Fight 4 Vets

At Jan Dils, Attorneys at Law, we’re proud to help veterans and their families obtain the benefits offered by a grateful nation. Our experienced veterans’ disability benefits lawyers are confident in our ability to win approval of benefits for the clients we represent – so confident, in fact, that unless we deliver, we don’t get paid. A main focus of our law practice is obtaining disability benefits.Visit www.fight4vets.com for more details. MEET OUR ATTORNEYS & REPRESENTATIVES JAN DILS Since 1994, Jan Dils, Attorneys at Law, LC, has offered professional, caring service to all of its clients. Now serving the Parkersburg, Charleston, Logan and Beckley areas. Jan Dils and her firm are experienced in all forms of Social Security and Disability benefits, Veteran’s Benefits and Personal Injury cases. Read more .. ANGIE THOMPSON Dedication to providing a voice for those who are not always heard is the driving force behind Angie Thompson and her work as an Attorney for Jan Dils. After personally meeting with her clients, Angie works on preparing each claim, then represents her clients at hearings. Prior to joining the Jan Dils team, Angie finished her law degree and completed an internship with The Women’s Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh. Read more ..

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It certainly is not fair being denied of the veterans health benefits you deserve and being left to tend to your conditions on your own after devoting your life to military service. If you haven’t given up in the battlefield, however, the more you shouldn’t give up now. Note that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has a high error rate, and a lot of denials are usually overturned after they get appealed. The VA admits to an error rate of 14%. On the other hand, the Center for Investigative Reporting says its 38%. In 2011, an audit performed by the Office of Inspector General showed that of 45,000 claims inspected, 23% were processed incorrectly by the rating staff. Three years earlier than that, two advocacy groups representing around 60,000 veterans filed a lawsuit claiming that VA is taking up to 4 years processing claims, the impact of which included broken families, financial devastation, homelessness and suicide.

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According to Military.com, over 142,000 Americans have been captured as Prisoners of War (POWs) since World War I. Not included are almost 93,000 who were never found, otherwise called MIAs (Missing in Action). Only about a third of POWs are still alive today, 90% of whom were captured in World War II. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recognizes the impact of captivity on a military personnel’s psychological and physical well-being, thus, entitling the latter to health and disability benefits. At present, the agency is providing compensation for service-connected injuries to nearly 16,000 POWs. Studies have shown that the hardships POWs endure during captivity can have a lifelong impact on their health and social adjustment, thereby increasing their susceptibility to psychological stress. Prolonged starvation, as well as exposure to harrowing conditions, can also cause long-term damage to their vital organs.

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Taking Full Advantage of Veterans Health Benefits

As a military veteran in the United States, you may qualify for numerous health benefits through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. In order to take advantage of the benefits available to you, you will need to complete an enrollment application and wait for it to be approved. Many people are currently already taking advantage of the benefits available to them, but it is important to fully understand the benefits so that you can use all of the benefits available to you.

How to Learn About Benefits

There are various options available to you to learn about the benefits available. There are wonderful resources online through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website, and this includes benefits for both medical and dental needs. You can also learn more about the mental health benefits available. The benefits can seem complicated to understand at times. You may want to consult a disability benefits attorney if you have specific questions. When You Have an Issue with a Claim

Many claims are processed without issue or concern, but there may be instances when you feel that a legitimate claim is denied for no reason. There are lawyers who specialize in veterans’ benefits who can help you to learn more about your rights and benefits. If your claim was unfairly declined, your attorney may work on your behalf to fight for your rights and to help you get the full benefits that you are entitled to.

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How to Win Your Veteran Disability Benefits

If you have been injured while serving in the military, you may be entitled to over $3,000 a month in benefits. These benefits can help you pay your medical bills, daily living expenses, and take care of any dependents. While you may be entitled to benefits before you are discharged, most veterans who receive benefits don't get them after leaving the service.

Like a civilian disability case, it is critical to put as much evidence into your case file as possible before submitting a claim for benefits. For instance, it is important to show that you have received medical attention regardless of whether you saw a civilian or military physician. This is critical because you must show that your injury occurred during your time in the military and occurred in connection with your service. If you are an active member of the military and seek to be eligible for disability benefits, you should include proof that you have left the military within the last 60 days or are being discharged in the next 60 days. You must also include proof that you have dependents such as a spouse or children. Often, the amount of your monthly benefit will be higher if you have others who depend on you to maintain their standard of living. As the application and review process can be confusing, it would be worthwhile to hire an attorney. He or she will work to ensure that paperwork such as VA Form 21-526 and DD214 are submitted on time and filled out correctly.

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Almost three decades ago, a former Navy Sailor from Milbridge, Maine named Ruth Moore was raped twice by a superior officer during her service, and had applied for disability benefits after suffering from mental disorders that stemmed from these assaults. Though she fought for her rights for disability benefits for almost 20 years, it was only in 2009 when she was awarded with more than $400,000 in benefits. Like Moore, there are a lot of uniformed personnel who had suffered sexual assault, but most of these incidents had gone unreported. Those who do place claims for disability benefits due to trauma caused by these assaults tend to have a difficult time in getting approved. Fortunately, talking to a veterans disability attorney can help a veteran get their due benefits, especially if their post-traumatic stress disorder was caused by sexual assault.

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The United States of America has some of the finest forces in the world. However, no matter how well-trained and well-equipped the land, sea, and air branches of the military are, they still face a lot of risk in performing their duty to the country. It is no surprise then that quite a few of the country’s brave soldiers end up getting injured, sometimes even so much that they can’t keep on serving in their previous capacity; they may even end up being discharged. The problem is that their injuries would also make their civilian lives difficult. This is where a veterans disability lawyer can help.

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Ideally, veterans who became disabled while fighting for the peace of the nation should receive their disability benefits quickly and conveniently. However, this world is not ideal; if it was, wars wouldn’t have happened in the first place. Disabled veterans face different kinds of roadblocks when making their claims. Some get denied and many get delayed. Here, you’ll find some of the most common issues encountered by veterans making a benefit claim. Delays (That Extend Over Months, Even Years) In its Veterans Benefits Administration Reports, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) records over 380,000 pending claims. The conditions have actually improved now, compared to over 800,000 pending cases a few years back.

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During the Vietnam War, the military of the United States conducted the Operation Ranch Hand. This program developed the use of herbicides and defoliants for the war – the most widely known of which is Agent Orange. Aircraft were fitted with special sprayers vaporizing the chemicals, enabling them to spread the herbicides over large areas. Agent Orange did not only affect the people in areas where it was sprayed on, though. It also affected the personnel who piloted and operated the aircraft used to spread it during the war. Even those who used, maintained, and served onboard certain aircraft at a later time were also exposed to chemical remains and suffered from the effects. Claims related to these are among the cases handled by a veterans disability lawyer.

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TBI Related Veterans Disability

Proving that your condition is a result of your years of service to the military can be difficult especially in the case of TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) related problems. Most TBI cases do not show any side-effects until after many years later, and to prove that your current symptoms stemmed from an injury many years ago from your combat stint, you will have to show your complete medical record, and you may even have to get a medical professional to vouch for your claims.

 Any unexplained seizures, or sudden development of Parkinson’s disease after a moderate or severe TBI, is also an accepted reason for being presumed as having a service-related disability. Lastly hormone deficiency within twelve months of a moderate to severe TBI is also valid. If you have experienced any of these symptoms after a TBI-related incident, contact a disability lawyer and ask for legal assistance.

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Sexually-Assaulted Veterans Required Help

Soldiers face a lot of dangers in the field. One of these is sexual trauma. Military sexual trauma is defined as sexual assault, including rape, or repetitive and threatening sexual harassment. According to the Defense Department, there were over 19,000 sexual assaults that occurred in the military back in 2010, but only 13.5 percent of these were reported. Moreover, the Service Women’s Action Network estimates that while military sexual trauma is among the leading causes of PTSD among female veterans, two-thirds of sexual trauma claims have been rejected.

Insufficient evidence is among the reasons why most disability claims stemming from military sexual assault have been rejected. The VA often requires veterans who suffered from sexual assaults to present police records, tests for pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases, journals or diaries, and statements from family and friends. They will also accept proof of behavioral changes on the veteran’s part, like evidence of an alcohol or drug problem, marital difficulties, and incidents of depression.

Recently, however, the House approved a bill calling for the VA to accept a statement from the survivor as sufficient proof that assault had occurred. This aims to make it easier for veterans who are victims of sexual abuse to acquire disability benefits. These changes in legislation might seem overwhelming at first glance, but talking to a disability benefits lawyer can help you understand everything there is to know about filing a claim for PTSD caused by sexual trauma.

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Active Involvement in Ensuring Veterans Benefits

The United States has often been questioned for the way it treat its war veterans. In 2013, Congress expressed its misgivings about the government’s treatment of US troops returning from the Middle East. Amid reports of untreated PTSD, grave body injuries and toxic gas exposures, the road to stable health benefits for the heroic veterans seemed bleak.

Generally, veterans are eligible for most health benefits through the Veterans Health Administration, except dental care. Yes, as strange as it may sound, dental care is restricted to those with service-related disabilities, former POWs and those participating in the VA Vocational Rehabilitation program.

To bridge the gap, a private dental clinic offered free dental care and screenings to all veterans nationwide last June 27. Dentists volunteered their time for this inspired event and we can hope that the trend becomes a yearly practice.

Perhaps now is the time for more private organizations to be actively involved in bolstering the efforts of the Veterans Affairs Department. For example, medical institutions can always lend a helping hand in easing the burden of treating post war injuries by facilitating quicker access to necessary healthcare demands while lawyers can always follow the steps of some of their colleagues who don’t ask for anything up front when approached with disability claims.

In the end, these brave men and women have gone all the way for us. Isn’t it time we did something for them in return?

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Years ago, veterans who are either experiencing a non-service-connected condition or had contracted an illness not linked to their service were eligible to receive care from VA hospitals as long as they were willing to make copayments for the care. They were, however, required to follow the VA thresholds of the combined income and net worth, and they will only be deemed eligible if these were above the VA’s requirements.

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As a veteran, your service to our country may have often placed you in dangerous situations that could have resulted in physical and mental damage, which consequently led to you leaving the military. As with any injury or illness, dealing with medication and rehabilitation can be costly. Fortunately, there is a good way for veterans to defray the costs, and that is by applying for VA disability benefits. An experienced veterans disability lawyer like Jan Dils, Attorneys at Law can help you get these benefits.

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An Easier Road to Benefit Awarding

In the past, VA hospitals have been known to deny treatment to veterans if their combined income and net worth did not meet a specified threshold, which would usually require the assistance of a veterans disability attorney to rectify. Good news have come in recent months, though, as the VA updated its rules so the computation of benefits no longer account for a veteran’s net worth. Instead, they will now only consider a veteran’s combined home income and deductible expenses from the previous year as eligibility requirements.

With this change, an estimate of 190,000 low-income and non-service connected veterans are expected to have lower health costs in the next five years. Now, VA copayments will range from $15 per visit for primary care and up to $50 per visit for specialty care. These copayments will also apply to inpatient care and other hospital services.

Though the department stands to lose between $55.5 million and $80 million for in-patient copayments during the next five years, VA officials saw this change as an opportunity to help ease the burden of high costs for health care among low-income veterans. The VA had already begun combining its organizational maps and turning it into a single map with five regions, which will allow them to build regional frameworks that aim to enhance internal coordination.

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Need an Attorney to Help you with Veterans Claims?

If the thought of applying for veterans health benefits makes you want to give up before you begin the process, you may want to hire a lawyer who specializes in handling claims for health benefits for veterans. A veteran is defined, for the purpose of qualifying for health and disability benefits, as a person who has served on active military duty, and was discharged under conditions other than dishonorable. As one who has served in the U.S. Military, you have the right to apply for Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits for medical care, and under certain conditions, for disability benefits, as well.

Request the assistance of an attorney.

You stand a better chance of getting your application moving when you hire a lawyer who can guide you every step of the way. A knowledgeable attorney at your side can work with you on your goal to receive the benefits you have earned, especially when you have earlier gone through the annoyance and difficulties of denials and appeals. With the help of an advocate who legally represents you throughout the application process, you may find it easier to apply with the guideline laid out, and ultimately, win your benefits.

You are entitled to disability benefits.

If you have a disability as a result of your service, you can have access to benefit programs that the U.S. government has set aside for you and your family. You may also even qualify for Aid and Attendance benefits that provide you with monthly compensation for a personal attendant in your home. An experienced attorney can help you develop your evidence to support your claim so that it meets the standard of proof required by the court that rules on veterans’ claims. Contact an attorney to represent you now.

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The Need for Improved Veterans Benefit Claims

In 2013, nearly one million veterans were awaiting benefits from their service to the country. According to documents from the Department of Veterans Affairs, approximately two-thirds of these claims were backlogged. This means that it could be months or even years before these veterans see any kind of benefits – if they even qualify.

Veteran Benefits Are a Necessity for Many

West Virginia has a wide scope of benefits for veterans. This includes everything from housing to helping men and women find jobs once they leave military service. Unfortunately, not all of these benefits are easily accessible to those that served their country. In fact, it's quite common for the disabled to be denied assistance due to many contributing factors. In an event such as this, an attorney with experience in veterans disability practices may be the only course of action to gain needed assistance.

Integrating Technology Is Taking Too Long

According to the VA office, most claims and benefit forms are still done on paper due to the inadequacies of the computer data retrieval system. The system has been found to be problematic, and results in an inefficient use of time for the staff. Unfortunately, this is what causes a large amount of the delays, as the VA office is still relying on archaic forms of data collection in an age where more disabled veterans are seeking assistance. Luckily, veterans disability attorneys can help the process along for disabled vets.

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Benefits for Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange

Veterans who were active in duty and served in the Vietnam War are most probably aware of Agent Orange, an herbicide used in Vietnam around 1962 and 1971 to remove plants that hid the enemy. Not too long after their service some veterans came forward with complaints of different health issues attributed to this chemical. Because of this, the VA (Veterans Affairs) drew up special guidelines that will facilitate the giving of benefits to all soldiers affected by it. They include:

  Disability Compensation – This pays for all medical expenses for treatment of disabilities or diseases acquired during their time of service. This also extends to secondary disabilities that are related to conditions acquired during service.

  Special Monthly Compensation – This monthly compensation is provided for all veterans, however a higher amount is given to those who developed disabilities such as the loss of an arm, blindness, and others due to their military service. The added cost is to help them pay for assistance costs, or to help them afford equipment that they will need. 

  Dependency and Indemnity Compensation – This is a tax-free compensation benefit payable to a surviving family member of  veterans who died while on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training, or survivors of Veterans who died from their service-connected disabilities

  Veterans who were affected by Agent Orange can also avail benefits like housing grants, insurance policies, and mortgage life insurance.