You’ll likely need a compensation and pension (C&P) exam to submit a VA disability claim for a mental health condition, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The VA assesses your condition’s severity using the C&P exam. The VA bases the final disability rating and, consequently, the size of your monthly compensation on severity, so C&P exams are crucial. Because this step is critical to your VA rating, this article outlines what you need to know when preparing for a PTSD C&P exam or a C&P exam for another mental health concern.
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In this article about PTSD C&P exams
If you have a mental health issue resulting from your military service, you probably don’t want to discuss it. After all, talking about emotional challenges and trauma is uncomfortable. Unfortunately, there is one time that you must talk about what’s bothering you, and that’s during your C&P exam. One of the ways the VA determines the amount of your disability compensation is through the C&P exam. Here are some things you should be aware of when preparing for a PTSD C&P exam or a C&P exam for another mental health concern.
What is a C&P exam?
A C&P exam is to assess your level of disability or whether it is related to your time in service. The VA uses the information from the exam to determine how severe your condition(s) is and determine your disability rating. The amount of compensation you receive depends on your diagnosis and overall disability rating.
You can expect a lot of questions from a medical professional during a C&P exam. You’ll likely undergo a psychiatric evaluation for a mental health condition, where they’ll ask you about your personal history and current symptoms. They want to know how your mental health concerns impact your daily life.
Unfortunately, some medical professionals don’t take the time they should with mental health C&P exams, said VA disability lawyer Zack Evans.
“Some of these exams only last five to 10 minutes. It’s really difficult to cover the full breadth of someone’s mental health disability during a short exam,” he said. “They should dedicate much more time to understanding what has occurred to a veteran, and how some of these behaviors or coping skills took root in service and then progressed throughout a person’s life.”
If you don’t think your C&P exam was accurate or well done, you can call the VA to tell them your concerns. Make sure they note your concerns in your file. You also can write a statement based on your experience and upload it into your digital file. You may need to wait for the VA’s decision before you raise your concerns about the adequacy of the C&P exam, depending on whether VA used that exam to deny benefits. Either way, if you think you had a bad exam, you want it argued in your claims and appeals to the VA.
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VA disability ratings for mental health disorders
The VA rates mental health disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression with diagnostic code 4.130. Your assigned percentage could range from 0 to 100%, depending on the severity, duration, and frequency of your symptoms. That’s what the C&P exam aims to assess. The more severe your condition, the greater your rating and monthly compensation.
Ratings and compensation for mental health disorders
Description | VA rating | Monthly payment (veteran only) |
|---|---|---|
| Total occupational and social impairment | 100% | $3,831.30 |
| Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood | 70% | $1,759.19 |
| Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity | 50% | $1,102.04 |
| Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks | 30% | $537.42 |
| Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant stress, or symptoms controlled by continuous medication. | 10% | $175.51 |
| A mental condition was diagnosed, but symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication. | 0% | $0 |
VA Mental health exam questions
During your C&P exam, you should be ready to speak honestly about your symptoms and how they affect your life, even though you probably don’t want to. Don’t pretend your symptoms aren’t as challenging as they are or act tough.
“This is your chance to tell your story,” Evans said. “View your entire conversation as something that will affect your claim.”
Tell the medical professional specific details about your symptoms and how they affect your daily life. Tell them about anything you used to be able to do that you can’t do anymore and why. If a mental health concern has resulted in you not interacting with your loved ones the way you used to, be sure that’s clear in your exam. Don’t overstate your concerns, but do make them known and do it honestly. Describe how exactly your military duty relates to your current medical conditions.
Focus on how your mental health affects your daily living
Many times in a mental health C&P exam, the examiner will ask questions about your service, but not about how you’re functioning now. Evans said it’s essential for them to understand how you’re impacted now by your service and how your mental health concerns impact you as a person.
“Don’t let them leave this part of the conversation out,” he said. “If there’s something you feel needs to be communicated to your examiner, this may be your only opportunity to get it on the record with the VA.”
Because C&P exams can cause you to be anxious and you need to communicate a lot quickly, it may be a good idea to prepare for the C&P exam, including keeping daily notes about your mental health condition and bringing a summary of what you want to communicate to the appointment.
And because mental health C&P exams are emotionally taxing, Evans encourages veterans to plan something fun or light-hearted to do after their exam to get the discussion out of your mind.
Where can I view my C&P exam results?
If you want to see your C&P exam results, you must request a copy of the report. To do that, you can fill out a Privacy Act Request using VA Form 20-10206. You can submit the form by mail to the Department of Veterans Affairs Evidence Intake Center or take the completed form to your regional VA office.
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Woods and Woods has helped thousands of veterans get the VA benefits they deserve. Call us for a free case evaluation to find out how we can help. If we take your case, you only pay if you win.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Yes. The VA always requires C&P exams for mental health issues.
There are two main areas of questions, your past and your present. The examiner will want to know what happened to you and what experiences you had in service. They’ll also want to discuss how your condition affects your present life.
Neil Woods
VA disability attorney
Woods & Woods
Neil Woods is the firm’s owner and president. He received his law degree from Western Michigan University.
