Ensuring VA Benefits

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I thought this would be of interest to those currently serving.

How to Ensure VA benefits for PTSD or Undocumented Injury or Illness: What the Military and VA won't tell you.10, 20, or 30 years from now you may find yourself suffering from an undocumented psychological or physical injury or illness that originated while you were serving in the military. To obtain disability compensation from the Veteran's Administration you will required to produce evidence or witnesses confirming that your condition is military related. If you are unable to provide evidence or witnesses to the cause of your condition you will not be entitled to the full amount of disability compensation you feel you deserve. The difference between having evidence or producing witnesses could mean receiving less than 10% disability compensation and as much as 100% compensation.To ensure that you will be eligible to receive the fullest amount of deserved disability compensation for any military-related psychological or physical trauma, injury or illness you are advised to fully document your initial condition with a medic or in a letter to a loved one or in a diary you can preserve. You must also collect and maintain a roster of names and addresses of those you serve with. The men and women you serve with today can later serve as eyewitnesses to events or occurrences that produced a condition warranting disability compensation.Rosters of names and addresses should be sent home to a family for safekeeping in a secure location. Copies of rosters can also be preserved by mailing or emailing them to The American War Library (www.amervets.com) for online access archival.Take a lesson from the thousands of Vietnam War era veterans who missed out on obtaining deserved disability benefits because they failed to preserve documentation or witness lists of incidents that caused psychological or physical injury or illness. The majority of these veterans can testify about the many years it has taken them to advance their disability claim through the VA only to have it either approved for far less the deserved compensation percentage or rejected outright because the veteran failed to provide convincing documentation or eyewitness testimony confirming their condition was military related.WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE EXPOSED TO PSYCHOLOGICAL OR PHYSICAL TRAUMA, INJURY OR ILLNESS1. See a medic immediately. Ensure that your examination, diagnosis and treatment is documented in your military file. Obtain a photocopy of your medical report. Mail that report home with instructions it must be placed in a secure location.2. If your incident does not require immediate review by a medic, fully document the incident in great detail and mail your report home with instructions it must be placed in a secure location.3. Obtain the names and addresses of those who witnessed the incident. Also include the names of enlisted and officer superiors as well as a complete (if possible) roster of all the personnel in your unit. Mail this/these lists home with instructions it must be placed in a secure location. You may also mail lists to The American War Library for permanent online archival (www.amervets.com)The above is very important advice to meet the need of any future requirements. 10, 20, 30 years from now you will be eternally grateful for following this advice. Just ask any veteran who is grieving the deprivation of disability compensation because he or she failed to consider the future when they were younger.Note: The above Advisory is also published at URL: http://members.aol.com/veterans/vetben.htm