As you probably know already, the Department of Veterans Affairs handles everything pertaining to disability claims for veterans. The VA Disability Rating determines the monthly monetary disability compensation that veterans get. However, the individuals must meet the VA’s eligibility requisites to receive any compensation from the government.
What is a VA Disability Rating?
VA Disability Rating is a percentage that the authorities assign a veteran with disabilities. They round each rating to the nearest 10th percentage scale. The severity of the condition reflects the percentage of the Disability Rating. The rating thus determines the amount of VA Disability benefits an individual would get for their condition due to their time serving.
VA Disability Compensation Eligibility
To meet the eligibility requirements for veterans’ disability benefits, the individual must first be a veteran of U.S. military service. The VA disability compensation is for veterans who have an illness or injury (often referred to as a condition) that affects their body or mind.
- The individual should have been on active duty/ active duty for training/ or may have been on inactive duty for training.
- The individual should have a disability rating for his or her service-connected condition.
At least one of the following needs to be true.
- The individual got sick or injured while serving in the military. The condition needs to be linked to them and their time served in the military. This is known as an in-service disability claim. OR
- Had the injury or illness before the individual joined the military, but the serving made it worse. This is called a pre-service disability claim. OR
- The individual should have a disability related to the service – one that didn’t appear until after he or she ended their service. This is termed a post-service disability claim.
Other presumed disabilities include –
- A long-lasting or chronic illness that appears within one year after discharge, OR
- An illness or condition caused by contact with contaminants or other hazardous materials during service, OR
- An illness or condition caused by the individual’s time spent as a prisoner of war.
Here are some of the documents that you’d need to provide –
- Active duty medical evidence
- Post-service medical evidence suggesting the condition exists or worsened.
- Evidence linking the disability to an illness or injury incurred during military service
The validity of all claims is determined by the claims-handler working on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs. If the claim is granted, a service-connected rating is issued.
Our Contribution
Veterans for Veterans, LLC, is a fee-based veterans consulting firm. We represent our clients before the VA on all veteran-related matters. We have time and again helped veterans with even the most difficult claims, and are devoted to settling claims for our clients – protecting the rights and benefits of veterans.
