The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (aka the Veterans Administration or VA) has a Compensation program (often called VA disability) that provides money support for veterans who are partially or completely disabled because of something that happened to them during their time in the military. Hearing loss for a veteran of the artillery corps is an example.
The review of a Compensation application tries to determine if the veteran has some medical condition that is caused by something that happened in the military. The medical records in the veteran’s files are very important in this review. If a veteran didn’t seek medical help for an injury or illness before discharge, an application for Compensation will probably be denied. (There are some recognized ailments that are now known to arise after discharge, such as diabetes from Agent Orange exposure. In such cases, the veteran’s military medical records are not as important, but the service records could be important to show whether the veteran is likely to have been exposed to Agent Orange.)
If a link between if found between the veteran’s military service and the veteran’s current medical issues, then the veteran is rated on how disabled he or she is. The rating goes up to 100, but it’s really just a 10 point scale. (A veteran can be 0%, 10%, 20%, etc. disabled. There’s no rating for 35% or 62% or any other number that doesn’t have a 0 in it.)
Compensation does not have the length of service or wartime service requirements that Pension has. In addition, Compensation does not consider the veteran’s assets and income like Pension does. The Compensation program also has benefits for surviving spouses, parents, and dependent children of veterans and military personnel.
Compensation can have an additional Aid & Attendance benefit if the veteran needs help with certain Activities of Daily Living (like bathing, grooming, dressing, etc.) The Aid and Attendance benefit is not available by itself.
Jim does not help veterans make initial Compensation claims. Ohio’s Veteran Service Commission offices (There’s one in each county.) are good at initial claims. Instead, Jim will help veterans appeal claims that have been denied or have been rated lower than seems appropriate. Jim will also help veterans whose disability has gotten worse since they were last rated by the VA.
This information is provided to further the mission of
The Koewler Law Firm
“Protecting Seniors and People with Special Needs.”
For help with long term care, with deciding how to deal with chronic illness,
or with planning for someone with special needs,
call Jim, or contact him through this website.