Were There When You Get Married
Whether youre celebrating your anniversary or starting a new chapter alone or with a new spouse, a part of that new life may include a new name. If you legally change your name due to marriage, divorce, or any other reason, let us know so you can get an updated Social Security card and so we can accurately keep track of your earnings. Theres no charge for a.
Other Federal Retirees And Beneficiaries
Military retirees and VA beneficiaries aren’t the only ones who benefit from the COLA increase. Civil Service retirees and Social Security recipients also will see the 5.9% jump in their monthly checks.
For Social Security recipients, the monthly increase will mean an extra $91 per month for the average beneficiary.
What Is The Aid And Attendance Benefit
The VAs Aid and Attendance benefit is designed to help lessen the financial burden of qualified veterans and/or their surviving family members who need additional help with day-to-day activities. This benefit is an additional payment added to existing disability benefit amounts.
Specifically, the Aid and Attendance program provides tax-free payments to veterans who served during wartime. In addition to veterans themselves, veterans surviving spouses and dependent children also are eligible to receive Aid and Attendance benefits. To be eligible for this extra benefit, the veteran or their surviving spouse or dependents must meet specified income and asset thresholds.
Aid and Attendance is one of the lesser-known VA benefits. It is a VA medical rating that allows for additional financial support in the case of veterans, surviving spouses, or qualifying dependents who need the regular aid and attendance of a caregiver.
If a disabled veteran, surviving spouse, or dependent needs assistance with daily activities like bathing, feeding, and dressing, they may qualify for an Aid and Attendance benefit payment. In addition, if a veteran or family member is confined to a bed because of a rated, service-connected disability or medical condition and/or is a patient in a nursing home or suffers from limited eyesight, an additional Aid and Attendance benefit may be approved by the VA.
Specific eligibility requirements associated with Aid and Attendance include the following:
Read Also: Sciatica Va Rating
Watch: 2021 Va Disability Rates *revealed* + 5 Tips To Increase Your Va Disability Pay
In the video tutorial below, VA Claims Insider reveals and explains the *NEW* 2021 VA disability rates along with 5 expert tips to increase your VA disability pay:
*****Timestamps & Resources Mentioned*****
07:20 The difference between the VBA and VHA
13:06 Are you eligible for VA benefits under the law?
20:30 2021 VA disability compensation rates
21:07 30%-60% VA rating scale without Children
21:40 70%-100% VA compensation rating without Children
22:45 30%-60% VA rating scale with Children
23:39 70%-100% VA pay rates table with Children
25:15 What are the VA disability payment dates for 2021?
Special Monthly Compensation Rate Payment Variations
Effective December 1, 2021
Levels K and Q are special rates called SMC rate payment variations. We may add Level K to your basic SMC rate.
| How this payment variation works | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| SMC letter designation | 118.33 | How this payment variation works | If you qualify for SMC-K, we add this rate to your basic disability compensation rate for any disability rating from 0% to 100%. We also add this rate to all SMC basic rates except SMC-O, SMC-Q, and SMC-R. You may receive 1 to 3 SMC-K awards in addition to basic and SMC rates. |
| SMC letter designation | 67.00 | How this payment variation works | This is a protected rate that we havent awarded since August 19, 1968. If we awarded you an SMC-Q designation, we pay this rate in place of your basic disability compensation rate. |
Don’t Miss: What Gaf Score Is Considered Disabled
What Is A Service Connected Disability
According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Disability Compensation is:
a benefit paid to a veteran because of injuries or diseases that happened while on active duty, or were made worse by active military service. It is also paid to certain veterans disabled from VA health care. The benefits are tax-free.
If you have a service-connected disability, you may be eligible to receive a monthly compensation payment. You may also be eligible to receive additional compensation if you have a service-connected rating of 30% or higher and have dependents, if you have missing limbs or if your spouse is living with a severe disability.
Increasing The Rating For A Current Service
Because most injuries and illnesses change over time, the Veterans Administration allows Veterans to file for an increase in certain disability ratings. It is important to note that the VA will not automatically adjust a Veterans compensation if his or her condition worsens the Veteran has to actively file for an increase, even if it is clear to the VA that the conditioned has worsened.
The effective date is an important concept in all claims, especially claims to increase an existing rating. When a claim is successful, the back pay will date back to the effective date of that particular claim. Generally, the effective date is the date from which VA benefits are paid. It is the date that entitlement to the higher rating arose or the date the claim was filed, whichever one is later. The earlier the effective date, the larger the back pay. Regarding increased rating claims, the effective date can be the date the condition worsened to a level worthy of an increased rating, even if the claim was filed later, as long as the claim, or an Intent to File, is filed within one year of this worsening. The usual way to show that a conditioned has worsened is a record of hospitalization or examination, thus making the date of hospitalization or examination the date the conditioned worsened. It is possible, however, to show that the condition worsened by way of lay statements or other evidence. Below are a series of examples to illustrate the concept of effective date and back pay:
You May Like: Multiple Sclerosis Work Accommodations
Start Va Back Pay / Retro Calculator
The button below will take you to the calculator. By clicking the button below, you acknowledge that this calculator is meant to be an estimation of your possible retro benefits. By no means is this program meant to produce an exact amount of your VA disability benefits or your exact VA disability rating, compensation rates may slightly vary from case to case.
Were There To Help If Disability Strikes
provide modest coverage for severely disabled workers and their dependents, including our wounded warriors. Some wounded warriors and Veterans who have a compensation rating of 100% P& T are unaware that Social Security may expedite the processing of their disability claims. In addition, Veterans may not realize they can sometimes qualify for both VA and Social Security benefits. Approximately 621,000 military Veterans received disability insurance benefits in 2016. Rest assured that if the unexpected happens, weve got you covered.
Learn more on our .
Read Also: Gaf Score Social Security Disability
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.
Disability Ratings Are Awarded On A Case By Case Basis
To rate a disability claim, the VA first tries to determine whether or not you sustained your illness or injury in military service. Then, they assign a rating for each illness or injury.
If the VA determines your injury or illness isnt related to your military service or didnt happen while you were in the military, they will deny your claim. If the VA approves your claim, they will assign it a rating between 0% 100%.
A 0% rating shows there is an illness or injury that is connected to your military service, but it doesnt warrant compensation at this time. It is still good to get a 0% rating compared to no service-connected link because if the condition worsens at a later date, you can apply to have your disability rating upgraded.
Don’t Miss: How To Get The Highest Va Disability Rating
Combat Related Special Compensation
There is another program called Combat Related Special Compensation , or CRSC .
CRSC Benefits replace the VA disability offset for military retirees with combat-related disabilities, allowing military retirees to receive both their full disability compensation and retirement pay, without any offset. This can be applied even at a VA disability rating of less than 50%.
CRSC is only awarded to military members who have a combat-related disability rating. Members must apply through their branch of service to be awarded CRSC.
Note: Concurrent Retirement Disability Pay and Combat Related Special Compensation are often a source of confusion and contention among many veterans. We recommend working directly with the VA, DFAS, or your branch of service to handle any specific questions or issues you may have with either of these programs.
Unfortunately, we will not be able to answer any specific questions regarding an individual VA disability claim or compensation.
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:
| Year |
|---|
Don’t Miss: Universal Studios Disability Discount
How Far Back Should Retro Benefits Go
Retro benefits are bound to the effective date of the claim. The rule is that the effective date is usually the date the veteran files the current claim. Sometimes a veterans retro benefits do not go back all the way to the start of the claim. In these cases, it is important to review the evidence listed in the decision to see if there was an exam or medical record that the VA is using as the date of the problem starting or getting worse. A lot of times this can be appealed because the benefits should go back to the date of the claim. The veteran may have entitlement to retroactive benefits because the problem did not start when the veteran went to the VA exam for the problemit started when the veteran filed the claim. Logically, the reason that a military veteran is filing for VA disability compensation is that medical issue already exists and has begun to impact their attendance at work or ability to perform daily tasks.
There are multiple ways to get the effective date, and retro benefits, back dated before the current claim. If a veteran had previously filed for compensation benefits on the same issue then there are exceptions that can get the veteran retro benefits back years, decades even for some service members. These exceptions can get technical though. You need to review the full C file to see when the VA had what evidence. But doing this detective work can be the difference between a $500 retro payment and a $50,000 retro payment!
In 2022 Va Payments Will Increase 59% The Biggest Increase In Over 40 Years
Due to high inflation caused by the pandemic, the Cost of Living Adjustment increased 5.9%. COLA is determined each year by the Social Security Administration. Jump to: What Is COLA?
In an attempt to slow inflation, the Federal Reserve has announced it will slow down on buying bonds and may raise raise interest rates three times in 2022. During the peak of the pandemic, support from the Fed gave the U.S. a helpful influx of cash. This federal financial support will begin to steadily decrease to slow down the economy and put a stop to the skyrocketing inflation.
Below, youll find the released VA disability compensation rates for 2022. Depending on your disability rating and household, you can use the information presented in the charts below to determine how much you can expect your upcoming VA disability payment to change.
You May Like: Sciatic Nerve Paralysis Va Rating
We Are With Those Who Need A Helping Hand
The Supplemental Security Income program is a program that provides income support to people with disabilities, people age 65 or older, or blind, who have low income and resources. U.S. Treasury general funds, not the Social Security trust funds, pay for SSI.
If you or someone you know may be eligible for SSI, visit to learn more and apply.
Types Of Veteran Disability Claims
Several types of claims can apply to disability compensation. They may be based upon disabilities that existed and became intensified during military service, disabilities that arose during active military service, or disabilities that became worse after leaving service. These claims include:
Pre-Discharge VA Disability Claims
Veterans who are within 180 days of separation or retirement from active duty or National Guard duty can file claims for disability.
Pre-Service VA Disability Claims
People may enter military service with a disability. If this becomes worse during military service, the VA may be required to pay compensation.
In-Service VA Disability Claims
These include claims based on disabilities that are due to an injury or a disease that occurred during active duty. Claims related to alcohol abuse or addictions to drugs are generally excluded.
Post-Service VA Disability Claims
This includes claims for disabilities that are service-related, even though the disability occurred after service.
The types of VA disability compensation benefits include the following:
You May Like: How To Get On Disability In Missouri
Ssa Expedited Processing For Veterans
How Does The Va Determine Ratings
To determine the amount of a veterans VA disability benefit, the VA needs to quantify the severity of the disability. When you submit a claim for VA disability benefits, its imperative to include all relevant medical documentation and evidence about your medical condition. After a medical examination and thorough review of the medical evidence, the VA assigns a rating based on the severity of the veterans disability.
This VA disability rating ranges from 0 to 100% in 10-percent increments, and it is used to calculate the level of compensation the veteran will receive.
You can receive additional monthly compensation if you are severely disabled, have lost a limb, have a spouse who also is disabled or if you have a spouse, dependent child, or dependent parent within your immediate household.
In some cases, a veteran may submit a VA claim related to multiple disabilities. In these cases, the VA will use a combined ratings table to determine a combined disability rating and VA benefit amount that reflects all rated medical conditions.
Combined ratings can be tricky since the percentages are not simply added together. Its intuitive to think that if a veteran has one disability rated at 40% and another rated at 30%, the combined rating would be 70%, but that isnt the case. Instead, the VA will first rank the disabilities in order of severity.
Also Check: Universal Studios Guest Assistance Pass
How Has The Veterans Disability Benefit Program Changed In Recent Years
- Changes in federal policies
- Sustained warfare overseas
- Veterans of the recent wars with disabilities have an average of 6.3 medical conditions each, much higher than past wars.
- The expanded eligibility for conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder and other common afflictions
- The federal government has increased its incentives and campaigns to encourage veterans to apply for VA benefits.
Va Disability Pay Chart And Compensation Rates: Cost
The cost-of-living adjustment for 2022 is 5.9 percent, according to a recent announcement by the Social Security Administration. This will lead to a significant increase in next years VA disability rates and monthly compensation for veterans.
Continue reading to view the 2022 VA disability pay chart.
Also Check: Va Rating For Foot Pain
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.
And We Will Be There For Years To Come
Social Security has two trust funds Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance . The OASI and DI Trust Funds have reached the brink of depletion of asset reserves in the past. However, in 1977 and 1983, Congress made substantial changes to the program that resulted in the $2.908 trillion asset reserves that existed as of December 31, 2020.
The Trustees of the Social Security trust funds currently project that the two trust funds combined will be able to pay all benefits in full and on time until 2034. Even if legislative changes are not made before 2034, well still be able to pay 78 percent of total benefits due in 2034. Social Security has always changed to meet the needs of the people we serve and will continue to help support you and your family. Whether you are about to retire, become a full time grandparent, or start a new chapter, Social Security can help you secure today and tomorrow. Social Security salutes all Veterans for their service and sacrifice.
Recommended Reading: How To Change My Va Disability Direct Deposit