The difference makes no sense

[DavidGrunzweig]

Why is 100% disability paid 3300 and 50% only 900....shouldn't it be 1650? why are we allowing this kind of pay disparity to continue? And why are we still allowing them to not give us the lump sum option paid in full so that we can invest and own homes without having to take out loans, paying more than needed or falling into debt. A month to month pay check of 900 I had to move to Colombia just have live in a moderately decent apartment. Is there anyone out there that can help me fight for better pay and pay options?

[GBArmy]

David Welcome to Hadit. It is a David & Golliath thing. Or maybe Don Quiote. Whatever. Point is that it is the VA 's process and we have to abide by their rules. Or we don't play. (You might observe that the VA doesn't always abide by their own rules, but we have to work within the system to overcome that.) So, most of us spend our energy on trying to help our brothers and sister veterans how to use the system.  Many things in life aren't fair. How about a speeding ticket? You go 5 mph over in a 30 mile zone and the fine is $40. If you go 45 MPH in the same zone, should the fine be $120 or $500.00? You could work the legislature to make the fine more equitable, but for me, I'd rather do something more likely to yield results that make a difference. You sound like a smart guy. I hope you stick around, learn the process and contribute. 

[pacmanx1]

19 hours ago, DavidGrunzweig said:

Why is 100% disability paid 3300 and 50% only 900....shouldn't it be 1650? why are we allowing this kind of pay disparity to continue? And why are we still allowing them to not give us the lump sum option paid in full so that we can invest and own homes without having to take out loans, paying more than needed or falling into debt. A month to month pay check of 900 I had to move to Colombia just have live in a moderately decent apartment. Is there anyone out there that can help me fight for better pay and pay options?

IMHO (IN MY HUMBLE OPINION). You have to learn how to fight the VA for yourself and anyone you want to help. Like many, I lost my family, home, job, cars and anything and everything you can think of, I was destitute.  All while filing claims with the VA claiming financial hardships and them denying my claims for decades. I had a senior VSO (VETERAN SERVICE OFFICER) ask me why didn’t I medically retire. At that time, I knew absolutely nothing about VA or filing for disability.  I then had a senior VA representative tell me I had no chance in getting VA disability. I decided to start reading the 38 CFR part 3 and part 4, along with any BVA and CAVC decisions that were similar to mine. I wanted to know what they were talking about, and I got tired of the VA denying my claims. I went from 30%-40% to 100% P & T within five years. I have been fighting the VA for well over two decades and I am finally getting some of my appeals completed and back/retro pay for all the years I could not work, and the VA denied my claims. You have to channel your energy in the right direction. There are sometimes you have to fight fire with fire, so I say learn how to fight VA with their own regulations and you wouldn’t believe that it is very possible to not only win your claims, but you can increase your disability ratings.  Always remember that once a veteran gets service-connection, if that veteran develops any secondary conditions/disabilities, those secondary disabilities can be service connected also and you can be compensated for them.

[broncovet]

I agree, it makes no sense.  If 100 percent is 3300, then 10 percent of that is 330, not 124 or so.  

It may help if you "understand" how it happens.  I will try to explain.  For many years Cola was "rounded down" to the nearest dollar.  

Lets use an example of how that hornswaggled us out of HALF or so of our compensation.  ITs basically the reverse of compound interest, and why the banks are so rich and have the biggest building in town.  

Year one:  Comp: (to simplify) 100 percent $2000.   

10 percent $200. (In year one its really 10 percent).  Add Cola

Year one:  4.3 percent Cola

4.3 percent times 2000 grows to 2086.  100 percent

but 4.3% of 200 "rounds down to the nearest dollar" of 208.00. 

 

Year 2  3.2 percent Cola:

100 percent     2086 times 3.2% is  2152.

10 percent     208 times 3.2% is 214.  As you can see, its no longer 10 percent after just 2 years.  When you continue rounding down for 20, 30, 40 years, it continues to get worse.  

To fix this problem, we are now paid to the penny, no more rounding down.  If it went on more years, 10 percent would wind up at 3 percent or less.  ten percent is about 5 % and should stay that way.  

Source:  IM a math nerd.  

[john999]

Back in 1973 I got a 10% VA disability rating .   It was $28 a month.  My father got $8 a month for his 10% disability from WW2.  I think at the time a 100% rating was $700 a month.  What a joke!  So we have not gotten an increase beyond a COLA since WW2.  We really should be getting $6000 a month for a 100% disability.  Unless you live in a very low cost of living state not many can live in decent conditions on $3000 a month.   Before I had to retire on disability I was making $50,000 a year, and that was in 2001.   People live up to their incomes.  If I was making $100,000 a year VA would still pay the low ball disability rate.