The questions veterans ask us most, answered the way we would explain them on the phone. No jargon, no sales pitch.
Why 50% plus 30% is 70%, not 80%. How the VA combines disability ratings, how rounding works, and why two veterans with the same conditions can end up with different numbers.
What each part of a VA rating decision means, where the effective date and rating are, what "deferred" means, and what your options are if you disagree.
A deferred condition on your VA decision is not a denial. What it means, why it happens, how long it usually takes, and what you should do while you wait.
An Intent to File locks in your VA effective date up to a year before your claim is ready. What it is, how long it lasts, how to submit one, and the mistakes that cost veterans months of back pay.
Denied or rated too low? The VA gives you three ways to ask for a new look. Which one fits, the deadlines, the forms, and how long each takes as of 2026.
The VA claim exam, also called a C&P exam, is where your rating is often decided. Who schedules it, what happens, what to say, what the examiner cannot tell you, and why you should never miss it.
The PACT Act made more than 20 conditions presumptive for veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxins. The covered locations and dates, the conditions list, and how to file or refile.
Back pay is the difference between what the VA owed you from your effective date and what it paid. How the VA sets effective dates for new claims, increases, and appeals, and what moves the date earlier.
What a service-connected disability is, the three things every VA claim must show, and the five ways to establish service connection: direct, presumptive, secondary, aggravation, and VA-caused.
A nexus letter is a doctor's written opinion linking your condition to your military service. What it must say, who can write one, when you need it, and when you don't.
What a secondary service-connected condition is, common examples (sleep apnea from PTSD, radiculopathy from a back injury, depression from chronic pain), what the VA requires, and how to claim one.
The VA's rating criteria for sleep apnea (diagnostic code 6847): 0%, 30%, 50% with a CPAP, 100%. What evidence you need, how it connects to service, and why it is often a secondary claim.
The VA's General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders as applied to PTSD (diagnostic code 9411): what 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100% mean, what the C&P exam looks for, and how to document your symptoms.
What Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) is, the rating thresholds (60% single or 70% combined with one at 40%), what counts as substantially gainful employment, the forms (21-8940, 21-4192), and the evidence that wins it.
What a permanent and total (P&T) VA disability rating is, how it differs from a plain 100% rating, how the VA decides permanence, the benefits it unlocks (CHAMPVA, Chapter 35 education, state benefits), and how to find out if you have it.
Who counts as a VA dependent (spouse, children under 18, students 18 to 23, disabled adult children, dependent parents), the 30% threshold, how to add them (VA Form 21-686c, 21-674), and the one-year rule for back pay.
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