![]() Sensory deficits - sight, hearing, touch.Limitations - walking, bending, lifting, balancing.In particular, the letter should address issues such as your: In addition, the doctor’s statement should explain the ways in which you are functionally limited and how the condition limits your normal daily activities. Generally, to be eligible, your medical condition must have lasted, or be expected to last, for 12 months or result in death. To meet the Social Security Administration’s requirements, the statement must indicate your diagnosed condition, the date of the diagnosis, as well as the prognosis of the condition. If your claim goes to the appeal level, a doctor’s letter - referred to as a medical source or residual functional capacity (RFC) statement - must specify why the doctor believes you are disabled and unable to work. In any event, a doctor’s letter should not be included with the initial application. This type of statement can actually hinder your case. While a doctor’s letter may be a deciding factor in a disability claim, it is not enough to state that you are completely disabled and unable to work. Should my doctor write a letter if I am applying for disability benefits? We understand the complex medical and legal issues involved in disability claims and have a proven history of helping our clients obtain the benefits they deserve. Our legal team has a well-deserved reputation for being dedicated advocates of the disabled. The best way to avoid these common mistakes is to consult our disability lawyers at Disability Attorneys of Arizona. While including a doctor’s letter may also support a claim, a letter that is not specific enough or gives the wrong impression of an applicant’s disability could result in a claim denial. Medical records are a critical component of a disability claim. Call Veterans Help Group at (855) 855-8992 or complete our free veterans benefits case evaluation form. If you have additional questions regarding lay evidence for a VA benefits claim or appeal, we are here to help. As you almost certainly know, VA has very, very specific regulations about what is necessary for getting a higher disability rating, or even getting service-connected in the first place, and the best lay statements are those that are relevant in the information they provide. Be sure that the statement is on point though. In some instances, a good lay statement can be enough to get the VA to give you a medical examination ( C&P exams) that may help to win your case. That being said, lay evidence can make your case much, much stronger. A doctor has the special training and expertise that allows him or her to make these findings. But a doctor would need to diagnose the condition, or link it to service. So, you can testify to your pain and the problems it causes, and the VA would have to consider this. The biggest is that it isn’t a substitute for a well-reasoned and thorough doctor’s opinion. The VA can’t just ignore lay evidence, although unfortunately it all too often does and this serves as a basis to appeal. ![]() The VA is required to take your lay evidence into account when deciding your claim. It can show just how bad your symptoms are now, and what you are going through (such as problems concentrating or working because of PTSD).It can be used to show that you had symptoms of a medical problem while in service.It can establish what you did in service (such as working near the perimeter of a military base in Thailand).It can establish an event that happened in service (such as you fell off a truck and hurt your back).There are a variety of ways lay evidence can support your VA claim. If you were to write a letter to the VA, stating what symptoms your PTSD was causing, that would be “lay evidence.” Lay testimony can also come from those people who know you best-family, friends, co-workers, and veterans that served with you (in VA terminology, these are called “buddy statements”). It just means testimony or written statements that come from someone other than a medical doctor or specialist. It tells the VA and us, exactly what the veteran is going through now, or has gone through in the past. One of the most powerful tools to use in building a case is “lay evidence.” We often obtain lay evidence in the process of building up a veteran’s appeal-in fact, it is often one of the starting points.
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