Vietnam Veterans, you need to make sure you are aware of the rules surrounding the Veterans Administration Disability Compensation Program. If you or someone you love was a veteran of the Vietnam War and they served in country, then Disability Compensation could help them. Traditionally, obtaining a Disability Compensation award can be very difficult, if not impossible. The application process is fraught with repeated denials of benefits and many families simply give up. If you are a Vietnam Veteran that served in the Republic of Vietnam, the so called “boots on the ground,” then the process may be a little easier.
Path to Disability Compensation is a Paved Road
In certain instances, the Veterans Administration notices a pattern of illnesses and establishes something called a presumptive illness. Vietnam happens to be one such instance. For Vietnam Veterans that served in country, there is a list of presumptive illnesses that were caused by a veteran’s exposure to Agent Orange https://www.va.gov/disability/eligibility/hazardous-materials-exposure/agent-orange/related-diseases/. When the Veterans Administration sets out presumptive illnesses the entire landscape of the benefit process is changed. You no longer have to fight with the Veterans Administration over causation. If you served in Vietnam you were, by definition, exposed to Agent Orange. Once exposure is established you look to the list of presumptive illnesses. A list that is continuing to grow at this point. If you have one of the listed illnesses, that illness is caused by your exposure to Agent Orange while serving in Vietnam. The hardest part of the traditional fight for disability benefits is eliminated from the process. The determination of your Disability Compensation benefit shifts to the degree of disability that you are able to establish for your rating. The higher the level of disability established, the greater the financial compensation for your injury.
Disability Compensation Better than Service Pension?
Understanding this fundamental change for the Disability Compensation system is very important to maximizing the benefits you are entitled to receive. In most cases, if you can establish significant disability the Veteran’s Disability Compensation award will exceed the $2,266 maximum award under the Veterans Administration Service Pension. Even better the Disability Compensation program does not have any income or asset limitations. So, you can have considerable income and/or assets but still be entitled to Disability Compensation based upon your exposure to Agent Orange and subsequent illness. There is also no requirement that you be incurring additional medical costs that are reducing your income. The basic concept is being exposed to Agent Orange while serving your country harmed you and you are now entitled to be compensated for that harm. What becomes vitally important for the Veteran and their family is to fully understand both systems and know which benefit system will result in the greatest financial assistance.
Beware One Size Fits All Veterans Benefit Approach
This is where Vietnam Veterans and their loved ones have to be aware. Many of the entities providing Veteran’s assistance with their benefits focus almost exclusively on the Service Pension. As the old saying goes if the only tool you own is a hammer then all your problems are a nail. Advocate for your family and make sure you are working with someone that understands BOTH the Service Pension and Disability Compensation Programs. Moreover, make sure they have successfully filed both types of claims for the families they have assisted. Whomever you choose as your advocate with the Veterans Administration they should be able to explain clearly both programs to you and help you identify the one that best meets your needs and qualifications. It is even possible that you start out with Service Pension and change to Disability Compensation when your disability gets severe enough to warrant a higher award.
If you or your family are struggling with any Veterans Administration or Missouri Medicaid decisions, make an appointment with the experienced St. Peters Elder Law Attorneys at Jones Elder Law. Be sure to get all the benefits that your service to this country earned you! At Jones Elder Law all of our attorneys are accredited with the Veterans Administration to make sure that happens for our clients. If we can help guide you, contact our St. Charles Elder Law Firm at (636) 812-2575 and ask to schedule a call or virtual consultation http://joneselderlaw.com/vision-meeting/ . For your safety and ours we have developed the Minimal Contact Planning process to be used while the Covid-19 virus remains a concern.
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