There are a great many
health risks related to life in the military. The obvious ones are the risk of
injury from the physical requirements and physical dangers that are natural to
the military.
Just as real, but much
less recognized, are the risk of future illnesses caused by exposure to various
environments/substances, whether chemicals, agents, radiation, etc. Many
conditions caused by exposure do not develop until after the service member
leaves the military.
These conditions are
considered
service-connected and do qualify for
VA Disability as long as there
is
PROOF that the service
member was indeed exposed to the cause while in the military. Less proof is needed, however, if the conditions are included on the
VA Presumptive List.
Since these conditions
don’t develop until later, many service members don’t properly prepare for this
possible future when leaving the military. Because they seem to be in fine
physical condition, they see no need to mess with any disability issues. They
simply leave the military and continue on with their lives.
This negligence is the
cause of a great deal of stress and headache for a lot of our veterans.
After separation, many
veterans develop conditions that are service-connected. They prepare and submit
a
VA Disability Claim only to have their claim denied or for the VA to request
further evidence.
The VA
must
have PROOF that every condition a veteran has is
service-connected. This goes
for every veteran and every condition. No one is exempt.
Because these
particular vets didn’t have any health concerns while in the military, though, their
medical records do not provide the proper proof they need. The only way to
prove to the VA that their conditions are service-connected is to be able to
prove that they were exposed to the environment/substance that is known to
cause their condition.
This proof can come in
the form of a letter from their commander stating that they were exposed to
x-chemical or x-whatever. The info about the exposure must be detailed. Just
saying that they were exposed to chemicals isn’t enough. The VA needs to know
exactly which chemical it was and how much they were exposed.
There are some
stations that are known to have caused exposure to certain things during
certain periods of time. For example, all service members stationed at Amchitka
Island, AK before 1974 were exposed to large amounts of radiation. If they
develop leukemia later on, then all they would have to do is prove to the VA
that they were in fact stationed there before that date.
Some types of jobs are
also known for greater exposure to certain things, just like coal miners
develop lung conditions because of the amount of coal dust they inhale. Proof
of your job assignment and the length of time you were in contact with those
substances would be sufficient proof.
If you submit a claim
to the VA without sufficient proof, they will come back to you and tell you
what further proof they need. Then comes the hard part of getting this proof.
It is always easier to
get this proof while you are still in the military. If you know that you have
been exposed to an environment known for causing conditions, get a letter from
your commander that states that you were exposed to that environment. Make sure
that the letter is clear about exactly what you were exposed to. Just saying
you were exposed to something in general is not good enough. The VA must have
specifics.
If you have already
left the military, you are still going to need this same proof, but it will
probably be much more difficult for you to get it. Try contacting the commander
or division you were in when you were exposed. You may have to make quite a few
phone calls, but be persistent. This proof is VITAL to your VA Disability and
thus to your future. There is no easy answer to getting this info. Just do
whatever you can.
We were recently
contacted by a veteran with
COPD. While in the military, he was diagnosed with
bronchitis,
which is often a symptom of COPD. It is not, however, COPD. You can have
bronchitis without having COPD. After leaving the military, he was officially
diagnosed with COPD. The VA came back to him after he submitted his VA
Disability Claim, requesting evidence of his exposure to chemicals.
Since he was not
diagnosed with COPD while he was in the military, the only way for him to get
disability for it is for him to prove that he was exposed to chemicals known to
cause it. He must now go back to his commanders/units/stations/etc., trying to
find this evidence.
If you are now
preparing to leave the military, make sure to arm yourself with any and all
proof of your exposure to substances and environments that could cause health
conditions in the future. Having this evidence will save you a great deal of
time and headache if you ever develop a condition in the future.
