Need help with VA Disability Math

[lmholmes11]

I got my letter from the VA today with the results.

They have me at 50%-PTSD
40%-tbi
30%-Migrains


What is my overall combined rating? I never was good at math...especially VA math.

Thanks guys

[Rocky C]

You will get paid at the 100% Service Connected Rate.

Semper Fi,
Rocky

[DocGreek]

.....WHAAAAAT??....LETTER??....if you've received a decision from the VA about a claim, or request for increase in DIS. RATING....it's ALWAYS STATED in the COVER LETTER!! ALSO....if you are NOW at 100%....you SHOULD get a LARGE envelope with LOTS of paperwork, and...TELEPHONE NUMBERS, to call.....if you have questions!!!...."HOMEY"...call your VA -REP....TOMORROW.....EH??.....BEST OF LUCK, NUMBNUTS!!!!!......
SEMPER FI.......Doc Gweek.....

[Sgt Leprechaun]

Congrats, if I figure that math correctly, it's 100 percent. You should also be shortly seeing a nice, fat, deposit for back pay (tax free), from the time you filed your claim.

I only hope I do as "well".

'Doc, you kill me LOL

[egbutler1]

Well I went in for my re-evaluation in March doc gave me a GAF of 45 don't know what that means and said he "doubts" that i can work. Im already 50% for PTSD 0% migraines think i got some TBI in there somewhere. Anyone been threw the system and have to get a re-evaluation? If so how long did it take to hear back and do you have to do anything or does the VA make a choice on you and inform you like they did when i got my 50%. I'm getting sick of waiting I don't even know if my claim has got processed or even started. I want to know if they are raising me lowering me or taking my chit all together. Give me a PM if you can help thanks brothers!

[Rocky C]

Congrats, if I figure that math correctly, it's 100 percent. You should also be shortly seeing a nice, fat, deposit for back pay (tax free), from the time you filed your claim.

I only hope I do as "well".

'Doc, you kill me LOL

[Phantom Blooper]

Your GAF score can fluctuate depending on what your shrink or a team of shrinks says about you.

They are of the opine based on the DSM manual.

If you are hospitalized with mental health issues your score could be lower...

If you are catatonic your score is the lowest....

They determine this by your ability to fit into society....

There is no written test to determine this...

This is based on what you tell the shrink and what the criteria is in the DSM manual.

Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) Scale•

Consider psychological, social, and occupational functioning on a hypothetical

continuum of mental health-illness. Do not include impairment in functioning due to

physical (or environmental) limitations.

Code (Note: Use intermediate codes when appropriate, e.g., 45, 68, 72.)

100 Superior functioning in a wide range of activities, life’s problems never seem

to get out of hand, is ought out by others because of his/her many positive

91 qualities. No symptoms.

90 Absent of minimal symptoms (e.g., mild anxiety before an exam), good

functioning in all areas, interested and involved in a wide range of activities,

81 socially effective, generally satisfied with life, no more than everyday

problems or concerns (e.g., an occasional argument with family members).

80 If symptoms are present, the are transient and expectable reactions to

psycho-social stressors (e.g., difficulty concentrating after family argument); no

71 more than slight impairment in social, occupational, or school functioning

(e.g., temporarily falling behind in schoolwork).

70 Some mild symptoms (e.g., depressed mood and mild insomnia) OR some

difficulty in social, occupational, or school functioning (e.g., occasional

truancy, or theft within the household), but generally functioning pretty well,

61 has some meaningful relationships.

60 Moderate symptoms (e.g., flat affect and circumstantial speech, occasional panic

attacks) OR moderate difficulty in social, occupational, or school functioning

51 (e.g., few friends, conflicts with peers or co-workers).

50 Serious symptoms (e.g., suicidal ideation, severe obsessional rituals, frequent

shoplifting) OR any serious impairment in social, occupational, or school

41 functioning (e.g., no friends, unable to keep a job).

40 Some impairment in reality testing or communication (e.g., speech is at times

illogical, obscure, or irrelevant) OR major impairment in several areas, such as

work or school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood (e.g., depressed

31 man avoids friends, neglects family, and is unable to work; child frequently beats

up younger children, is defiant at home, and is failing at school).

30 Behavior is considerably influenced by delusions or hallucinations OR

serious impairment in communication or judgment (e.g., sometimes

incoherent, acts grossly inappropriately, suicidal preoccupation) OR inability to

21 function in almost all areas (e.g., stays in bed all day; no job, home or friends).

• All of this information was pulled from the DSM IV-TR.

[DocGreek]

......WHY DON'T ANY OF YOU NUMBNUTS READ WHAT I POST......HUH???
1. if you have a service "REP" talk to HIM/THEM....NOT US!!!
2. if you've been rated at 100%....LIKE I SAID...DUH!....you WILL receive a LARGE envelope...with ALL the RIGHT paperwork...in it!!!!
I've been a VA patient since 1983, and I know exactly how the VA SCREW'S things up!!
If you have ANY questions....ask your SHRINK...FIRST!!....that's what he's there for!!
DO NOT PUT UP WITH ANY B.S........PERIOD!!.....

[Phantom Blooper]

......WHY DON'T ANY OF YOU NUMBNUTS READ WHAT I POST......HUH???

Called the doctor, woke him up, and said
"Doctor NUMB NUTS , ain't there nothing I can take"
I said, "Doctor, to relieve this mental ache?"
I said, "Doctor ain't there nothing I can take"
I said, "Doctor

BECAUSE YOU MAKE IT TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO COMPLICATED DOC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[DocGreek]

.....OK, it's the high octane/thickasoil Java I'm drinkin'!....DUH!!....
BLOOP.....you're RIGHT, your description of GAF scoring was simple....for simple-minded BI-POLAR, PARANOID fools.....like ME!!...

[oldtop]

lmholmes11: Sorry, if those are all you are rated for, you are NOT 100%...your rating will be 80% (yeah, VA math is complicated), however, if your PTSD Doc said you cannot work, and you are not in fact working, you need to submit a letter from the Doc that states you cannot work because of your PTSD, and a VA Form 21-8940 (Application for Increased Compensation based on Individual Unemployability. Also include a form 21-4192 Request for Employment Information in Connection with Claim for Disability Benefits). Approval of this claim WILL get you paid at the 100% rate (it's called IU, or Individual Unemployability), with all of the same benefits as being rated 100% by the rating schedule.

[DocGreek]

TOP...why do you think that SO many Vets have to ask US for help with their Disability claims?
I thought that all shrinks, and VA rep's would tell each Vet what to expect, and WHO to ask questions!!
WATCHA' THIMK??.....D/G

[oldtop]

OK for those that are interested..A Quick Tutorial on VA Math.............

1. list all of your disabilities, highest rated to lowest rated in that order
2. Start with 100%..subtract your HIGHEST RATED DIsability % from 100
3. Take the remainder from the above calculation and multiply by the % if your next highest rated disability...ADD the result to your highest rated disability, this is YOUR combined % rate
4. Subtract your combined % rate from 100
5. Take the new remainder from the above calculation and multiply by the % if your next highest rated disability...ADD the result to your highest rated disability, this is YOUR new combined % rate
6. Continue in the above fashion until all of your disabilities have been accounted for. As you can see, the closer you get to 100%, the HARDER it BECOMES to get 100%.....

Using the OP's ratings as an example:

100%-50%=50%
50% X 40%=20%; 50%+20%= 70%
100% - 70% = 30%; 30% X 30% = 9%, 70% + 9% = 79%, since the result is over 75%, round up to 80%; VA pays veteran at the 80% rate

[oldtop]

Doc..the biggest reason (at least around here) is because the VA Docs DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE RATING SYSTEM OR PROCESS; and reps that are VA EMPLOYEES are so poorly trained that they do not understand the process (or their job) either..to them, it is just a paycheck.

Another BIG problem, is the "Sea Lawyers" that hang out around the VA Hospitals..you know him / her / them....they all go by the name Somebody Told Me, or I Heard, or even He / She Said... these guys spread more BS than a manure machine, and it's usually WRONG!!! If we could just get our guys to GO TO AN ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE from a VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATION, things would be eaisier for the vets.

STAY AWAY from LAWYERS..they will take as long as they can (and with VA processing times at about a year in some places) so they can make more money (YOUR BACK PAY!!)! An Accredited Representative usually knows how to deal with the VA better than a lawyer anyway, and DOES NOT COST THE VETERAN ANYTHING!!! The only time a vet really needs an attorney is if his claim is going to the Court of Veteran's Appeals, and in that case, an attorney accredited to his service organization (and certified to practice before COVA) will handle the claim, not some yahoo that advertises on TV and acts as a "middleman" to take another cut of your back pay.

[DocGreek]

....THANKS, TOP!!....