Your VA Regional Office will send you other forms and documents needed to complete your request for benefits. The VA will also review your military medical records and might request a medical examination at a VA hospital or a private medical facility under contract with the VA. After compiling all medical evidence, the VA will send you a "Ratings Decision." The Ratings Decision will tell you whether or not the VA approved your request for benefits.

STEP TWO:
If the Ratings Decision denies you any benefits, or if the benefit rating you receive is not as much as you deserve, you can appeal the Ratings Decision by filing a "Notice of Disagreement" (NoD) within one year of the Ratings Decision's date. The NoD does not have to be in any particular format or form, but the notice must be in writing. 

Once you file your Notice of Disagreement, you may obtain an attorney to handle all the paperwork and argue with the VA. Contact us so we can aggressively fight for your rights.

After you file the NoD, your regional VA office will send you a Statement of the Case, which often does not change the decision contained in the Ratings Decision, but will elaborate on the reasons why your claim was denied. The Statement of the Case will explain why the veteran was denied benefits, and should also include the rules and statutes the VA Regional Office relied upon in making the decision. 

STEP THREE:
If your demands for benefits have been denied, you can appeal to the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA). It is important to file your appeal within 60 days of the Statement of Case's date, or within 100 days of the Ratings Decision's date (whichever is later). The BVA will deliver the case to a Ratings Officer, who will review the file and issue a decision.

STEP FOUR:
If your claim has still not been approved, you may file an appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans' Claims. This appeal must be filed with the court within 120 days of the BVA's decision.

2. How do I represent myself if I don't want an attorney?

            First, I would suggest that you visit the following websites: http://vets.yuku.com/directory and http://www.hadit.com/forums/index.php. These are popular, active forums where veterans help other veterans who have problems with the VA, or have questions about how to file claims, form appeals, etc. I would suggest reading through the posts and conversations, searching for terms that are applicable to your situation, and learn about how to argue your position with the VA. You may also register and post questions as well. You may also find attorneys or representatives who can help you with your claim on these websites.

            Second, keep in mind the three primary rules that the VA uses to determine service connection and give disability payments:

1. An occurrence, injury, or experience in the military that is documented and proven with evidence, either from the vet’s military or VA records or from "buddy statements" or other records.

2. A current medical condition that is documented or proven with evidence. This is usually the easiest of the three requirements to meet.

3. A connection between the two, showing that #1 caused #2. This should be proven with medical evidence, such as a doctor’s opinion letter that states the veteran's current disability is "more likely than not (greater than 50% chance) caused by his/her experience in the military."

You need to provide lots of evidence to support these three rules - the VA will not give benefits for claims that do not have sufficient evidence, even if it looks clear and common sense to the average person. If you have a VA decision letter or a Statement of the Case, review it carefully to see why they denied your claim, and then look for evidence to refute the reasons for your denial. REMEMBER – just because you have a doctor saying you have XYZ condition does not mean that you are eligible for VA disability – there must be a clear connection between your present disability and a specific event/occurrence in the military that caused or aggravated your condition.  

The Statement of the Case letter is particularly useful. Though it is long and confusing because they include cut-and-pasted regulations in the first 10 or 15 pages, the last few pages are the most important and detail exactly why the VA denied your claim.  Read and understand this, and you have a road map to successfully appealing your claim.

            Third, if your claim or appeal expires, do not fear. You can always reopen a claim at any point in your life. However, to successfully reopen the claim, the VA will require NEW and MATERIAL EVIDENCE. Once the VA looks at the evidence and agrees that it is new and material, they will reopen the claim and decide whether to grant benefits based on both the new evidence and all the old evidence from your first claim (which will still be in your claims folder - hopefully. If you have copies of the old evidence, you might want to send them in to the VA as well just in case.)

             The VA defines "new and material" as follows: "New evidence means existing evidence not previously submitted to agency decision-makers. Material evidence means existing evidence that, by itself or when considered with previous evidence of record, relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim. New and material evidence can be neither cumulative nor redundant of the evidence of record at the time of the last prior final denial of the claim sought to be reopened, and must raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim."

  Fourth, if you want to maximize your ability to appeal your claim and perhaps help other veterans who are facing delays and denials by the VA, I strongly recommend the Veterans Benefits Manual, published by LexisNexis. This book is published annually and currently is almost 2,000 pages long, because it exhaustively details every aspect of Veterans Law.  However, it is generally easy to understand and highly helpful to anyone. I could not be an effective veterans attorney without it, so I recommend it to you. If you choose to buy a used copy from EBay or Amazon, I would not recommend any version earlier than 2007, as there have been significant changes in the law since 2007.

             Fifth, always be polite to the VA – no matter how hard it is! I often seen situations where the veteran gets snippy or argumentative with the VA, and the veteran almost always loses the case. Is this right? Probably not. I’ve seen people in the VA do shady things, but there are also lots of good people like you and me working for the VA, so annoying people doesn’t do anyone any good. Ultimately, you are asking another human who works a 9 to 5 job at the VA to help you out – and if 4 out of 5 veterans are grouchy, but that 5^th veteran is really nice and respectful, often the VA employee on the other end of the phone or letter may feel the urge to be nice back. 

             Also, if the VA is asking you for more information about your claim, don’t get upset or think they are looking for more information so they can deny you.  This is actually a GOOD SIGN.  If the VA wanted to deny your claim, they would simply deny it and wouldn’t bother with the time and effort of reviewing more information.  From my experience, I feel that when the VA wants you to give more information, they feel that you may have a good claim, and they are looking for a little more evidence to tip the scale in your favor. If you don’t provide the RIGHT information, however, you will not be approved.  More evidence does not mean good evidence.

3. How can I find an attorney to represent me?

            If you do not wish to pursue your claim yourself and want another attorney or accredited representative to work on your claim, I would suggest visiting this website: http://vetadvocates.com.  This is the home of the National Organization of Veteran’s Advocates (NOVA), and on that website you will find a Membership Directory. This directory will contain the contact information for professional veterans’ advocates who have chosen to publicly list their information, and hopefully you can find an attorney or accredited representative who is able to help you. I was a member of NOVA and can say that they are good, hardworking people who will be able to help you.

             You can also visit the website for the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, and they have a public list of veterans law practitioners (attorneys and accredited representatives). The list is found here: http://www.uscourts.cavc.gov/practitioners/  

            Additionally, you should contact your local American Legion or VFW and inquire whether they know any attorneys in your area who practice Veterans Law.  Another source may be your county’s Bar Association, who may run or know of an attorney referral service. Ask if they know of any attorneys in your area that practice veterans law.

4. What is Total Disability Based On Individual Unemployability (TDIU), and am I eligible?

Total Disability Based On Individual Unemployability (TDIU) entitles veterans who have one or more service-connected disabilities to monthly disability compensation payments at the 100% rating, even if the severity of their disabilities would not otherwise qualify them for the 100% rating. TDIU is intended for veterans who have a demonstrated inability to obtain “substantially gainful employment." This requirement generally means obtaining a job that generates income at or above the poverty level, which is annually determined by the government.

To obtain TDIU compensation, the veteran must meet these minimal threshold requirements:

1. If the veteran has only one service-connected disability, it must be rated at 60-percent or higher. 
2. If the veteran has two or more service-connected disabilities, at least one of those disabilities must be rated at 40-percent or higher and the veteran’s overall combined disability rating must be 70-percent or higher.
3. The veteran must demonstrate that he or she is unemployable as a result of one or more of his or her service-connected disabilities.   

Demonstrating unemployability generally requires evidence that the disability in question has caused employment disruption, as shown in the veteran's employment history or employer records. Medical evidence will also be required to prove that the veteran’s service-connected disability resulted in the veteran's inability to work.

5. My service-connected injury has worsened. Can I get a higher rate of compensation now?

Yes, you may receive a higher rate of compensation upon submitting proof that your disability has increased in severity.  This proof may include a personal statement by the veteran, a medical statement from a private physician, and a "lay statement" from someone who has personal knowledge of you and your disability. It is also likely that the VA will request that you undergo a VA examination.

6. I have an injury or illness that occurred while I was in the service, but I can still work. Am I really "disabled" for the purposes of getting compensation?

Yes. Thousands of disabled veterans lead functional, complete lives. The fact you are employed should not affect the VA's determination of your disability rating. If you have a service-connected disability or condition - even a minor one - and you never filed for disability compensation after you left the military, it is in your interest to do so.

F16s on the flightline at dawn, 2002. Photo by SSgt Jake LaForet.