How Veterans Disability Attorneys Can Maximize Your Benefits
Veterans with disabilities can receive various benefits, including compensation, medical care, educational grants, housing assistance and adaptive equipment. You must hire an attorney who limits all or most of their legal practice to veterans’ disability cases. They can help you file a supplemental or appeals claim with new and relevant evidence that the VA did not consider.
Gather Evidence
The Department of Veterans Affairs offers tax-free disability benefits for those who have served in the military and suffered from a disabling condition. To receive these benefits, an individual must submit sufficient evidence to show that their medical condition is connected to military service and that they can’t work at a meaningful job. Veteran disability attorneys specialize in gathering the medical evidence needed to support your claim. This includes military records, private medical documents, and VA medical exams. They will also schedule any supplemental re-evaluations required by the VA to build your case.
Additionally, veteran disability attorneys know how to scrutinize the VA’s math when combining disabilities for a single rating, such as a back injury and sleep apnea. They can also hire independent medical experts (IMEs) and vocational experts (VE) to verify the extent of your impairment – though you will need to pay these expenses. The contingency fee agreement you sign with your attorney should explain how these fees are paid.
Request an Independent Medical Exam
Once you have filed your claim, your regional VA office will have you undergo a Compensation and Pension exam (C&P exam). This is an important appointment that the examiner uses to become acquainted with your military medical records, your symptoms, and how your disability impacts your daily life. The C&P exams are conducted by the same people who will later decide whether you qualify for benefits. As such, their opinion will be given much more weight than the opinions of your family doctor, who has a vested interest in your continued care and might have an emotional connection to you. An experienced veteran disability attorney can help you prepare for your C&P exam to ensure the examiner understands your condition’s severity. It is critical to remember that the examiner will only have a limited amount of time with you, and they are looking for specific information and data related to your disability. So, if you need legal assistance with your veterans’ disability claims, visit these veterans disability attorneys who can help you navigate the complex process.
Navigate the VA Claims and Appeal Process
Veterans who suffer disabilities that were either acquired or aggravated during military service can qualify for valuable monthly compensation, which is based on their degree of disability. This compensation is tax-free and can be incredibly important to the lives of injured veterans and their families. A medical examination can determine a veteran’s degree of disability that the VA will schedule or an independent private exam. A skilled attorney can help collect the necessary evidence to support your claims and provide it to the VA as part of an initial claim or an appeal case. Suppose you have been denied a rating for a disability, a supplemental claim or a Higher Level Review. In that case, your lawyer can assist with an appeal to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals. This is a more extensive process that includes additional medical evidence. A qualified attorney can help you choose the correct lane for your appeal and explore options such as an in-person hearing from home, at a VA office near you or in Washington, DC.
Negotiate with the VA
A good veteran disability attorney will know how to compile critical evidence to build a strong case on your behalf. They can also assist you in determining which benefit options are best for your situation, including disability compensation and pension. They will also understand how the VA assigns ratings for your disabling conditions. For example, the math used when combining multiple disabilities (like back injury and sleep apnea) is complex. An experienced lawyer will make sure you receive the maximum rating allowed. Lastly, they will help you navigate the appeals process should your claim be denied. This process can be long, but you must have an experienced advocate. Especially when claims involve significant medical impairment and complexities like PTSD, TBI, Agent Orange, and military sexual trauma, these cases require focused and aggressive representation, often leading to meaningful changes in case law. This is how attorneys make their real impact – not through word-of-mouth or limited advertising, but through dogged advocacy.