SERVING
Those That
SERVED
Questions & Answers
INSTRUCTIONS: Please read each question carefully. If you are able to answer question appropriately use the form below the question to respond. Your name will not appear on the public answer page. Only your initials and date of your response will be visible.
Q809: For more than 20 years the VA told me to file for disability benefits my primary care doc says I have PTSD. I refused until now but is it too late to file a claim?
If you have a question about benefits, compensation, pension or VA related issues please submit here.
Use Form Below To Respond
Your generous gift will go directly to helping veterans and dependents. We simply cannot continue without your help for our community of veterans and dependents who count on us for our Veteran Pantry. Your support will make a lasting impact.
A1: No, it is not "too late". I recently assisted a Vietnam Vet who was discharged in 1974 and waited and procrastinated until I finally convinced him to file for PTSD disability. It took only 5 months for his claim to be processed and he was awarded 70% for his PTSD. You may reach out to me at my email address. (MG) 1/7/22
A2: I waited 25 years. No big deal. I am SVC at 40%. File any time before you die. (HJ) 1/7/22
A3: Yes, and if you can prove you tried to file earlier you could receive all the back pay as well. (DD) 1/7/22
A4: No, it's never too late to file for disability or the wartime pension. I would seek the counsel of an accredited VSO. If you'd like to get a head start, take a look at the VA Form 21-781, Statement in Support of Claim for Service Connection for PTSD. If you have a CIB, CAB, Purple Heart, etc, (conceded stressor) something showing you actually engaged in combat, the 21-781 is a formality. VA still needs the form, though. In the absence of the conceded stressor, you will need to be more specific and detailed when completing the 781. When the VA gets the 781 and your stressor incident looks like it may be able to be verified, the VA will forward it to the Joint Services Records Research Committee, whose job is to verify that things happened within DOD. If the JSRRC verifies the incident and you have a clinical diagnosis of PTSD, the VA may service connect you. (DS) 1/7/22
A5: Many Vietnam veterans wait and wait and wait and I was one of them. I filed many claims last year and I was awarded disability for all of my claims. It's never too late. (BP) 1/7/22
A6: It is never to late to file a claim for disability. Don't file for PTSD, if you have been diagnosed with major depression, anxiety, panic attacks and sleep apnea file for those. Also most Veterans can file for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. (GR) 1/7/22
A7: The simple answer is NO, it is not too late. (RJ) 1/7/22
A8: Its never too late. I came home from Nam in 1970 and got started filling for benefits in 2017 and got 100% in 2019, backdated to 2018. GO FOR IT and DON'T GIVE UP. (RR) 1/7/22