Veteran (VA) Disability Lawyer Serving New Castle, Pennsylvania
If you are a veteran whose disability benefits were denied, you have the option to appeal the decision. But you do not have to go through the complex appeals process alone.
The experienced team at Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD may be able to help guide you with filing a claim or appealing a VA denial. For a free review of your case, contact us today at (401) 237-6412.
VA Regional Benefit Office Serving New Castle, Pennsylvania
1000 Liberty Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
New Castle, Pennsylvania VA Medical Center
1750 New Butler Road
New Castle, PA 16101
VA Medical Centers Serving New Castle, Pennsylvania
240 West 11th St., Suite 105
Erie, PA 16501
Westmoreland County VA Clinic5274 Rt 30 East, Suite 10 Greensburg, PA 15601
Filing a VA Benefits Appeal
In order to be eligible for VA disability benefits, you must provide proof to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs of:
- An in-service event, injury, or illness;
- A current diagnosis by a medical professional; and
- A medical nexus, or link, between your in-service event, injury, or illness and your current diagnosis.
The medical opinion should also be written to address VA’s standard of proof which is “at least as likely not”. For example, a positive nexus opinion would state that it is “at least as likely as not” that a veteran’s condition is due to service.
If you receive a denial based on your initial claim for VA disability benefits, you have one year to challenge this decision in VA’s modernized appeals system. For help filing an appeal, consider contacting a veterans’ service organization or an accredited legal representative. In VA’s modernized appeals system, you have several options to appeal an initial denial:
- request a Higher-Level Review of the decision by a more senior VA employee;
- submit new and relevant evidence along with a supplemental claim; or
- file a Notice of Disagreement directly with the Board of Veterans’ Appeals.
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VA Disability Compensation Levels
A disability rating is assigned by VA based upon the severity of your disability, and is expressed as a percentage representing the extent to which your disability impacts your ability to function.
You will be assigned a disability rating between 0 and 100 percent, where the higher the percentage, the greater the monthly compensation. In order to qualify for compensation, you must have a disability rating of 10 percent or more.
As of December 1st, 2020 the VA disability rate benefit amounts are as follows:
- 0 percent disability rating: $0.00 per month
- 10 percent disability rating: $144.14 per month
- 20 percent disability rating: $284.93 per month
- 30 percent disability rating: $441.35 per month
- 40 percent disability rating: $635.77 per month
- 50 percent disability rating: $905.04 per month
- 60 percent disability rating: $1,146.39 per month
- 70 percent disability rating: $1,444.71 per month
- 80 percent disability rating: $1,679.35 per month
- 90 percent disability rating: $1,887.18 per month
- 100 percent disability rating: $3,146.42 per month
These are the compensation levels for veterans alone, who do not also have children or a spouse to support. If you have a rating of at least 30 percent, you may receive additional compensation for dependents who live in your home, including a spouse, children, or parents.
How a Veteran (VA) Disability Lawyer Serving New Castle, Pennsylvania Can Help
We understand how complex and overwhelming filing an appeal after a VA disability denial can be.
However, our team is highly experienced and has worked on many cases like yours before, and with great success. Contact Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD at (401) 237-6412 for a complimentary consultation with our team serving New Castle, Pennsylvania.
New Castle Blog Posts
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How to Add College-Aged Dependents to My VA BenefitsIf your combined disability rating is 30 percent or higher, you are eligible to receive additional benefits for qualifying dependents in your household, including children between the ages of 18 and 23 who are still in school. Specifically, 38 CFR § 3.667 states that “compensation may be paid from a child’s 18th birthday based upon […]
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VA Releases New Findings on the Connection Between TBI and DementiaOn June 14, 2019, VA released new findings regarding the connection between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and dementia. Such findings came from a study, “Association of Mild TBI With and Without Loss of Consciousness with Dementia in US Military Veterans” (2018), conducted by VA and the Kristine Yaffe Lab at the University of California, San […]
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VA Disability Ratings for Shrapnel WoundsWhat is a shrapnel wound? Generally speaking, shrapnel refers to sharp, dangerous shards of metal. In the context of VA, shrapnel typically include bomb, mine, or gun shell fragments. As such, shrapnel wounds are injuries due to these metal fragments, originating from some sort of explosive device. Shrapnel wounds are commonly incurred during combat. However, […]