Houston Veterans Disability Eligibility Criteria

Veterans applying for service-related disability already know that dealing with the VA can be a long process without a lot of information regarding disability eligibility. The VA may not tell you everything or even inadvertently provide with incorrect information. Here are some things you need to know before you begin to apply.

Disability Eligibility

To qualify for benefits, you must:

• Have previously served in the US Military
• Be on active duty with an impending discharge from 180 to 60 days through the Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program
• Be within 60 days of a discharge in the BDD Quick Start claim process

Service Related

Your disability should be, in some way, connected to your military service. There are three types:

• A physical injury or other currently diagnosed medical condition that occurred while you were on active duty.
• A diagnosed medical condition or injury that you already had when you entered the service that was aggravated or made worse during your enlistment.
• A diagnosed condition or injury that didn’t appear or manifest until after you left the service, called a “presumed service connection.”

Medical conditions can be either physical or mental, and are linked to military service. The “service connection” also must be proven after being diagnosed.

A “presumed” connection is when someone has served for at least 90 days and develops a condition or disability that is 10% or more and presumed to be service connected. A number of conditions are listed under federal law and are presumed to be connected to military service. POWs who were incarcerated over 30 days and veterans who develop certain types of cancers are also presumed to meet the criteria for service-related disability conditions.

Gulf War veterans who experience chronic health problems and recurrent symptoms for more than six months are also presumed to have a service connection.

However, the VA can also bring evidence to disprove the presumed service connection, and show that another cause exists that occurred after discharge that resulted in the injury or illness.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

The VA does not require a veteran to provide evidence of a traumatic event that caused him or her to have PTSD. What is required is substantiation from a VA physician, psychiatrist or psychologist that there was a traumatic event related to hostile military or terrorist activity, and that it likely occurred during military service.

Getting a disability rating for PTSD is a little easier, since you no longer have to prove that the event occurred. More information on applying for PTSD is available here, and at the VA’s website.

Discharge Conditions

VA benefits are available to individuals who received an Honorable Discharge. Dishonorable, Bad Conduct or Other than Honorable Discharges are not eligible.

The VA does allow you to apply for a discharge upgrade, and lists information on the upgrade process here.

You may also be ineligible if your disability occurred:

• By your misconduct while on duty
• During actions while avoiding duty (i.e., AWOL or desertion)
• While in prison or otherwise detained while awaiting a court martial action or civilian court date

We Help Houston Veterans

Qualifying for VA disability benefits can be a long game, but we can make the process easier. William Herren is a veterans disability attorney who has helped more than 4,000 Houstonians get their benefits, and is ready to help you, too. Call The Herren Law Firm today at 713-682-8194 (or use our online contact form) to schedule your free consultation. There’s no obligation, and we’ll take your case on a contingency fee basis, with no up-front charges. You don’t owe a fee until we win your case.