Jump to content
VA Disability Community via Hadit.com

VA Disability Claims Articles

Ask Your VA Claims Question | Current Forum Posts Search | Rules | View All Forums
VA Disability Articles | Chats and Other Events | Donate | Blogs | New Users

  • homepage-banner-2024-2.png

  • donate-be-a-hero.png

  • 0

Currently serving question

Rate this question


mike3070

Question

Hello all,

First time posting on here, found this website while I was looking into medical documentation. I am a Guard member and have a few questions.

How does obtaining a VA rating as far as being in the guard and coming off of active duty title 10 orders ? If I were to have an injury that was not reported while on a deployment due to not wanting to be placed on light duty how would that be reported? also how does the reporting of exposures work ? If I was exposed to smoke, loud noises, fecal matter etc. ? I haven't been through the post deployment process before and I can't din a lot of info on how it all works for guard members.

Thanks for your time

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Answers 4
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters For This Question

Popular Days

Top Posters For This Question

4 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

  • 0
  • Founder

From VA.gov

Your Benefits: Active Guard Reserve

National Guard and Reserve members with active service may qualify for a variety of VA benefits. Active service includes:

  • Active duty (Title 10) - full-time duty, such as, but not limited to, a unit deployment during war, including travel to and from such duty, OR
  • Full-time National Guard duty (Title 32) - full-time duty, such as responding to a national emergency or duties as an Active Guard Reserve, where you receive pay from the Federal government

Home Loans

VA Home Loan benefits help Servicemembers and Veterans purchase, retain, or adapt a home. National Guard and Reserve members may qualify for a VA-guaranteed home loan by meeting one of the following conditions:

  • Six years of service in the Selected Reserve, AND
    • Were discharged honorably, OR
    • Were placed on the retired list, OR
    • Were transferred to the Standby Reserve or an element of the Ready Reserve other than the Selected Reserve after service characterized as honorable, OR
  • Continues to serve in the Selected Reserve longer than six years, OR
  • Served for 90 days or more on active duty (Title 10) during a wartime period, OR
  • Were discharged or released from active duty for a service-connected disability

Our Loan Guaranty Service administers this program.  Learn more about general rules for eligibility and how to apply for a Certificate of Eligibility.

view full benefit page go

Education

VA Education benefits provide financial support for undergraduate and graduate degrees, vocational and technical training, licensing and certification tests, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training. National Guard and Reserve members may be eligible for the following benefits:

  • Post-9/11 GI Bill - at least 90 aggregate days of active service after September 10, 2001, or were discharged with a service-connected disability after serving at least 30 consecutive days after that date.
  • Montgomery GI Bill-Active Duty - There is various eligibility criteria for this program and a minimum service obligation.
  • Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR) - must have 6-year obligation to serve in the Selected Reserve, completed Initial Active Duty for Training (IADT), served in a drill unit and remain in good standing, and have a high school diploma or equivalency.
  • Reserve Educational Assistance Program (REAP) - served on active duty on or after September 11, 2001 for at least 90 consecutive days.

Learn about how to apply on our Apply for Benefits page.

view full benefit page go

Life Insurance

VA Life Insurance programs consider the extra risks involved in military service to provide you and your family with added financial security at competitive rates. Each of the following insurance programs has different eligibility requirements; however, coverage enrollment is automatic for SGLI, FSGLI, and TSGLI.

Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI)

  • National Guard or Reserve member scheduled to perform at least 12 periods of inactive duty training per year, OR
  • Individual Ready Reserve member who volunteers for a mobilization category

Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI):

  • Servicemember separating, retiring, or being released from Reserve or National Guard assignment and already covered by SGL,I OR
  • National Guard or Reserve member covered by part-time SGLI who incurred a disability or aggravated a pre-existing disability while performing inactive duty training or traveling to/from duty, OR
  • Member of the Individual Ready Reserve or Inactive National Guard

You must apply within one year and 120 days from discharge.  However, Servicemembers who submit their application within 240 days of discharge do not need to submit evidence of good health.  Service members who apply after the 240 day period must submit evidence of good health.  You can convert your SGLI to VGLI through eBenefits.

Family Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (FSGLI)

  • Spouse or dependent child of an active duty Servicemember covered by full-time SGLI, OR
  • Spouse or dependent child of a member of the National Guard or Reserve of a uniformed service covered by full-time SGLI

SGLI Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI)

  • Member of the uniformed services and have SGLI, OR
  • Suffered an injury that resulted in a qualifying loss between October 7, 2001 and November 30, 2005

view full benefit page go

Disability Compensation

Disability compensation is a monthly tax-free benefit paid to Veterans who are at least 10% disabled because of injuries or diseases that occurred or were aggravated during active duty or active duty for training. VA also pays Disability Compensation for disabilities from injury, heart attack, or stroke that occurred during inactive duty training. The disability must not be a result of your own willful misconduct, or alcohol or drug abuse.

Veterans with a service-connected disability may also quality for other benefits, including: Automobile Allowance, Clothing Allowance, and Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) or Special Home Adaptation (SHA) Grant.

You can apply for this benefit through eBenefits.

view full benefit page go

Pension

VA Pension provides tax-free monthly benefit to wartime Veterans with limited or no income. Additionally, for establishing eligibility based on Title 32 service, a disability must be shown to have been incurred or aggravated during that service.

view full benefit page go

Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E)

VA provides vocational counseling, job-search assistance, and other education and training services to certain Veterans with a service-connected illnesses or injuries. Learn more about VA's employment services for Veterans with service-connected disabilities.

view full benefit page go

Health Care 

VA health care benefits include all the necessary inpatient hospital care and outpatient services to promote, preserve, or restore your health. Medical, dental, pharmacy, and prosthetic services. For establishing eligibility based on Title 32 service, a disability must be shown to have been incurred or aggravated during that service.

Returning Service Members (OEF/OIF/OND): If you served on active duty in a theater of combat operations after November 11, 1998, you are eligible for an extended period of free VA health care benefits, with enrollment allowed up to 5 years from the date of discharge or release.

view full benefit page go

Burial

VA provides memorial services and allowances to help reimburse burial costs for a Veteran and/or his or her dependents. Burial benefits include burial at a national cemetery, an inscribed headstone, marker, or medallion, an allowance to partially reimburse the burial and funeral costs of a Veteran, a Presidential Memorial Certificate, and an American flag to drape over a Veteran's casket.

Eligibility requires that the Veteran was serving on active duty, or his/her death was due to an injury or disease that developed during, or was aggravated during, active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training.

view full benefit page go

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 0

So even though I'm still serving and plan to continue to remain in the guard I still go through the ebenefits process ? I don't have anything major id like to document. Im just trying to make sure everything is documented for the future as far as making sure it is service connected.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 0
  • Moderator

"Ebenefits" isnt a process.  Yes, you can apply online, through ebenefits, and, if you are lucky, you may be able to check the status through ebenefits.  Most Vets advocates agree that ebenefits is unreliable.  While it can be useful, I just dont count on ebenefits.  

I suggest that even if you apply online through ebenefits, go ahead and submit a paper copy and mail it to the evidence intake center, Certified Mail Return Receipt requested.  

I can not tell you how many times Vets have applied either online or mailed in to VA and they lost that claim.  Yes, VA lost my claims, too.   Tatoo this on your arm, if necessary to remember it:

Quote

You can not trust everthing a VA employee or VSO tells you.  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 0

Mike,

I was in the NG for 27+ years.  The last 12 were as a AGR Soldier.  What I can tell you is from my experience, and not from any help I got from the NG or the VA for that matter.

I am not sure how many years you have in the NG, but if you are close to 20 and plan to make 20, then that will be different.

Now, you can get a VA compensation disability while stile being a active member of the NG.  This is different from an active duty Soldier.  The catch is that monies you get from the VA will offset your drill pay.  In simple terms, if you receive 400 dollars in VA comp and 500 dollars for drill pay, you will only get 100 dollars for drill.  I believe the way it works is you will not receive any drill pay until you VA is recouped from the previous year.  In this example you would not recieve any drill pay until like October.

We did have Soldiers that received more in VA comp then they did in drill pay, so they did not get any drill pay.  Some chose to get out as they were in their first stint (six years) and joined for college bennies and were not sticking around anyway, but then we had older Solders that were within reach of their 20 year letters and drilled for free for a couple years.

Now the VA system,

You need to know, that there is two VA's.  One is for healthcare and one is for compensation.  They are not the same and do not work together well.

I do not know how long it has been since you came back from deployment, but if it wasn't that long ago, you should of had a post deployment physical with the VA.  If not, go see  your County Veterans Service Officers and request one.

After you have that, you should be in the healthcare side of the VA if you are not already there.

Once that is done, get all of your medical records from anytime you were one active duty to include annual training's and any schools you were to to include basic training and AIT (advanced individual training-Army) that you have.  If you are not in a hurry, send to St Louis for them.  Also, your guard unit, especially your state headquarters will have your medical record.  Request copies now even if you are not going to do anything right away.  Just to have.

After you have your records (documentation) you can submit claims for compensation to the other side of the VA.  Persons at the healthcare side will not help or understand for that matter the VA comp side.  Just sayin,.

It will become apparent when you use the VA compensation system, that paper trumps all.  In other words, if it is not in a medical records, it didn't happen.

You mentioned something that happened while deployed, but you didn't get help.  If you can get any written documentation to support it, that is what you will need to do.  A statement from your commander, a buddy statement and a set of orders putting you there.

Since you are still in the Guard you have time to work on this.

Also, the VA treats the Guard as the red headed step child of the military.  WHENEVER, you are asked what service you were in, when talking to the VA about injuries or illnesses that occurred on active duty, state that "my ankle was injured while on active duty in the Air Force, in Iraq", or "my ankle was injured while on active duty at basic training at Ft Leonard Wood", etc.  You are not lying, if that is what happened.  Just don't say "I was in the Guard".

Also, this is a good site to research info and to bounce ideas around.  Lot's of good stuff here.

FWIW,

Hamslice

 

 

Edited by Hamslice
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Guidelines and Terms of Use