How to Receive a Mental Health Disability With the VA
The Veteran Affairs regional office is designed to offer health care to veterans from all brands of the United States Armed Forces. This facility also determines which veterans are disabled based on physical and mental health conditions. If you are a vet and are approved to receive a disability percentage you receive monthly compensation based on this percentage.
- Call the Veterans Crisis Line if you are in crisis. Do not wait to make an appointment. Your life is too valuable. The Veterans Crisis Line phone number is (800) 273-8255.
- Contact your regional Veteran Affairs office to schedule an appointment based on your priority number assigned to you. These priority numbers are assigned based on existing health conditions and usually your appointments are scheduled within a specific time frame. Some veterans visit the Veterans Hospital every six months, whereas others have appointments every three months.
- Discuss the mental issues you are experiencing with your assigned doctor. Inform your doctor that you wish to submit forms to receive a mental disability percentage. Your doctor directs you to the area within Veteran Affairs to obtain the necessary paperwork. Your doctor also begins scheduling appointments for testing to properly diagnose this mental issues and/or condition.
- Obtain the following forms: Form 21-526, Form 21-4138 and Form FA-4142. These forms are required to file application to receive these benefits, support your claim and to release information from doctors to Veteran Affairs for further evaluation of your case. Complete these forms onsite and return them to the official who provided them to you.
- Keep all appointments made by your assigned doctor and all official handling your disability claim. Missing appointments has a negative impact on your case.
- Wait for notification and/or decisions made in your case. You are notified by United States mail. Follow all order as instructed by these correspondences.