Legal Question in Military Law in Virginia

Re: medical rights

(I am presuming that you are in the military and that you had a service related injury)

You may be up for a medical discharge. The determination of your disability percentage will determine what/if any separation benefits you will be awarded. It would be best to contact an attorney sooner rather than later.

Some separated service members are finding themselves separated with either no disability rating or a lower disability rating than what they are actually entitled to. Obviously, the bigger the disability rating the larger the benefits you'd be entitled to. Unfortunately, these service members the go through the Veterans Administration only to discover that they have a higher disability rating that is conspicuously related back to the day after they were discharged. These service members then have to appeal to their former military branch's Board of Correction for Military Records for an upgrade in their discharge. If the service member loses at the BCMR stage, they may be able to appeal the ruling to US Federal Court. This can be lengthy process and in the meantime the service member does not get all of the benefits that they may be entitled to.

Feel free to contact my office to set up an appointment if you�d like to talk about your case. I offer free, initial consultations and would be happy to initiate the teleconference in order to save you in long distance charges.

Good luck

Re: medical rights

Your future attorney can submit a medical discharge request to your command.

Re: medical rights

If you have a medical issue, all of this must be resolved through the Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) process. In order to discharge you, the doctors must prepare a report about your condition and your fitness for duty. You can see this and add any comments which may be missed. This is then reviewed and a decision made about separating you and the level of diasability you would be rated at. You need to speak with an attorney before deciding what to do. You will have 3 options: accept what they offer, do a rebuttal or request a formal hearing. It is imperative that you speak with an attorney before making this decision because it is very important and will affect your discharge and disability compensation from the military and VA. Feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions