VA disability is one of these big scams. People have gotten pretty good at transforming brands into money these days. So socially respected groups like firefighters or military use the chance to extract massive wealth from productive society.
I make two generalizations from veterans I know: one type accumulates injuries throughout service (neck, knees, hips, shoulders, back, toxic exposure) but being the walk-it-off types, never documented much because they were often deployed and didn't bother with paperwork. Bitterly complains about the VA and their limited or temporary disability ratings despite grinding pain and difficulty in later life.
Second type is similar to the first type, but played the 'game' optimally, documented, documented, and documented. While you can absolutely get some of the same injuries, I was surprised to find things like mild sleep apnea and male pattern baldness helped get someone a permanent 100% disability rating. No doubt life isn't easy, but to think this individual is 100% disabled is a bit of a stretch when they also work full-time for .gov doing project work.
My point is that like a video game, people are very good at finding the optimal or 'meta' path to maximizing outcomes in a set of rules, and outcomes from a system can be different than what casual observers might think is the intended purpose of the system.
I find that very hard to believe. Do you have evidence that this is true?
I never applied for disability of any kind, but it would seem that the VA examiners question nothing and hand out ratings like candy. According to the migraine guy, it's one of those situations where they have to find things to spend their budget on or they lose it next year. I'm of the opinion that if they can afford to spend their budget supporting freeloaders and liars then perhaps it would be better used by some other office, but I digress.
I know people who have done both, and profligacy is not something either would accuse the organization of.
Is it to compensate you for the lost income you couldn’t have earned if not for the disability? That would be in line with the goal of normal disability.
edit: They usually have full-time jobs too.
Or do they go for an interview, get their tinnitus, ibs, or chronic back pain diagnosis then try again for more next time?
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Look, I'm not saying we shouldn't help/trust veterans; My father is a severely disabled Vietnam war vet and gave up his body for the air force over a long career. He deserved to have his stairlift paid for by the taxpayer, but he shouldn't have to fight with corrupt service providers who can't do a proper job installing the thing. He shouldn't have to deal with a contractor that won't repair the botched installation for a year because it would cut into their profit margin.
Similarly, he shouldn't have his services degraded because other vets have found out how to take more than their fair share. I'm open to think there is minimal graft, but my experiences say there is some more going on than I can be supportive of.
Maybe you could provide some data to show how I'm mistaken.
Sorry this is the same bullshit people do when they see a person able to stand for a few hours and say "WHY ARE THEY ON DISABILITY" and ignoring the rest of the time they aren't seeing, or the people recovering. This is just hearsay, and since you're the one making these claims, then it behooves YOU to provide the proof.
But it's a nice little racket, make a claim and then demand those who deny it provide the proof. That's now how science or respectable arguments work.
This whole thread is full of such bullshit. And it's so people can feel superior to those who they think are scamming the system (in an ever increasing need to "crack down" on those who "abuse" the system (slowly killing it over time, or until you can get a DOGE in and ransack it like a viking ship plundering coastal communities).
Anyways, citation needed, since you're the one making the claims.
I'm not trying to feel superior, i'm trying to broaden my perspective by offering my own and engaging with people who comment on it.
I do not claim that everyone on VA disability or SSDI is a fraudster. I know veterans who are missing significant portions of their body. I dated a women on SSDI who absolutely needed and deserved it for a neurological disorder. But she knew a family where every single member went on it as soon as they turned 18. Scamming SSDI was essentially their family business.
I am not advocating for DOGE to take an axe to these systems. But just because you or I might find DOGE distasteful does not mean that significant fraud and abuse does not take place. I can only assume that you have not spent much time around these systems or people who use them. Anyone who does immediately hears about their misuse, often from the perpetrators themselves, who are proud of their own cleverness for doing so.
It's a big issue. Over 30% of vets today have disability compared to 15% in 2008. 3% of federal revenue goes to paying veteran disability alone and it's climbing. No politician can talk about it because campaigning on taking money from disabled veterans is the best way to nuke yourself in the polls.
But there were never enough deployments to justify these levels of disability claims. And not every person deployed goes into combat. And not every person that goes into combat becomes disabled. A rise was predictable. 30% simply implies a lot of a dishonesty.