Many veterans return to civilian life with some form of disability, but unfortunately, not all of them get the support they need to thrive. One of the most significant forms of aid that the Department of Veterans Affairs provides, beyond scholarships and home loans, is disability assistance; however, a significant portion of disability claims are denied upon the first application. This can be deeply disheartening, especially if you’re struggling to pay medical bills or are not able to work due to your disability.
Thankfully, there is help available: VA claims coaches. These organizations are run by veterans, for veterans, and offer both education and referrals that will ensure you have the best possible chances of getting the full compensation you deserve. While there are many reasons that a VA disability claims consultant is helpful, these are the three most powerful advantages that working with these organizations provides to veterans navigating the complex work of VA disability support.
VA claims are complex: they require a variety of documentation, and you need to fill out the application exactly as requested in order to ensure that you’re approved. There are numerous deadlines, and the legalese that comes with your claim might be hard to translate, especially when you’re already stressed due to your disability.
A VA claims consulting agency has a variety of educational materials that will help demystify the process for you. When you connect with them, they’ll take a full assessment of your situation, find you the proper medical personnel who can help, and coach you every step of the way so that you’re fully familiar with everything. You can connect with them whenever you need to and get prudent, straightforward answers that might be difficult to attain from the Department of Veterans Affairs itself.
In order to have your claim approved, you must prove that the health problem you are struggling with is directly related to your service. For example, if you have hearing loss or PTSD after discharge, you need a statement from a medical professional that supports this assertion.
This is called a nexus statement, and not every physician has familiarity with what this entails or how to craft a convincing statement.
VA claims consulting organizations have a network of physicians with whom they can connect you. These professionals are deeply familiar with the claims process and will be able to correctly connect your disability to your military service. It can be difficult to find these doctors on your own, as you would need to call each potential doctor and ask about their familiarity with VA claims; a VA coach makes this easy, as they’ve already done the legwork for you.
Being a veteran can be incredibly isolating. If you don’t have family who served, they may not understand how to support you or know what you need in terms of disability care. It can feel as if you’re going through this entirely alone, even if you have a loving support system that wants to help you reintegrate into civilian life.
VA claims coaches know exactly what you’re going through because they’ve been there themselves - and they’ve helped hundreds of others just like you successfully navigate the VA’s bureaucracy. Their resources and contacts will provide you with much-needed clarity, as well as a sense of belonging and confidence that you can’t get from those who haven’t been through this process. Through these agencies, you can connect with thousands of other veterans who are going through the same struggles, listen to podcasts from veterans about their experiences, and download helpful guides for the most pressing issues you may face while you strive to get disability support.
More than that, working with a coach reminds you that thousands of others have been through the exact same thing and have successfully received compensation from the VA. This can provide hope and encouragement throughout the frustrating and dispiriting claims process, which will help you keep going when it may feel like the VA isn’t listening or acknowledging what you’ve been through.
Veterans have unique perspectives and needs thanks to their service, which is why it’s so important that they work with those who can fully understand what they’re going through. This is especially true when making a disability claim, which is why so many veterans turn to coaches in order to get their claims approved. You can get in touch with one of these consulting agencies today, taking the first step toward getting the care you need.