VA Disability Rating for PTSD
VA Disability Rating for PTSD
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Are You a Veteran Suffering From PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a condition that affects thousands of Veterans. Arising from a life-altering, traumatic experience, the symptoms of PTSD can be utterly debilitating. PTSD is not a weakness, nor is it something any Veteran should feel embarrassed of. The condition can affect anyone, and many Veterans suffer from PTSD symptoms following their service in the military. Whether from intense and traumatic experiences on the frontlines, sexual assault or abuse, or many other causes, many Veterans return to civilian life with PTSD. In this article, we will explore the VA Disability Rating for PTSD.
If you have been diagnosed with PTSD and are a Veteran, you may be eligible to receive significant disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The VA recognizes PTSD as a service-related disability as long as a Veteran can verify that their PTSD symptoms are directly associated with their military service.
What Are the Symptoms of PTSD?
The key symptoms of PTSD fall into four categories:
- Reliving an event that you have had in the form of flashbacks and nightmares. These experiences can be so troubling that you end up suffering from insomnia.
- Avoiding anything that may be triggering – situations, people, places, and things that remind you of your trauma.
- Constant arousal – feeling hypervigilant, on edge, and overwhelmed with anxiety.
- Thought patterns that are similar to depression – Your traumatic experience may leave you feeling numb and disconnected from the world.
PTSD’s symptoms can vary from individual to individual, and the disorder can arise at different moments after a person has a traumatic experience. Sometimes, it takes years for symptoms of PTSD to show up. For many Veterans, the onset of PTSD occurs decades after their military service has ended. This late-onset often happens for Veterans who are suppressing traumatic memories that are too intense or disturbing to process. VA Disability Rating for PTSD
The best way to determine whether you have PTSD is to get a professional evaluation from a mental health professional. When you apply to receive disability benefits from the VA, the VA will also have you undergo their own examination to verify your condition.
In order to file a claim to receive disability benefits for PTSD from the VA, you will need to have an official diagnosis of the disorder. The VA is also looking for confirmation of a “nexus,” an inherent connection between your symptoms and the events that you had in the military. This nexus verifies that you are suffering from PTSD due to something you experienced in the military. Without this connection, the VA may deny you benefits unless you have another disability as well.
VA Disability Rating for PTSD
The VA Gives Each Disabled Veteran a Specific Rating.
When you file a claim to receive benefits from the VA and they accept your request, they will give you a specific disability rating between 10% and 100%. A rating below 10% means that your disability status was not significant enough in the eyes of the VA to qualify you to receive monthly benefits. If you end up with a rating under 10%, you can request a decision review from the VA or make an appeal to have your rating changed.
Each level of the VA’s disability rating system is connected to higher monthly benefits. For a disabled Veteran, the rating given by the VA can have a huge impact in terms of financial stability. If the VA gives a disabled Veteran a high enough rating, that Veteran should be able to sufficiently support themself and their family. However, if the VA rates a Veteran’s disability status too low, the Veteran may end up struggling financially.
The VA does not always give ratings to disabled Veterans with perfect accuracy. Ratings that are too low are common for Veterans with mental health issues like PTSD. If you end up with a rating from the VA that you think is too low, there’s still hope of getting the correct disability rating.
Can You Get a 100% VA Disability Rating for PTSD?
The 100% disability score from the VA is typically given to Veterans whose conditions make them unable to function at work, interact socially, or carry out everyday tasks. A 100% disability rating is typically given in disability cases where a Veteran is so severely disabled that their primary income source would be from the VA. Veterans with PTSD sometimes get a 100% rating, allowing them to receive the highest possible monthly benefits. However, Veterans who have been diagnosed with PTSD and have 100% disability ratings typically also suffer from other disabilities as well.
If you are a Veteran with PTSD, your condition likely has a noticeable negative impact on your life. If so, this is typically sufficient grounds to receive monthly benefits from the VA. However, if your condition is not crippling, meaning you are still able to function socially, work, and live a relatively normal life, the VA’s rating of your disability will likely be considerably lower.
Getting a 100% disability rating can be difficult, but if you feel that this rating reflects the severity of your symptoms, you should not settle for anything lower. If you end up with a rating that is too low, you can work towards having your rating changed by requesting a decision review or making an appeal.
When you are aiming for a 100% disability rating, consider seeing if you can qualify for total disability individual unemployability (TDIU). This status means that a Veteran’s disability is significant enough to make them unemployable. Qualifying for TDIU can make it easier to achieve a higher disability rating from the VA.
VA Judgement Reviews: Getting Your Rating Reevaluated
If the VA denies your application to collect benefits or gives you a rating that is lower than your condition warrants, you can appeal a decision review from the VA. The decision review process involves the VA carefully examining your case in one of a few different ways.
In some claims, a VA decision review can involve submitting further evidence to the VA that can change their decision. In other cases, a decision review can include getting a senior officer at the VA involved in your case. The decision review process can also eventually lead to a hearing either at your regional VA office, at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, or in the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
If you go through the decision review process and still end up with either a denial from the VA or a rating that is too low, your best move is to make an appeal with the help of an attorney who is well-versed in the ins and outs of VA policy. An attorney can help you present convincing evidence to the VA to show the legitimacy of your claim and the need for your disability rating to be changed.
Making an Appeal
When the VA continues to deny your application for benefits or will not change your rating when you need it changed, you can move through multiple levels of the appeals process with the help of an attorney. Appeals can sometimes reach higher courts before a case is settled, especially if the VA believes that the Veteran has insufficient medical evidence or a lack of verification that their disability is connected to their military service.
If you are struggling to compile the evidence that you need to get the outcome you deserve, one of our partners who are Veterans themselves can help.
Sources:
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/ptsd-trauma/ptsd-in-military-Veterans.htm
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Captain Berry (right) receiving his Bronze Star at II Field Force.
Before he founded Berry Law Firm, John Berry Sr. served three tours in Vietnam, where he earned the Bronze Star.
During his service, John transferred from Infantry to the Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps and worked as chief defense counsel for Vietnam’s largest general court martial jurisdiction.
John’s role took him throughout Vietnam, protecting the rights of GIs. His journeys included successfully defending members of the 5th Special Forces against murder charges.
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