Back from War—A Battle for Benefits: Reforming VA’s Disability Ratings System for Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) judges the severity of each veteran’s case and decides how much to pay. However, VA has not written regulations that give specific guidance about handling PTSD cases. Instead, VA uses decades-old regulations developed for mental disorders that do not resemble PTSD. Without relevant regulations, VA lacks adequate guidance, it cannot fairly decide how much a veteran should be paid, and veterans are denied benefits they deserve. This Note proposes judicial and legislative solutions.