounding, and repeat with the third disability. Once you have a final number, round to the nearest 10%.

For example, if disability 1’s rating is 40% and disability 2’s is 20%, the combined rating is 52%. That figure gets rounded to the nearest 10%, making the disability rating 50%.

For a three-disability example, if disability 1’s rating is 60%, disability 2’s rating is 30%, and disability 3’s rating is 20%, we first find the rating of 1 and 2. The rating of 1 and 2 comes out to be 72. We then take the first combined rating and find the intersect with disability 3. The final number comes out at an even 80% rating.

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