Have you applied for your VA disability benefits? Do you know how to apply for them? VA disability benefits are NOT charity and you are NOT taking anything away from active duty military personnel or other veterans. At the end of the last fiscal year, The VA returned $1.9B that could not be otherwise awarded to veterans (military.com). If you are awarded benefits and you die, your dependents may be eligible to receive VA benefits such as Dependents Indemnity Compensation. Filing claims after you die is extremely difficult! We encourage all Blue Eagles to file claims for VA benefits that you are entitled. Here are ways you can submit claims that are successful (and hopefully keep you out of the appeals process).
If you had “boots on the ground” even if only for one second, one minute, or one deployment in Vietnam, the VA presumes some conditions and diseases to be related to exposure to Agent Orange.
Some of the disabilities that are “Presumed” from agent orange contamination are:
- Al Amyloidosis
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Chronic B-Cell Leukemias
- Peripheral Neuropathy
- Chloracne
- Prophyria Tarda
- Diabetes Mellitus Type 2
- Prostate Cancer
- Hodgkin’s Disease
- Respiratory Cancers
- Ischemic Heart Disease
- Soft Tissue Sarcomas
- Multiple Myeloma
- Offspring With Birth Defects
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Post Traumaic Stress Disorder (PTSD)*
- Wounds*
- Loss of limbs*
- Broken bones*
- Tinnitus*
*The VA will award disabilities for these as well if you supply sufficient evidence to prove they are service related.
When You decide to file
The most important decision is to take the initiative to find your own evidence and do research. You can also have a back up plan(Plan B) and let the VA do all the work. If you choose to have the VA doing all the work there are risk involved, including delays and presents claims denial risk. There Are All Kinds Of Statisics For Claims Processes. Some State That The
Denied Claim Rates (Disapproval Rates) May be between 15-40 %. You can lower the possibility of the VA denying your claim if you carefully adhere to the recommended process.
The VA Claims Process With VA Doing All The Work (not recommended)
- The veteran decides to submit a claim (via eBenefits or in paper form – Just Submit VA form # 21-526 by itself)
- The VA regional office receives the claim( The VA stamps the claim with the start date and sends a letter back to the veteran acknowledging receipt. They may ask for additional evidence)
* Risk – if You did not send the required medical records, the VA will attempt to obtain them from your medical providers – you will not get a copy, so you will not know if there is enough evidence to support your disability claim!
Under Review Notification
A Veteran Service Representative is assigned and determines whether or not additional evidence is required. You will have to wait until the VA regional office obtains all required evidence. If you do most of the data gathering yourself by providing all the required evidence, your claim will be advanced to “Preparation For Decision” status.
Gather Evidence
If you do not provide the necessary evidence to support your claim, the Veteran Service Representative will attempt to gather evidence from any available Sources. You may be required to attend a Compensation & Pension (C&P) examination (Don’t Miss This!) *Risk – If you do not thoroughly research your disability and leave it to the VA to do so, the risk of denial or reduced benefit is much higher and the process will take longer.
Review Of Evidence
If all supportng evidence Is available, the claim will advance to Preparation For Decision
Preparation For Decision
The Veteran Service Representative recommends a decision and begins to prepare documents for mailing. If the VA determines there is not enough suppor;ng evidence, the claim may be sent back to the appropriate step
Pending Decision Approval
The recommended decision is reviewed and a final award is approved
Preparation For Notification
The completed decision package is prepared for mailing
Complete
Your complete claim package is in the mail
This is when many veterans find their claims have been denied because they did not know the parameters of their disability and they had no control over what medical record evidence Was Collected.
Though you are letting the VA handle the claim for you, you can also do it yourself with success.
Filling Your Benefits on Your Own
There are several ways you can apply for your VA disability benefits. One Way Is Having the VA doing the work for you(not recommended) or you can apply for your disability benefits on your own. Risk – If you do not provide the necessary and correct records as evidence to support your claim, it will revert to a regular claim that will take longer to adjudicate (judge or process).
If you choose to file the claims yourself, here is what you would need.
The Veteran decides to submit a claim (via eBenefits or in paper form)
Did you leave active duty with all your records? Yes/No – if No, Go to eBenefits ( www.ebenefits.va.gov ) and request what you don’t already have. If you have to obtain records, you may file an Intent To File A Claim to preserve the claim start date while your records are being collected. Use VA Form # 21-2966.
If Yes, go to www.benefits.va.gov/warms/bookc.asp for the disability description in chapter 38 in the Code Of Federal Regulations (CFR 38). This Will Show You The Parameters Of Your Disability And Percentages. You need to know this so that you can provide the appropriate medical records and refer to it during VA examinations.
Download and submit VA form # 21-526EZ
Using the link: www.va.gov/vaforms/form_detail.asp?FormNo=21-526EZ . plus your military records records and all other medical records and correspondence. If you need input from your civilian doctor, download and print out the correct Disability Benefits Questionnaire from eBenefits (www.ebenefits.va.gov ) and ask him/her to fill it out for you. Make copies of all submiials to the VA for your record
VA Regional Office Receives The Claim
The VA Stamps the Claim with Start Date And Sends Letter Back to the veteran acknowledging Receipt. The VA may ask for more evidence (always read and re-read VA letter until you fully understand them, otherwise ask for help)
Under Review
A Veteran Service Representative is assigned to determine if additional evidence Is required. There is a waitng period unil the VA Regional Office obtains all evidence. If you do most of the data gathering by providing record evidence, the claim should advance to “Preparation For Decision”.
Gathering Of Evidence
If you provided adequate evidence in the form of medical records, the Veteran Service Representative will gather the evidence and move the claim to the next step. You may be required to attend a Compensation & Pension Examination (Don’t miss this one because the VA could make a decision without this evidence). Be sure to review the parameters of your disability in Part 4 Of CFR 38 Remember To Go Back To the examining VA Hospital in a few weeks to obtain a copy of the Compensation & Pension examination results.
Review Of Evidence
If all supporting evidence is available, the claim will move to Preparation For Decision.
Preparation For Decision
At this point, the Veteran Service Representative recommends a decision and begins preparing documents for mailing. If not enough evidence has been provided, the claim may be sent back to the appropriate step, causing a delay in processing
Pending Decision Approval
The recommended decision is reviewed and a final award decision Is approved.
Preparation For Notification
Entire decision package is prepared for mailing
Complete
Your claim package with decision is in the mail.
What if your claim is Denied?? there are several types of appeals you can use get your claim approved.