When a veteran applies for disability-related veterans benefits, there is a Code of Federal Regulations that lays out some of the basic guidelines. These guidelines are used to determine whether or not the injuries or diseases that are shown on a veteran’s service records should be considered service-connected. Each disabling condition for which a veteran is seeking compensation must be considered based on a few different criteria.
These criteria are:
- The places, types, and circumstances of the veteran’s services.
- The official history of each organization the veteran has served in.
- The veteran’s full medical records.
- Any and all lay evidence that is pertinent to the veteran’s disability claims.
How a Veterans Benefits Application Is Examined
When determining whether a veteran’s disability should be service-connected, all of the evidence on record will be reviewed thoroughly. In addition, it must be noted that the VA’s policy on service connection provides for a very liberal interpretation of the facts, thereby giving the veteran a more than fair chance of proving their condition to be service-connected.
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A good disability denial attorney knows that, although these VA regulations have been established nationally, it has been shown in the past that not all regional VA offices follow them consistently. If a regional VA office has denied someone their rightful veterans benefits without following the policy that has been set forth by the national VA, the disability denial attorney can challenge the decision, citing these policies in the appeal.