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I know this is some of y'all....
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Six weeks ago, he initiated a disability claim. When the interviewer reviewed his records with him, he noted that my husband had gone to the VA once before in 2015 seeking treatment for the same symptoms -- we had completely forgotten about trying this once before, tbh.
He received approval for 60% yesterday backdated to this spring, when he started therapy, and naturally there are a lot of feelings this week.
The thing I'm stuck on, and I'm kind of hesitant to even talk about it, is that I don't think it's enough. I'm just the wife, I guess, and it's not my fight to fight, but I think it should have been backdated to at least 2015 and at a higher percentage.
Can anyone provide insight to how these things are determined and any options he may have, if he asks?
Appreciate the insight, y'all, thank you.
Disability is backdated to the day you apply for it. 60% is a solid initial rating for mental health alone. 70% is usually the max, unless you're severely jacked up. You can always appeal/file for increase.
If you're a vet, did you file for claims as well? Don't forget to lookout for yourself as well.
Can totally understand that position. I’m willing to bet there’s still other claims that you can possibly do. Just need to research and see what applies
Call this company it has helped 7 people I know move up there percentage up to 90-100. https://www.reemedical.com/
There is a rating schedule for each disability. For PTSD, as an example, the “VA assigns a disability rating ranging from 0 to 100 percent with in-between ratings of 10, 30, 50, and 70 percent. These ratings are based on the level of social and occupational impairment, as well as the frequency, duration, and severity of symptoms.”
You would need to look at this schedule and see how he lined up to 70% or 100%.. assuming this is specifically for PTSD. I basically have PTSD but they diagnosed it as Major Depressive Disorder, so my rating had to follow a different schedule.
You can find that here: https://cck-law.com/blog/ptsd-rating-scale-explained/#:~:text=veteran's%20claims%20file.-,Once%20a%20veteran's%20PTSD%20is%20service%2Dconnected%2C%20VA%20rates%20this,%2C%2050%2C%20and%2070%20percent.
For the date, it’ll be based on the date he filed. It can’t be pushed further retroactively because treatment was sought.
For your own past trauma, you can always do an Intent to File. This basically locks in the day you submit that as the date your disability would be backdated to, if it were successful. That Intent to File gives you a one year window to file. I’ve heard the bar is relatively low for military sexual trauma as it’s hard to prove (or disprove) for a variety of reasons, but I can understand the hesitation in reliving it through the filing process. If and when you’re ready, a therapist could probably help you navigate through all the old trauma. A ton of long term upside in filing though.
Thank you so much for leaving this comment. I went researching MST related PTSD last night after reading, and you're right: a lot has changed since I separated.
The fact that this brings me to tears tells me I'm not as "over it" or "okay" as I've thought. I have been so worried about my husband for the past 11 years... I realize now I've been in survival mode since 2005.
When he got approved the other day, he said, "well, at least our mortgage is paid for," just kind of off-handedly, and I can't stop thinking about it. Because it's true -- we'll likely never be homeless again. That kind of reassurance has opened up an unexpected emotional floodgate (not in an immediate crisis kind of way, more an epiphany type of experience) and I just want to thank you for putting the info out there.
Just some thoughts:
- Congrats on him getting a rating, I know the process is hard and can be even more challenging when it come to MH things
- There is no 60% rating for MH, it is 0, 10, 30, 50, 70, or 100 percent.
- That means that he was probably rated at 50% and there is some other disability that is bringing him up to 60%
- At 50% it means the veteran has some impairment in the ability to function socially and at work resulting from a lack of reliability and productivity
- The next level is 70% which means the veteran is unable to function in most social and work areas
- Backpay is typically only to the intent to file date or the date the application was put in unfortunately
To really get an understanding of what else is possible, you will have to look at his decision letter. It will state why the higher level was not met and why the lower one was.