Indiana Military Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ∙ Attorneys Serving Veterans Nationwide
Military servicemembers are commonly subjected to distressing events — combat trauma, sexual assault, physical assault and other trauma. For some people, these events (referred to as stressors) can cause an ongoing anxiety disorder known as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). When properly diagnosed, veterans suffering from PTSD may be entitled to VA disability benefits. With offices in Florida and Indiana, our PTSD lawyers at Bosley & Bratch are dedicated to helping injured and disabled veterans throughout the United States — and have been for nearly 15 years. We help disabled veterans navigate the VA system and seek the disability benefits to which they are entitled.
WARNING! New "Relaxed" PTSD Regulation Is Not What it Appears
What they aren't telling you
The VA recently announced that it is easing the requirement for proving stressful events in PTSD claims. However, in order to take advantage of the relaxed standard, ONLY A VA DOCTOR CAN MAKE THE PTSD DIAGNOSIS! This is just another example of the fox guarding the henhouse. For years our
veterans disability claim attorneys have been fighting cases where VA doctors misdiagnosed worthy vets — calling their PTSD a preexisting personality disorder or an adjustment disorder (these conditions are not entitled to service connection). We tried to tell the VA that limiting the diagnosis to VA doctors was outrageously unfair but our comments were ignored. In fact, we are part of an organization called the National Organization of Veterans Advocates that has filed a lawsuit claiming the provision is unconstitutional.
What does this mean to disabled veterans?
The VA MAY accept your stressor and send you for an exam with a VA doctor. However, if you are not thoroughly prepared for this examination, you could say the wrong thing — significantly affecting your potential disability benefits. The examiner may say your stressor is not sufficient for PTSD or that you have a diagnosis of a
mental disorder that is not entitled to service connection (personality disorder, adjustment disorder). Alternatively, even if PTSD is diagnosed, the doctor may simply minimize the impact of the PTSD with the result being a very low disability rating, even if granted.
PTSD standard — Will it influence future VA claims?
We are also concerned that in the near future, the VA will try to expand the requirement of accepting only VA doctors' opinions to other non-PTSD claims, such as
Agent Orange-related conditions,
back and neck injuries and other disabling conditions. If a veteran is not represented by experienced advocates, many valid claims will simply be denied and dropped by the veterans who don't understand why. Our veterans disability attorneys are compassionate about fighting for the rights of disabled veterans throughout the U.S. and will continue to fiercely advocate for their rights.
Veterans Disability Compensation: How the VA Rates PTSD
Most veterans are in the dark about how the VA actually determines a rating for PTSD. At Bosley & Bratch, we believe that this information should be understandable and readily available to veterans. If a veteran is granted service-connected disability for PTSD, the VA will assign a rating based on the current severity of the symptoms (not on the severity of the stressful event). The VA actually has published regulations on how it is supposed to rate PTSD claims. The problem is that it's just one set of regulations buried within thousands of VA regulations. Below are the specific regulations on how the VA is supposed to rate PTSD claims based upon the level of social and occupational impairment as determined by various symptoms. These ratings range from 0, 10, 30, 50, 70 and 100 percent and directly correspond to the amount of monthly disability compensation to which a veteran may be entitled.
Unfortunately, the VA frequently does not follow its own guidelines and as a result it underrates veterans suffering from PTSD, and assigning ratings at the lower end of the spectrum — either because the veteran does not understand what is needed and failed to submit sufficient evidence of the severity, or because the VA has blatantly disregarded the evidence of the severity of symptoms.
How can an experienced VA disability lawyer help? At Bosley & Bratch, WE KNOW THE LAW. We know what disability rating the VA should assign based upon your symptoms, and we will obtain evidence to document the severity level and demonstrate to the VA the appropriate level of rating. It is this legal knowledge and the ability to hold the VA accountable in a court of law that makes us powerful advocates for veterans. Contact us to arrange a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive VA disability lawyer.
PTSD Disability Ratings
100 Percent Disability Rating: Total occupational and social impairment due to such symptoms as:
- Gross impairment in thought processes or communications
- Persistent delusions or hallucinations
- Grossly inappropriate behavior
- Persistent danger of hurting self or others
- Intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene)
- Disorientation to time or place
- Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name
70 Percent Disability Rating: Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking or mood, due to such symptoms as:
- Suicidal ideation
- Obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities
- Speech intermittently illogical, obscure or irrelevant
- Near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively
- Impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence); spatial disorientation
- Neglect of personal appearance and hygiene
- Difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a work-like setting)
- Inability to establish and maintain effective relationships
50 Percent Disability Rating: Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as:
- Flattened affect
- Circumstantial, circumlocutory or stereotyped speech
- Panic attacks more than once a week
- Difficulty in understanding complex commands
- Impairment of short and long-term memory (e.g. retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks)
- Impaired judgment
- Impaired abstract thinking
- Disturbances of motivation and mood
- Difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships
30 Percent Disability Rating: Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine behavior, self-care and conversation normal), due to such symptoms as:
- Depressed mood
- Anxiety
- Suspiciousness
- Panic attacks (weekly or less often)
- Chronic sleep impairment
- Mild memory loss (such as forgetting names, directions, recent events)
10 Percent Disability Rating: Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant stress, or symptoms controlled by continuous medication.
0 Percent Disability Rating: A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication.
What should veterans suffering from PTSD do?
Don't go it alone. It is important to
contact a skilled VA disability attorney to make sure that your claim is not denied, or is unfairly rated, due to a report from a biased VA doctor. Call us toll free from anywhere in the United States at 1-866-974-0705.
