Certain service-connected injuries and medical conditions may result in a veteran having a “permanent and total” disability. However, when the VA deems you to have a “permanent and total” disability rating, what exactly does that mean for you? Understanding when you may have P&T status and what benefits you might receive can help you maximize the assistance available to you for a severe service-connected condition.
What Does “Permanent and Total” Mean for a VA Disability Benefits Claim?
When a veteran has a “permanent and total” disability, it means that their disability has two specific features. First, “total” means that a veteran has a 100 percent disability rating or that their rating qualifies them for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU), indicating that a veteran’s condition has left them fully disabled and unable to work, function in social settings, or care for themselves independently. “Permanent” means that a veteran has a condition unlikely to improve with treatment or time.
A veteran can have a “permanent” disability rating without a “total” rating and vice versa. For example, a veteran may receive a 100 percent disability rating for a condition, but the VA may schedule future examinations to assess the status of the veteran’s impairment. Alternatively, a veteran may have a “permanent” rating below 100 percent that remains consistent over years or decades, leading the VA to presume that the condition will not improve.
How to Tell If You Have a Permanent and Total Rating?
Certain service-connected conditions or disabilities may result in a veteran having a permanent and total disability, such as:
- Loss of both feet, hands, or eyes
- Loss of hearing in both ears
- Loss of speech
- Conditions that render a veteran permanently bedridden
The VA usually does not expressly award a veteran a “permanent and total” disability rating. Instead, veterans must look through the VA’s correspondence in their disability benefits case to determine how the VA has characterized their disability. Veterans should review their rating decision narrative and VA benefits summary letter to determine the VA’s characterization of their disability. A 100 percent disability rating or TDIU, combined with language notifying the veteran that the VA does not intend to schedule future examinations, may indicate that the veteran has a “permanent and total” disability. However, veterans should not assume that a 100 percent rating automatically means that they have a permanent and total disability, as the VA schedules future examinations for many 100 percent-rated conditions.
Benefits of P&T Status
Some of the benefits of having a permanent and total disability rating include:
- Entitlement to Chapter 35 Dependents Educational Assistance
- Eligibility for CHAMPVA benefits for a veteran’s dependents
- Potential Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for dependents
- Expedited processing of Social Security disability claims
- State-level benefits that vary based on jurisdiction, such as reduced tuition or free state college for veterans and their dependents, reduced or eliminated state license fees, or partial or total property tax exemptions
Can the VA Revoke a Permanent and Total Rating?
The VA generally considers a “permanent and total” disability rating stable and will not reduce or revoke it unless it finds clear evidence that it made an unmistakable error in characterizing the disability as permanent or total, or evidence that the veteran fraudulently obtained the rating.
What If You Receive a 100 Percent Rating Without P&T?
Some veterans may have a service-connected condition rated at 100 percent without the VA considering the condition stable or “permanent.” Those veterans will usually have to attend future VA medical examinations to reassess the severity of the condition. However, after 20 years, the VA cannot reduce a 100 percent disability rating unless the veteran procured the rating through fraud. Thus, a total disability rating can become permanent after a sufficient period of time.
Contact Our Firm Today
Receiving a “permanent and total” disability rating can provide critical benefits and protections for you after you’ve sustained a severe service-connected injury or medical condition. Contact Veterans Law Attorneys today for a free, no-obligation consultation with a VA disability benefits attorney to learn more about what permanent and total status may mean for your monthly benefits and eligibility for other services from the VA.
