Questions veterans ask most.

Treatment records, exam findings, imaging, lab work, prescriptions, and medical opinions all count as medical evidence. What matters is whether the record shows diagnosis, severity, and functional impact, not just that you were seen.

A nexus is the medical explanation connecting your current condition to service. It is not a conclusion that the condition is related; it is the reasoning that says why. A conclusion without reasoning is easy to set aside.

Contradictions are common and are not automatically fatal. The work is reconciling them: identifying which source says what, why they differ, and which is better supported. Erasing a difference is not the same as resolving it.

You are not automatically out of options. Buddy statements, later treatment records, and medical opinions can still support a link. What you cannot do is leave the gap unaddressed and hope it goes unnoticed.

Yes, if the evidence supports that service caused or aggravated the underlying condition. These are secondary conditions, and they are argued through the medical relationship, not through the timing alone.

A DBQ, or Disability Benefits Questionnaire, is a standardized form that records clinical findings for a condition in the format VA raters use. VA examiners complete DBQs during C&P exams, and private clinicians can complete them as well. A DBQ is one way to document diagnosis, severity, and functional impact, but it is not a substitute for developing the full medical evidence behind the claim.

A C&P exam is a compensation and pension exam VA uses to evaluate your condition and its severity. Being scheduled does not mean you were approved or denied. It means VA needs clinical information to rate the claim.

A direct exam involves an in-person or telehealth appointment. An ACE review is a records-based evaluation, where a clinician reviews your file and may produce an opinion without seeing you. ACE does not mean no exam; it means a different kind of one.

A missed exam can delay or derail a claim, and a reschedule that is not documented can be recorded as a no-show. Confirm appointment details in writing and keep a record of every change you request.

Yes. You can request your records, including the exam report, using VA Form 20-10206. Reviewing the report is how you find out whether what you described was actually recorded.

Recording is not a guaranteed right, and VA will not accept your personal recording as evidence in the claim. Under current policy, a veteran has no legal right to record a C&P exam, and whether the examiner permits it is the examiner's call. Ask before the exam, and if the answer is no, proceed without recording.

There are three review lanes: a Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence, a Higher-Level Review asking for a fresh look at the same record, and an appeal to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals. Which one fits depends on why the decision went the way it did.

Generally one year from the date of the decision for the review lanes, though the specifics depend on the lane and the decision. Deadlines are one of the few things you cannot fix later.

The effective date is the date VA treats your award as starting. Back pay is calculated from it. A later effective date means less back pay, which is why the date is often worth more attention than the percentage.

Yes, you can file for an increased rating when the evidence shows worsening severity or functional impact. Be aware that VA reviews the whole picture, and a rating can move in either direction.

A 100% rating is based on the severity of your condition under the rating schedule. TDIU is based on your inability to maintain substantially gainful employment because of service-connected conditions. They can pay at the same rate but are decided on different grounds.

Ratings gain protection over time. After 5 years at the same level, a reduction generally requires sustained, material improvement shown by a full examination. After 10 years, service connection itself can only be severed for fraud or clear error. After 20 years, the rating level is protected from reduction below the established point. A permanent and total rating is the most protected, with no routine future exams scheduled, and the VA rating criteria define when a change is justified.

Yes, in most cases. A schedular rating does not restrict how much you can earn. TDIU is different: it pays at the 100% rate because service-connected conditions prevent substantially gainful employment, so work above the federal poverty threshold can matter to that rating. Knowing which type of rating you hold is the first distinction to understand.

VA has proposed a mental disorders rating overhaul that would replace the current rating formula with a five-domain assessment of functional impact. It is a proposal, not current law: no final rule has been published, and existing ratings would generally be protected if one does take effect. Claims decided today are still governed by the current rating criteria.

VA has proposed ending the automatic 50% rating for sleep apnea tied to CPAP use and replacing it with symptom-based criteria. As of now it remains a proposal, not law, and sleep apnea claims decided under current rules are rated under the current schedule. The difference between what is proposed and what is law is where most of the confusion comes from.

No. The Veteran’s Bearing is an independent educational brand operated by Digital Transformations LLC. It is not the VA.

No. We teach how the system works and how to organize your own evidence. We do not select conditions for you, prepare or represent you in a claim, or promise a rating, an increase, or a favorable decision.

Start with the situation you are actually in, not the form you think you need. The Start Here page routes you by where you are in the process, and the Education and Intelligence sections go deeper on each topic.