How To Prove Arthritis Is Service-connected

Some time ago, I ran into a Veteran at the grocery store.

He was wearing his 'Vietnam Veteran' hat and… as I always practise… I made a indicate to go and ask him where he served.

We talked a bit well-nigh the departure betwixt the Vietnam era Regular army (the i he knew) and the modern Regular army (the one I know), and then he asked me: "What do you do now?"

I told him about my law do representing veterans before the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC), and I told him near the work I've done on the Veterans Police force Blog® since 2007.

Then he asked: "I had a stroke a few years back. Can I service connect that?"

The answer I gave him was shorter than I liked considering nosotros were in a grocery store checkout line.

But here is what I would take told him if I had the time to give him the full "scoop" and talk to him virtually how advocates, the VA, the BVA and the CAVC define service connectedness.

There are 5 Paths to Service Connection.

What you are ultimately trying to prove in any VA service connection disability compensation merits is that yous have a electric current disability that is related to your armed forces service.

Almost veterans practice not take a problem proving to the VA that they have a inability. And virtually veterans do non take difficulty proving what happened to them in service.

Where most veterans run into trouble with the VA is when they effort to show the relationship betwixt the current disability and what happened to them in service. The VA won't tell you all the ways that yous can evidence to them you accept a VA service connected inability. Have a look at the VA website and see exactly how LITTLE the VA tells y'all near how to prove your claim for service connectedness of a current disability.

As an aside, I've often wondered most this – what does the VA accept to hide? Why are they and then worried about instruction veterans how to prove a VA claim for service connection? It seems rather silly for the VA to tell Congress and the Courts that it has some non-adversarial claims process where information technology helps veterans recover the benefits they are entitled to every bit a upshot of a military service connected disability, while at the aforementioned time not didactics veterans about the law, process or regulations. As a wise gauge once said…if you deed like you have something to hide, you probably have something to hibernate.

So, without any further delay, permit's take a look at the 5 different ways that you can prove up a VA service connected disability or, better said, testify the relationship between your current disability and your military service.

#one: Direct Service Connectedness.

This is, by far, the most mutual manner of proving service connection. In that location are 2 ways to do information technology.

In the outset mode, yous have a medical expert explain to the VA the relationship between your military service and your current disability. The VA will often send you lot out for a C&P examination, but the C&P system is designed to deny all but the simplest of claims. You can besides get your own private medical stance to help constitute nexus.

In the second mode, you practice not demand an expert medical opinion connecting the electric current disability to military service.

You show service connection of your disability by showing what is called "continuity of symptomatology": that y'all have had continuous symptoms of your disability from service to diagnosis. You can prove a claim like this using just lay evidence – you exercise non need to provide a medical adept opinion. That'due south the upside. There are 2 downsides to this type of merits: it is merely available for a express number or blazon of weather, and the VA and BVA often overlook this theory of service connection, requiring years and decades of appeals to the CAVC.

#ii: Secondary Service Connection.

The second way to found your disability and military machine service are related is by showing a link between a service-connected medical condition and another inability.

The "catch" is that the link between the 2 conditions has to be cause and effect: the inability that has been service connected acquired the second inability. This blazon of service connection cannot be proved by lay testimony, except in the rarest of rare situations.

Nearly every time, you will need a medical expert opinion to establish secondary service connection. Learn more about secondary service connectedness past watching the video at this link.

#3: Service Connection due to Aggravation.

This is, technically, a form of "secondary" service connection.

This type of claim requires a veteran prove that the service connected disability aggravates, or worsens beyond natural progression, a non-service connected disease or disability. For example, if you take service connected sleep apnea, and not-service continued PTSD, you can oft fence that the sleep apnea aggravated your PTSD or made information technology worse.

Yous will invariably need both lay evidence and medical evidence to establish service connectedness using an "aggravation" theory.

Circumspection: practise not confuse proving service connection by aggravation with the presumption of aggravation.

The presumption of aggravation applies when a veteran has a pre-existed condition noted on a military service entrance examination. That condition ispresumed aggravated by military service unless the VA can provide clear and convincing evidence that the status got worse not because of military service, but because of the natural progression of the disease or disability.

#4: Presumptive Service Connection

Proving service connexion is all about proving the relationship between your current disability and your military service.

Sometimes, yet, the police force itself provides that relationship. Such scenarios are known every bit "presumptions" in the law.

Some presumptions – similar the presumption of soundness, the presumption of aggravation, and the presumption of regularity are procedural or testify related legal presumptions.

However, in that location are several laws that require the VA to assume that there is a relationship between your service in the military and your current inability. Those include:

"1st year presumption." Some conditions, when they present to a compensable degree within the first yr following service, are presumed service connected.
Radiation exposure can be the presumed cause of certain disabilities if your service is during certain times, in certain locations, or in sure jobs
The most famous presumption is the Agent Orange exposure presumption, which is actually comprised of 2 separate presumptions: based on dates and locations of service, your exposure to Agent Orange tin can exist presumed. And, if y'all have Agent Orangish exposure – presumed or actually proved – if you have specific disabilities those will be presumed related to the Agent Orangish exposure.
The constabulary and regs surrounding Gulf State of war Syndrome let for some presumptions of nexus
The Camp Lejeune presumption – presuming that certain diseases are related to proven service at Army camp Lejeune in a certain time range – is probably the about contempo legal presumption.

There are other presumptions, and this is not the post to go in depth into all of the presumptions. The above are examples meant to explain what presumptive service connection is.

#5: Disabled during VA medical treatment.

The 5th and final method of proving that a electric current disability is related to military service doesn't really have anything to do with military service.

If you are disabled or die while receiving VA medical intendance, the resulting disease or disability will exist treated as if it is service continued.

Service connectedness past reason of medical malpractice – a so-called Department 1151 claim – is incredibly complicated, incredibly individualized, and often requires knowledge of land law in the state where the injury occurred or the veteran lives.

For that reason, I don't go into depth on Section 1115 claims, because you are improve off talking to an experienced VA medical malpractice advocate. 1 of my favorite advocates for these types of claims is Erin Steffin. Tell her Chris Attig sent ya'.

Want to Learn How to go virtually PROVING service connectedness in your VA Claim?

Are you lot ready to larn how to really Show service connection in your VA claim or appeal?

I have prepared an online video training class for you to use. This 5+ hour course is loaded with data: I share with you a decade of experience proving service connectedness for thousands of veterans, and have shared all sorts of forms and examples.

The preparation module is available for purchase on the Veterans Law Blog® by clicking here. In one case yous purchase information technology, you can come back and watch it over and over over again, equally many times as you like.

You are not going to find service connexion training this thorough anywhere else.

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