Working Towards VA Disability And Other Compensation Methods
If you're a veteran who can't work because of a condition--or if that condition makes work a lot harder than it should be--there are options out there to keep you a viable member of the economy. To get your entitlement and any other assistance that you may need, here's some Veterans Affairs disability and personal injury information for everything from a limp to hearing loss, and even extreme conditions such as cancer or other side-effects of substance exposure.
What Is Veterans Affairs Disability All About?
As a part of your military service, you're entitled to compensation that is paid for already by your sacrifices and the sacrifices of your fellow veterans, and if you don't take those benefits, they'll go to waste--not just saved for someone more needy, but wasted.
Veterans Affairs (VA) disability is design to compensate you for anything that was caused by or during military service. Unlike social security disability, which is designed as a temporary safety net, VA disability is a permanent support system that can be linked to multiple conditions.
The only catch is that your condition must be service-connected. This means that you can prove your condition's severity, and that it began during or was made worse by military service. This proof has to be more than personally reporting pain or any kind of face value observations; you'll need documentation from your military service showing that the condition was caused by something.
Your proof can either be from reporting to medical during your military years, or after the fact if the condition can be dated with some sort of medical technique. An attorney may be necessary if you don't have any of that evidence, as a lot of research into your old duty stations, exposure to certain situations, and similarities to other veteran cases must be found. The VA isn't likely to dig that deeply on your case with a backlog of cases to get to.
Getting Support During The Path To Approval
The general outline of a VA disability claim or appeal is straightforward, but a lot can go wrong. You need to file a claim about your condition(s), provide and label the evidence for each condition, and wait for a response.
Many veterans lack evidence, such as not having a medical record proof of the condition. Other veterans may have gone to medical to complain about a problem, and although that complaint was recorded, the doctor may not have confirmed the condition. Sometimes it's because there wasn't a doctor between the complaint and getting out of the military, or maybe your military doctor didn't agree or take due diligence for the record.
Either way, your claim could take months to file, and every denial can take more months as you appeal. You want to get it right the first time--or with as few tries as possible--to get the money from the VA and the medical assistance you need.
A personal injury attorney can help you with getting the legal language and medical evidence together for the claim, but they can help with the wait as well. If you can't work or aren't making enough money, other compensation systems such as social security disability can be considered.
If you suffered other injuries not related to the military, your attorney can help you by pursuing a relevant compensation system. Workers compensation can help if it was a work-related injury, or personal injury claims if another individual lead to your injury. Contact a personal injury lawyer, like one from Erickson Law Office, to discuss your condition and options.
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