Comp Claim Retroactive Award Date

[militarynurse]

If a veteran applies for a certain psych disorder, like depression, but gets SC'd for a partly similar one, like chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood, what date is used for determining the award of service connection? Is it the date the original pysch compensation claim was submitted as is usually done or is it the date of the C&P exam ( i.e., date of the doctor's diagnosis ) for which the other psych disorder was made or a BVA remand date etc.?

[Chuck75]

Interesting question--

In theory, the claim date should be the date used. On the other-hand, the VA often tries to use a later date for any reason they can come up with.

The logic is that the veteran had a disease/problem when he/she applied. Since the veteran is not a medical professional, let alone qualified to make a diagnosis, the exact nature of the disease may not be defined, esp. to the VA's ways of thinking until the C&P section makes a report.

Alternate VA logic is the veteran was suffering from a problem. The problem claimed is not the problem diagnosed. Therefore, the EDD would be the date of diagnosis. In this case, if both problems are compensatable, and "at least as likely as not" the veteran "should" be compensated for both. (Don't bet on it!)

The VA also has a duty to aid the veteran in the claim development. There is an interesting situation that arises, in that the VA often reads the claim vary narrowly, and awards on a narrow basis, without doing the required investigation of the rest of the veteran's records to see if there are any "implied" or obvious claims that can be based upon the existing records.

I will also say that it is a necessity (if at all possible) to get a full copy of any and all military records before the VA gets their grubby hands on the records.

Complex cases usually involve a lot of paper records, and key paper record pages have had a tendency to evaporate in some hands at some locations. An example might be a single page entry of a forty year or more old VA denial that might be "CUE"able back to the original claim date. Or even a recent denial that was "superseded" by a more recent denial.

I'd have to guess that there would be a 50/50 chance that the type of claim you mentioned would lead to an appeal of some sort, and possibly an initial "partial" award. The VA's consistency is very poor when it comes to awards.

Identical cases may be awarded, awarded in part, or even denied, depending on by who, where, and when the decision is made. BVA remands generally will take things back to the claim date(s).

If a veteran applies for a certain psych disorder, like depression, but gets SC'd for a partly similar one, like chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood, what date is used for determining the award of service connection? Is it the date the original pysch compensation claim was submitted as is usually done or is it the date of the C&P exam ( i.e., date of the doctor's diagnosis ) for which the other psych disorder was made or a BVA remand date etc.?

[jerrbilly]

when I originally filed for service connection I was diagnosed with mood disorder NOS. Two years later I was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder. When the VA finally granted my claim they went back to my original file date for mood disorder. Mental diagnoses change all the time but the award should go back to when you originally filed for service connection.

If a veteran applies for a certain psych disorder, like depression, but gets SC'd for a partly similar one, like chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood, what date is used for determining the award of service connection? Is it the date the original pysch compensation claim was submitted as is usually done or is it the date of the C&P exam ( i.e., date of the doctor's diagnosis ) for which the other psych disorder was made or a BVA remand date etc.?

[vmo]

Normal date of claim is the first of the month following the VA Regional Office's date of receiving your claim Example: if the VARO stamps date as received March 6th. Your benefits if payable would be effective April 1st. There are some variations to this, one such as if you filed a VA Comp claim within one year of separation of active duty---benefits if payable can go clear back to date of separation, which would be the date of claim. There are also, "staged ratings" which I believe is when the VA can adjust rating (hopefully increase) because the disability worsens/and the time delay involved in a difficult claim. Separate rating may be designated for the separate periods of time based on the facts considered in the particular claim.

[halos2]

Date of filing. Remember they hold back a month when paying on a grant. I would venture to guess at least 50-99% of vets are aware of a mental problem they may have. Dur to the fact these at least 99% are not mental health care professionals, they cannot diagnose or offer diagnoses of their mental illiness.

One should not receive a penalty for saying "I feel depressed, am sad, cry alot, avoid people,places.events...and then get diagnoses of PTSD, Depression, Mood Disorders, Anxiety, etc. The diagnoses are made by the professionals and therefore if a vet does not know exactally what catagory their mental health diagnosis falls into there should be no penalty.

It is like if one has high blood pressure but only know they have headaches, heart feels like it is racing,sweating alot,etc then gets the diagnosis

of hypertension and medication to work on the symptoms, you can't give them a penalty for just giving the symptoms they experience, ands not a diagnosis.

The VA needs to stop putting the kibash on all claims. They need to find someone WHO CAN READ THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE!!

[broncovet]

It is the LATER of the date filed, or when the disability occurred. The date the disability occurred could be the date of the disability c and P exam.

[carlie]

If a veteran applies for a certain psych disorder, like depression, but gets SC'd for a partly similar one, like chronic adjustment disorder with depressed mood, what date is used for determining the award of service connection? Is it the date the original pysch compensation claim was submitted as is usually done or is it the date of the C&P exam ( i.e., date of the doctor's diagnosis ) for which the other psych disorder was made or a BVA remand date etc.?

mn,

It would be the date of the claim OR you can try to get the ED for

UP TO 12 months earlier, if you have medical evidence of record

that shows the disability criteria for that percentage was met at that time.

jmho,

carlie