Let’s start at the beginning.  A veteran or claimant begins the adjudication process by filing a claim(s) for entitlement to a service-connected disability at one of the many local VA regional offices.  A VA employee called a Rating Specialist develops the claim(s) by gathering evidence and then decides the claim and sends it to the veteran in a Rating Decision.  …

Disability Benefits Questionnaires or DBQs are the standard VA templates for VA and private examination reports.  DBQs set forth an exhaustive list of questions to be addressed by physicians and these responses are used to evaluate a veteran’s disability claim.  If your treating physician or a consulting physician is going to write an opinion in support of your claim, have …

This is a very good question. After all, experienced VA disability attorneys usually charge a 20% contingent fee whereas Veterans Service Officers (VSOs) provide representation for free. There is no doubt that the vast majority of VSOs try their level best to help disabled veterans. And many do a very fine job at it. However, in recent years, the VA …

Veterans are eligible to receive disability compensation for both physical and mental health conditions caused by their military service. However, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs rates mental health issues differently than physical ailments, and not all mental health-related illnesses qualify for disability compensation under the VA rules and guidelines. As a veteran, it is important to understand which mental health …

If you have worked with the VA long enough, it probably comes as no surprise to learn that the VA often disagrees about claims of total disability individual unemployability (TDIU). Vocational experts can go a long way in proving that a veteran does in fact qualify for TDIU. In cases without vocational experts, the VA relies on VA doctors to …

A federal court ruled earlier this year that the Department of Veterans Affairs is not allowed to deny disability benefits to thousands of Vietnam War veterans who claimed exposure to Agent Orange and other cancer-causing chemicals simply because they served on ships and not inland. Known as “Blue Water” Navy veterans, it is estimated that between 50,000 and 90,000 military …

How to Find an Independent Medical Examiner for My TDIU Claim Total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is a disability benefit that allows disabled veterans to be compensated at a 100% rate, even if the combined scheduler rating does not equal 100%. TDIU is only awarded in circumstances in which disabled veterans are unable to secure substantially gainful employment …

Many disabled veterans are in need of Social Security disability benefits, but the process for receiving those benefits can be complex, stressful, and confusing if they try to do it alone. A social security disability lawyer can help make the process faster, easier, and will effectively represent a veteran’s best interests to the Social Security Administration. However, many veterans do …

  1) What Are Retroactive/Back Benefits?   Back pay or what the VA calls retroactive benefits is the lump sum payment for benefits which have been accruing since the filing of a granted claim.  The retro benefits come in a lump sum – paid all at once — after the grant of benefits. All other benefits awarded in connection with …

  The VA processes huge volumes of paperwork on veteran disability claims and because of that, sometimes information gets overlooked and inappropriate denials of benefits made. You can assist the Decision Review Officer determining your TDIU claim for 100% disability, by assembling a solid package of evidence for the VA for both the medical/disability factor, and for the unemployability factor. …