Disabled veterans have rights to health care, monthly compensation, job protections , and the ability to appeal VA decisions they disagree with.
Written and Edited by Lawyers
All articles on DisabilitySecrets.com have been written or edited and fact-checked by our in-house attorney editors, who together have over 35 years of experience practicing and covering disability law. Learn more about our team and our editorial standards.
Veterans with disabilities have many legal rights after their separation from service. Eligible veterans may be entitled to VA health care access, disability compensation, educational assistance, job training, home loan guarantees, and life insurance. Other laws protect you from discrimination at work and safeguard your job if you need to take leave for military service. As you make the transition from active duty to civilian life, it's important to know exactly what your rights are, both in terms of VA benefits and federal employment protections.
Eligibility for VA Health Care
Veterans with honorable or general discharge papers can qualify for VA health care provided they meet certain length of service requirements. For veterans who enlisted after September 7, 1980 or began active duty after October 16, 1981, this means you'll need to either have served for 24 continuous months or for the full period for which you were called. Members of the Reserves or National Guard may also be eligible for VA health care benefits if you were called to active duty by a federal order and served the full period for which you were called.
Under certain conditions, you’ll be automatically enrolled in VA health care, but in other cases, you’ll have to apply. Complex rules determine what priority you’ll be given for access to VA health care. For more information, see VA Health Care Benefits and the Veterans Health Administration (both on the VA's website).
Monthly Disability Compensation
Veterans with medical conditions that were caused by or got worse as a result of active duty may qualify for service-connected disability compensation. If you aren’t eligible for disability compensation, you may still be awarded a monthly pension provided that you have a low income and have served at least one day during wartime. (Learn more about eligibility for VA pensions.) When calculating your income, however, the VA will first deduct all of your medical expenses.
Disabled veterans may also qualify for Social Security disability benefits (SSDI or SSI). There's no service-connection requirement to get Social Security disability, but you do need to meet other preliminary eligibility requirements, such as work credits for SSDI or asset limits for SSI. Check out our article on getting both Social Security and veterans disability for more information.
Education and Training Benefits
Depending on when you served and how long you’ve been out of the service, you might be eligible for education and training benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill or the Montgomery GI Bill. For more information, see the VA webpage about the GI Bill or call the GI Bill Hotline at 888-GI-BILL-1 (888-442-4551).
Home Loan Guarantees
The VA provides home loan guarantees to help eligible veterans purchase or build a home (including condominiums, manufactured homes, and lots). The VA can also help you refinance an existing home loan or provide you with a loan to make home repairs or improvements. For additional information, check out the VA's home loans webpage.
Life Insurance
The VA also offers various life insurance benefits such as Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI), the Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife) program, and Veterans' Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI). Under VGLI, you might be able to keep the life insurance you had in the service indefinitely, provided you keep paying the premiums.
VALife (which replaced Service-Disabled Veterans' Insurance) allows you to get up to $40,000 in whole life insurance coverage. VALife is guaranteed-acceptance whole life insurance, meaning you don’t have to prove you're in good health to get it, and if you're age 80 or younger, there’s no time limit to apply for a VALife policy (although you will need to have a service-connected disability and not have been discharged dishonorably). Once you’re approved, you can keep your coverage for as long as you pay the premiums.
VMLI is available to severely disabled veterans under 70 who’ve been approved for a Specially Adapted Housing Grant (SAH). These grants are available to disabled veterans who require modifications to their homes due to the severity of their disabilities. You can qualify for up to $200,000 of VMLI. For more information about VMLI and all of the VA life insurance programs, visit the official VA Life Insurance Programs webpage or call the VA's Insurance Center at 800-669-8477.
Employment Protections
Two main federal laws protect the rights of disabled veterans at work—the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). The ADA prohibits qualifying employers from discriminating against people with disabilities when making major employment decisions, as well as requiring that any disabled employees are provided with reasonable accommodations that allow them to do the essential functions of their job. Reasonable accommodations can include ergonomic adjustments, a flexible schedule, or bringing a service animal to work. As long as the accommodation doesn't create an undue hardship on the business, the ADA requires that your employer allow it.
USERRA prohibits employers from discriminating against veterans when making major employment decisions, and the law also gives veterans the right to return to their job if they take leave for military service. (Some states offer even more protection. Learn more about the military leave laws in all 50 states.)
Transition and Vocational Assistance
The VA offers many transitional assistance programs for veterans who are looking to get back into the civilian workforce following their separation from service. These programs include job counseling, veterans' preference hiring, and small business aid. If you have a service-connected disability that limits your ability to work, the Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program (formerly Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment). Through VR&E, you can explore your employment options and get additional training and education. You can learn more about VR&E on the VA's website.
If you’ve recently been discharged from service, remember that you’re eligible for unemployment assistance. Contact your state unemployment office for information.
Appealing VA Decisions
You have the right to appeal any decisions made by the VA that you disagree with by requesting a decision review within one year of the date of the decision. For more information on how to appeal a denial, visit the VA decision review webpage or see our article on appealing a VA disability decision.
Additional Resources for Veterans
You can get help finding the VA services and benefits you need by speaking with a local Veterans Service Officer (VSO). To locate the VA offices and facilities in your community, use the VA’s find location tool. You may also be interested in finding a VA disability attorney in your area if you need help filing for service-connected compensation, Social Security benefits, or both.
Talk to a Lawyer
Need a lawyer? Start here.
How it Works
- Briefly tell us about your case
- Provide your contact information
- Choose attorneys to contact you