Irish 2.0 said:

---

VA disabiltity should be offset by their employment. If they're working a job while still collecting disability, they're not that disabled.

---

What if they can work a job but can't maintain personal relationships due to PTSD? Their marriage fails, or they can't play with their kids due to physical limitations? Work is only one aspect of life.

BigRobSA said:

---

Teslag said:

---

I wouldn't say PTSD is easy to get. I got 30% but that was because of indirect fire and time being a 68W on first deployment. However, it was lowered to 0% after therapy/medication. Could I have milked it for more? Probably. But I hate therapy and actually wanted it treated.

---

It's VERY easy to get.

Know of a person, pregnant 2 of the 3 yrs she was in. Never went anywhere other than stateside. 100% due to PTSD.

Yet, my father, enlisted voluntarily during Vietnam and eventually suffered spinal injury requiring spinal fusion (2nd person to have it done in the military, first guy never walked again) and a blown out knee requiring full Reconstruction. Retired and could barely walk at times. 50% .

The system is horribly mismanaged, as one would expect.

---

Situations like your father are exactly why I push everyone I can to file their claims as early as they can. The longer you wait the more time the VA has to be unable to tie something to service.

MarathonAg12 said:

---

I love the uproar in here from people who never served a day in the military, but watched Lone Survivor once and formed the opinion that you need to be marcus luttrell to receive disability.

---

I don't need to have served in the military to assess obvious corruption and fraud. The system is a frickin joke.

OP got disability because he wears a damn CPAP mask.

Ridiculous.

Under your standard, you need to shut your pie hole about the county judge because you've never been a county judge. Come to think of it, you need to shut it for most of the stuff you opine about because you have no experience in most of it.

There is no "gaming" the system. The disabilities and ratings are listed and rating criteria assigned. For example, take irritable bowel syndrome. It has defined rating based on symptoms. If a veteran has IBS and it's tied to service then he's getting 30% on average even if he were a paper pusher. Posted on this board say that's "fraud". It's not. It's a clearly defined disability with a set rating. The government decided it's a compensable condition. To suggest the veteran is engaging in fraud for things like that is simply insulting.

Logos Stick said:

---

MarathonAg12 said:

---

I love the uproar in here from people who never served a day in the military, but watched Lone Survivor once and formed the opinion that you need to be marcus luttrell to receive disability.

---

I don't need to have served in the military to assess obvious corruption and fraud. The system is a frickin joke.

OP got disability because he wears a damn CPAP mask.

Ridiculous.

Under your standard, you need to shut your pie hole about the county judge because you've never been a county judge. Come to think of it, you need to shut it for most of the stuff you opine about because you have no experience in most of it.

---

No, I got 50% because my sleep apnea was a secondary condition related to the primary condition of sinusitis that was presumptive to burn pit exposure. The cpap use automatic rates it at 50%. The sinusitis alone was 50%.

Just keep paying your taxes.

Quote:

---

payment meant to replace an income you theoretically can't earn due to a disability?

---

That's compensation for a bodily injury, combined with loss of future earnings potential.

So you are being compensated for your injury to your body, loss of functionality or whatever the case. And you are being compensated for loss of future earnings as a result of that injury.

A great number of people leave the military with a number of different issues that they have got to deal with for the rest of their life.

Peoples day to day functionality might be hindered by old injuries that become a real problem when you are 40 or 50 or 60 and could greatly impact your earning capacity over the entire course of your life.

The system is designed as an all in one disability compensation scheme separate and apart from SSI/SSDI.

People equate the two because its government, but we are talking about two different concepts.

MarathonAg12 said:

---

I know people with 100% rating.

Trail runners, corporate people.

Maybe you should start lobbying agains't Veterans using benefits they are entitled too.

---

Veterans aren't untouchable to me. I'd vote for anyone willing to reform the ridiculous VA disability system.

Vets in the past didn't leave the service expecting a rating of some kind. It's a relatively new phenomenon. My dad was a combat vet and got no rating. He didn't expect one. He sure as hell wouldn't have taken money for IBS or sinusitis. But those old guys were different.

Irish 2.0 said:

---

Teslag said:

---

Irish 2.0 said:

---

VA disabiltity should be offset by their employment. If they're working a job while still collecting disability, they're not that disabled.

---

What if they can work a job but can't maintain personal relationships due to PTSD? Their marriage fails, or they can't play with their kids due to physical limitations? Work is only one aspect of life.

---

I'm not saying deny them access to medical or mental health needs. Nowhere did I say that and never would. But the VA disability is a giant fraud scheme. When internet gurus and lawyers are consulting people on how to game a system, that creates fraud. Which no one in or out of the military can deny. VA disabilty is rife with massive amounts of fraud!

---

Irish 2.0 said:

---

MarathonAg12 said:

---

Irish 2.0 said:

---

VA disabiltity should be offset by their employment. If they're working a job while still collecting disability, they're not that disabled.

---

One of the most ignorant and tasteless comment I have read on this board.

---

Why? If you're able to do a job that is compensating you, why should you be be collecting the full amount of a disabilty payment meant to replace an income you theoretically can't earn due to a disability?

The insurance industry calls that insurance fraud.

---

It's not fraud. It's a benefit offered to Veterans. I don't know what else to say.

Should people decline their GI Bill benefits because they have a good paying job after they transition out of the military?

Quote:

---

My dad was a combat vet and got no rating.

---

A huge chunk of the WWII and Vietnam generation got way less than they deserved.

I know a Vietnam vet that was an agent Orange handler and is still arguing with the VA about it.

There were a ton of WWII people that shrugged it off and didn't get the benefit that they earned.

Stat Monitor Repairman said:

---

Quote:

---

My dad was a combat vet and got no rating.

---

A huge chunk of the WWII and Vietnam generation got way less than they deserved.

I know a Vietnam vet that was an agent Orange handler and is still arguing with the VA about it.

There were a ton of WWII people that shrugged it off and didn't get the benefit that they earned.

---

My dad didn't have any ailments to get a rating. He would have been the first to tell you that. Again, he would have never dreamed of claiming IBS or sinusitis. He just wasn't built that way. And I highly doubt that was even a possibility when he left the service.

Quote:

---

I know a Vietnam vet that was an agent Orange handler and is still arguing with the VA about it.

---

This is why all of the vets gaming the system should upset you. The system is completely broken.

MarathonAg12 said:

---

Irish 2.0 said:

---

MarathonAg12 said:

---

Irish 2.0 said:

---

VA disabiltity should be offset by their employment. If they're working a job while still collecting disability, they're not that disabled.

---

One of the most ignorant and tasteless comment I have read on this board.

---

Why? If you're able to do a job that is compensating you, why should you be be collecting the full amount of a disabilty payment meant to replace an income you theoretically can't earn due to a disability?

The insurance industry calls that insurance fraud.

---

It's not fraud. It's a benefit offered to Veterans. I don't know what else to say.

Should people decline their GI Bill benefits because they have a good paying job after they transition out of the military?

---

Go do a google search. TONS of vets gaming the VA system. It's okay to call that out. In fact, as a vet you should feel an obligation to do so.

Mary Bailey said:

---

MarathonAg12 said:

---

I know people with 100% rating.

Trail runners, corporate people.

Maybe you should start lobbying agains't Veterans using benefits they are entitled too.

---

Veterans aren't untouchable to me. I'd vote for anyone willing to reform the ridiculous VA disability system.

Vets in the past didn't leave the service expecting a rating of some kind. It's a relatively new phenomenon. My dad was a combat vet and got no rating. He didn't expect one. He sure as hell wouldn't have taken money for IBS or sinusitis. But those old guys were different.

---

I've claimed nothing. I got 11Bs with shrapnel and bolts still lodged in them but still haven't claimed anything. He doesn't want to get the shrapnel removed because it reminds him of the friends he lost from the IED. He had to pick up pieces of his friends off the ground.

Your comment of "those old guys were different" is pretty upsetting to me. No doubt I have been around WWII vets, Korea and Vietnam and they have amazing stories and deserve their story to be told. But we failed them as a country when Vietnam Vets came back to the US.

I've burried my best friends and saw their daughters get their father's flag presented to them. They were some of the most loyal and amazing people I knew.

Amazing men and women still serve in the military. Does the VA need to be reformed? Absolutely, but don't cast stones at present day military members who utilize resources offered by the VA. It's not their fault the system is screwed up.

We curse the VA for not taking care of veterans but shame the veteran for getting the care.

I appreciate your dad's service.

I took the overall tone of this thread as people crapping on VA benefits. Is there people who abuse the system? Yes. Does the VA need reform? Yes.

If I misread the tone in here then I apologize. But it struck a chord with me. I got to look out for my fellow Vets. It's what I do.

Mary Bailey said:

---

Stat Monitor Repairman said:

---

Quote:

---

My dad was a combat vet and got no rating.

---

A huge chunk of the WWII and Vietnam generation got way less than they deserved.

I know a Vietnam vet that was an agent Orange handler and is still arguing with the VA about it.

There were a ton of WWII people that shrugged it off and didn't get the benefit that they earned.

---

My dad didn't have any ailments to get a rating. He would have been the first to tell you that. Again, he would have never dreamed of claiming IBS or sinusitis. He just wasn't built that way. And I highly doubt that was even a possibility when he left the service.

Quote:

---

I know a Vietnam vet that was an agent Orange handler and is still arguing with the VA about it.

---

This is why all of the vets gaming the system should upset you. The system is completely broken.

---

It doesn't upset me because VA is a system designed to deal with millions of people under a common regime.

Nobody makes a big deal out of Brenda at the office on group plan with her fybromyalgia with 5 adhd kids and a husband with all kind of claimed issues between them

Nobody says that system is broken and you never hear anybody comment on that or complain about that. Why should any one worry about the VA in that regard?

And with regard to sinisitis, thats an extremely common problem with OIF OEF people because of silica dust, concrete dust fumes from vehicles, burn pits. Living in that kind of environment leads to respiratory issues then, and later in life.

IBS is the same way. Foreign parasites and all kinds of things related to food and water quality.

So your dad probably did have ailments to get a rating, but it's that he rejected accepting an earned benefit on general principle. thats fine. But what I'm saying is that alot ot those older guys rejected it when they would have been betteroff getting treated or monitored for the rest of their life. Things exasterbate when you get older. Especially with skeletal muscular issues and old injuries. But this was the WW2 depression era generation and most were happy to be alive and happy with whatever they got to the detriment of their future self.

TxTarpon said:

---

Teslag said:

---

Texas passed a law last year that disability tags do not allow parking in handicapped spaces.

---

It is not like police patrol for that.
That law is for when someone in a wheelchair van is unable to park because of the illegally parked vehicles.
They can call and maybe, if the jurisdiction has enough police working (thank you defunded short staffing) police could show up an ticket the offenders.

---

Most larger cities in Texas have citizen programs where you can take a short class and ticket handicap violations. Be part of the solution and take the class. I did the one in Austin 10+ years ago. Was super simple

Tell those people to get signed up with the VA. They aren't doing themselves any favors by rejecting an earned benefit.

Explain it in the same way I explained above.

Sometimes riding it out leads to needless suffering later in life.

MarathonAg12 said:

---

I appreciate your dad's service.

I took the overall tone of this thread as people crapping on VA benefits. Is there people who abuse the system? Yes. Does the VA need reform? Yes.

If I misread the tone in here then I apologize. But it struck a chord with me. I got to look out for my fellow Vets. It's what I do.

---

No one was crapping on those who truly need the VA resources. No one. That is not all vets, though. Tons are getting money for questionable "ailments." Again, do some research. But be warned you'll be disappointed by those gaming the system. It's gross.

We can agree to disagree.

Thanks if you served.

Teslag said:

---

There is no "gaming" the system. The disabilities and ratings are listed and rating criteria assigned. For example, take irritable bowel syndrome. It has defined rating based on symptoms. If a veteran has IBS and it's tied to service then he's getting 30% on average even if he were a paper pusher. Posted on this board say that's "fraud". It's not. It's a clearly defined disability with a set rating. The government decided it's a compensable condition. To suggest the veteran is engaging in fraud for things like that is simply insulting.

---

Yes, there is. The person in my previous post with PTSD went psych hunting to find a doctor that would eventually sign her rating papers. She's every bit a fraud and liar with regards to her "disability" .

Stat Monitor Repairman said:

---

Tell those people to get signed up with the VA. They aren't doing themselves any favors by rejecting an earned benefit.

Explain it in the same way I explained above.

Sometimes riding it out leads to needless suffering later in life.

---

Will do. Yeah, I've work closely with Veteran Services departments among a variety of Texas Higher Education institutions. My focus is to make sure universities are being inclusive to Veterans and making sure they understand that they are Non-Traditional Students. Schools spend thousands of dollars on LGBTQ and minority programs, but Veteran students need attention too. We did research to attempt to understand the gaps between the Veterans the college. Got some great data and my supervisor was able to publish it and is presenting it now. Hopefully it leads to more programming and funding for vets on campus from a holistic approach.

The VA is a whole different animal. But people who need care should get it. And in a timely manner.

Vets get no worker's comp and can't sue the government even if willfully harmed (see the Feres doctrine and LSD testing done to unwitting veterans in the 1960s -- ruined their lives and they had no idea why; barred from suing the government when things eventually came to light).

I'm for every Veteran getting something if they are injured and dealing with things due to their service. Maybe some stepped up auditing and enforcement would handle the freeloaders.

BigRobSA said:

---

Teslag said:

---

There is no "gaming" the system. The disabilities and ratings are listed and rating criteria assigned. For example, take irritable bowel syndrome. It has defined rating based on symptoms. If a veteran has IBS and it's tied to service then he's getting 30% on average even if he were a paper pusher. Posted on this board say that's "fraud". It's not. It's a clearly defined disability with a set rating. The government decided it's a compensable condition. To suggest the veteran is engaging in fraud for things like that is simply insulting.

---

Yes, there is. The person in my previous post with PTSD went psych hunting to find a doctor that would eventually sign her rating papers. She's every bit a fraud and liar with regards to her "disability" .

---

What a load of bull*****

There are no "ratings papers". When you file a VA claim you will be scheduled for a compensation & pension exam (C&P) and this will be handled by your regional VA center. The examiner will be chosen by the VA. You can't "shop" a claims exam. Now, you can find a doctor on your own that will give you a diagnosis, however that diagnosis and exam will be submitted by you and part of a nexus of claim evidence. And no examiner will ever sign or even attribute a rating. Ratings are only done by in house VA ratings examiners and then sign off by the a supervisory examiner before final determination prior to being official.

I know this process front to back and your story isn't correct. At all.

ttt

If you are retired and receive VA disability under 50%, that disability is deducted from your retirement pay.

Teslag said:

---

BigRobSA said:

---

Teslag said:

---

There is no "gaming" the system. The disabilities and ratings are listed and rating criteria assigned. For example, take irritable bowel syndrome. It has defined rating based on symptoms. If a veteran has IBS and it's tied to service then he's getting 30% on average even if he were a paper pusher. Posted on this board say that's "fraud". It's not. It's a clearly defined disability with a set rating. The government decided it's a compensable condition. To suggest the veteran is engaging in fraud for things like that is simply insulting.

---

Yes, there is. The person in my previous post with PTSD went psych hunting to find a doctor that would eventually sign her rating papers. She's every bit a fraud and liar with regards to her "disability" .

---

What a load of bull*****

There are no "ratings papers". When you file a VA claim you will be scheduled for a compensation & pension exam (C&P) and this will be handled by your regional VA center. The examiner will be chosen by the VA. You can't "shop" a claims exam. Now, you can find a doctor on your own that will give you a diagnosis, however that diagnosis and exam will be submitted by you and part of a nexus of claim evidence. And no examiner will ever sign or even attribute a rating. Ratings are only done by in house VA ratings examiners and then sign off by the a supervisory examiner before final determination prior to being official.

I know this process front to back and your story isn't correct. At all.

---

Sorry for using vernacular.

Yes, she gamed the system. Hardcore. You also knew "vaccines" and COVID, so your "expertise" on anything is called into question.

Again, how did she "game" the system? A single shopped doctor won't decide a VA claim.

Teslag said:

---

Again, how did she "game" the system? A single shopped doctor won't decide a VA claim.

---

She doesn't have PTSD. Yet, being a nurse, knows what to say to get approved.

You having worked the system yourself means exactly dick. to be honest. I also did paperwork, etc, for my dad, yet I'm no expert. Just an expert in HIS case. The woman I'm talking about is the mother of my child. I've seen the paperwork, been to the VA with her, etc.

Is there fraud? Sure.

How much? I would assume no one knows but this is a situation where I think it's better to pay those that need it and the bad apples. Otherwise, you run the risk of the opposite, missing those that truly need it.

It would be too costly to review every single person extensively and with follow ups, to ensure there is no abuse of the system.

BigRobSA said:

---

Teslag said:

---

Again, how did she "game" the system? A single shopped doctor won't decide a VA claim.

---

She doesn't have PTSD. Yet, being a nurse, knows what to say to get approved.

You having worked the system yourself means exactly dick. to be honest. I also did paperwork, etc, for my dad, yet I'm no expert. Just an expert in HIS case. The woman I'm talking about is the mother of my child. I've seen the paperwork, been to the VA with her, etc.

---

But that's not what you had said, you claimed she had someone sign her "ratings papers". That's not a thing and not remotely how it works. Could she be making it up? Sure, but she would still need verifiable trigger that caused the PTSD. You can't just "answer the questions correctly". I'm a volunteer with the Disabled American Veterans and have spent countless hours helping veterans get what they need and deserve. PTSD has some abuse, but it's not nearly the rubber stamp people think it is. The only one close is tinnitus.

Veterans still won't catch up to the Covid fraud payouts to businesses
How many billion was that