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Virginia Capitol C onnections, Summer 2016 25
Veterans, Have You Had Your
Benefits Check Up Lately?
By Mr. Thomas J. Herthel
Time and time again, I learn of
instances where veterans served this nation
and Commonwealth, yet failed to file for
earned benefits from the U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA). More common,
veterans filed for compensation years ago
but have never reviewed their benefits
since. In each case, veterans should
visit one of the Virginia Department of
Veterans Services (DVS) 26 offices located
throughout the Commonwealth for their
“Benefits Check Up.”
Virginia leads the nation in taking care of our veterans. DVS
advocates for Virginia’s veterans, and connects them to the federal
and state benefits they have earned through their service. Caring and
trained personnel are available to educate veterans and their family
members on available benefits and assist them in filing claims.
The most common benefit paid toVirginia’s veterans is disability
compensation. This benefit is paid to veterans when their military
service caused or aggravated an injury or illness.While many injuries
and illnesses begin while the veteran is still on active duty, many do
not surface until years later. For example, thousands of veterans who
served our nation in Vietnam and were exposed to Agent Orange, a
defoliant used during the conflict, later develop certain types cancers
and other illnesses. Those service connected disabilities can be
compensable, years and even decades after military service.
As you can imagine, there is much more to the process than
just filling out the paperwork. Each case is different and should be
reviewed by our VA-accredited Veterans Service Representatives
(VSR) located in each of our offices. Our VSRs can assist veterans
to review their military service and medical records, as well as
properly advise them on needed documentation to file a successful
benefits claim. Of course, we also assist with the claims applications
themselves, which are often complicated. Moreover, Virginia DVS is
the first and only state to file veteran’s claims electronically, which
reduces the time it takes for the VA to receive and adjudicate claims.
Successful claims result in monetary compensation (from just over
$100 to over $3000 per month) and access to the VA’s health care
system. In all, Virginia’s veterans received over $2.5 billion in service
connected compensation benefits last year alone.
Our representation of Virginia’s veterans does not stop when the
claim is assist veterans throughout the process and represent
them on appeal should the VA wrongly deny benefits for service
connected illnesses and injuries.
In addition to disability compensation claims and appeals, we
also assist veterans obtain copies of their military records (DD-214s
for example) and their VA home loan Certificates of Eligibility. We
frequently work with surviving spouses to apply for death and burial
benefits. Also, we often assist low-income veterans and their widows
apply for VA pensions. We are here to guide Virginia’s veterans
through the bureaucratic claims process.
We are honored to serve our veterans. In short, whether they
are homeless, suffer from disabilities, or still enjoy jumping out of
airplanes on the weekends, DVS is here to educate, assist, and advise
our veterans.
To learn more about how DVS can help, please visit our webpage
at www.dvs.virginia.gov. Give us a call or stop by one of our 26 DVS
Benefits Offices located throughout the Commonwealth for your
“Benefits Check Up.”
Mr. Tom Herthel, JD, is the Director of Benefits for the Virginia
Department of Veterans Services and a 26-year Army and Air Force
veteran.
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