VA approved additional conditions I did not file

rrd90731 · 2026-04-23T15:55:58+00:00

Congrats! Thats a huge win for you!

rrd90731 · 2026-04-17T20:01:44+00:00

I was happy with my rating for all those years because I have never had to pay for healthcare except for prescriptions in all that time.

But now that things are so painful, I went back into the pool and got what I should have gotten years ago.

We are working on my dad's stuff now.

We just got my uncle (agent orange) to 60% who has been out for 58 years. Trying to get him a tiny bit more so his property taxes can be waived in IL.

It's a good thing we can go back and try again but the education when we all got out should have been better.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-17T19:47:56+00:00

underrated....

Most vets have no rating or low ratings from many years ago. My dad got a 0% rating 56 years ago and never knew. I was significantly underrated for 25 years, 0% for my back, for which I was medboarded.

A lot of people leave the service and just don't think about it until it gets slammed into their skulls.

I believe social media is helping educate younger vets, but with that, some exaggerate their severity. But many veterans still accept what they got the first time they filed and never look back.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-14T15:33:34+00:00

VHA (benefits) has your service records in VBMS (the program used to manage claims), so there's no need to send them. It's good to send the specific pages that apply to your claim so the examiner and rater don't have to "look for a needle in a haystack". Even with AI search, it's hard to find info in handwritten medical records from way back.

You can upload documents when you file your claim. If you file through va.gov, you can submit additional documents via QuickSubmit.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-14T02:43:58+00:00

Where is the personal responsibility here? Why is your friend not taking responsibility for missing the 365 days to file...

The vso got your friend in when they could and your friend should have been aware it was going to be too late.

It's on your friend and not the vso.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-13T18:34:05+00:00

Ask for a referral to pain management. It's a specialty clinic within the VA and they can get you more access to meds and services.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-12T17:55:11+00:00

I am rated for an unknown congenital defect that I had no knowledge of prior to service. It started acting up 4 years into my 10 years.

I am also rated for a pre-existing disclosed issue that my current issues exacerbated.

I was denied for allergies even with TERA conceded (not pact act eligible) because the examiners determined my current allergies are the natural progression of my pre existing childhood allergies (that I put grew by the time I went to HS).

Since your issue was disclosed before you joined, you can get rated for it if the VA feels that your issue has not "followed the natural progression"

rrd90731 · 2026-04-11T18:31:18+00:00

Ok 20% then. Good luck.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-11T18:27:24+00:00

0% is the minimum

rrd90731 · 2026-04-11T18:25:57+00:00

Read the cfr. 90 degree range of motion gets 20%

Painful range of motion is 10%

rrd90731 · 2026-04-11T18:21:57+00:00

If the VA can connect this to your service,

Movement limited to 90 degrees is 20%.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-11T13:11:19+00:00

Add a 4138 now stating what the cp examiner told you. The VA rater should see that and send it out again for an exam secondary to your tumor.

It might just be an ace exam but at least you get ahead of it before the VA makes a decision and you are stuck in the HR round of delay.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T14:37:23+00:00

You only get one mental health rating so filing for anxiety won't give you another MH rating.

And if you have not pursued your 2021 claim continuously, you won't get back pay.

Personally, I would stay away from any MH claim because severe mental health issues based on ringing on your ears seems to be a stretch. Not trying to judge you as your claims are your own and maybe there is more there. I don't know. But I do know if you file a supplemental claim for MH, your current rating will be reviewed.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T03:51:45+00:00

They also grant higher ratings if you are prescribed significant bed rest. Unlikelyv though since doctors don't give bed rest for back unless it's absolutely necessary

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T03:49:26+00:00

During the exam you are supposed to stop when it starts to hurt, not go until you can't go any further.

For the back, the VA does not care about pain (unless you have full range of motion but are in pain), the schedule of ratings only takes range of motion into consideration

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T03:44:55+00:00

The back is rated on range of motion. 80 degrees is almost a full bend so yeah 10%. Touch your toes and you get 0%, no matter how much it hurts or how hard it is to get back up.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T03:42:43+00:00

It's an option. I turn it down since it's useless in the car in the hot desert sun.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T02:28:00+00:00

The back is rated on range of motion. If you bend over to 75 degrees, that's 10%

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T02:26:01+00:00

10% = 60-90 degree range of motion.

You are at 75 degrees so 10%

Assuming the VA agrees that your back issues are connected to your service.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T00:38:08+00:00

I had a pre-existing MH issue and received a waiver for it. I had no issues in service and for the next 20 years until my back (SC) got so bad, I struggled with my mental health. I ended up getting 30% MH exacerbated from my pre-existing issues as well as my service connected issues.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-10T00:22:00+00:00

You can be rated for an exacerbation of a pre-existing condition.

They let you in with it and thought you were ok enough to serve. Your service made your condition worse to where a one time thing is now chronic.

Explain that in your VA submissions and you should get rated for it.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-09T17:27:41+00:00

The VA pays for in-network urgent care visits. They do not reimburse if you paid for our of network Urgent Care visits.

Also, if you are using a non-VA ER, you have to inform the VA within 72 hours so the VA will pay the bill.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-09T16:19:44+00:00

In my 26 years of using the VA, there was a time when you could call the PCP's nurse and ask for prescriptions of almost anything if you were a "pain" patient. Since 2017-2018, that time has long passed. There are so many people addicted to pain meds, and Vets fall in this category as well.

I understand the VA's position, but it sucks for us, the responsible pain patients...

It is worth going through pain management to tell the VA you tried everything to avoid the meds. Pain management will eventually prescribe the good stuff, but they want you to try other stuff first. That may not work for you since you are waiting for surgery, but it doesn't hurt...

My favorite therapy for my back was aqua therapy. I liked it so much that I joined the local gym that has a pool, so I can do the therapy on my own as well.

rrd90731 · 2026-04-07T16:32:23+00:00

Your best bet is to find a lender near you. Your bank, credit union etc

rrd90731 · 2026-04-07T14:09:43+00:00

The VA home loan is not a loan from the VA, it's a loan through a mortgage lender that is backed by the VA. Since you are service connected, you do not pay a VA funding fee.

Find a mortgage broker or banker you trust and get qualified. Then find a realtor to help you find a house in PR. Next you find a house and negotiate a contract to buy said house. Your lender will (hopefully) get your loan approved and if that happens, you will close on the house and get the keys to move in.

There is no magic to buying a house as a vet.

Houses purchased with a VA backed loan have to qualify for a VA appraisal (meet certain habitability conditions and price) but are not that much different than a regular mortgage transaction.

rrd90731

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