Falsely claiming PTSD for VA benefits?

If the question is really whether or not PTSD can be faked, I would say that the answer is yes. Most medical diagnoses are based upon objective data, but not all fall into this category. The classic example is complaints of back pain. Often nothing shows on x-rays and other tests, yet that alone does not "prove" that the person is lying when they claim to be suffering this pain. Psychological ailments, including PTSD are even harder to definitively diagnosis with certainty, especially when their is a possibility that the individual is motivated to get that diagnosis for whatever reasons. Early in my military service, at the height of the Vietnam War, more than a few soldiers were able to get discharged right from Basic Training based upon questionable psychiatric conditions. Fortunately, the average draftee believed that the Army psychiatrists were very skilled at spotting fakes and thus did not even try this route, but in fact, with the workloads they were handling, it was rather easy to fake mental illness to the psychiatrists and secure a discharge from active duty. I personally knew a psychiatrist who said he believed that any individual so desperate to avoid service as to fake mental illness was, by definition, mentally ill. Therefore, to him, it didn't matter whether the behavior and symptoms were real or faked since in either case he would do what was needed to get the soldier discharged from the service.

In the non military world, faking of mental illness is rampant and I am quite confident that a significant proportion of those people on full Social Security disability pay for mental illness are not actually mentally ill, but are lazy parasites content to live on a small income in return for not having to work at all.

It does not surprise me that there well may be some receiving disability pensions for PTSD that are not deserving of such. I doubt that the government cares enough about such fraud as to do anything meaningful to stop this behavior.

Good win for our bros dealing with hidden scars.

MSgt Brendon Grimes, How are you or I qualified to make that call?

I’d start this comment by saying I’m 100% service connected through PTSD. Although I’ve only had one deployment as an Infantryman, OIF II. I’d have to agree with the side of the fence of those who don’t judge another’s service or mental faculties, regardless of service. We as a society seem to be more robustly accepting of one’s entitlement to their own mental health. Besides, criminalizing the whole process of validating service connected disability is the most dangerous slippery slope I can think of. Unless one has the capacity to literally walk in another man’s jungle boots, leave the arm chair diagnosis to thyself. In terms of how an individual could’ve developed PTSD given their service, I always liken deployment to a constant “threat of death.” In my humble opinion, and from personal experience, that threat of death was just as profound for me whether inside or outside the wire. Saying this now, even if I never experienced combat, to which I’ve had many, I’d still be off my rocker as a result. Wars a very nasty business that humans maybe prone to, but certainly are built to

First off, if you believe that someone could easily get through a VA PTSD exam using lies and BS and land a 100% rating it is obvious that you have never been through a VA exam for anything. If someone is missing an entire limb the VA will ask at least 15 questions about it and want records of the incident, including names, dates, and location.

As for stopping care after after being rated, the VA will eventually call that person in for a reevaluation and it will be as or more rigorous than the initial rating exam.

I lost an internal organ and the VA periodic checks to see if it is still missing, they do not play games, if you BS them you will be caught. They also do not care, if you actually have the condition that you are rated for they will lower your rating anyway and make you fight to get it back.

This happens all the time and in my opinion happens more and more often. My son-in-law's father was a Marine who served in Vietnam. When he retired at 65, he had owned a consruction business. He answered an add by some attorney claiming he could get him 100% disability from the VA. He was coached on what to say and how to act. He got 60% for his PTSD and since he couldn't work it was raised to 100%. He makes as much for his 100% as I do and I am compensated for 17 diffferent conditions none of them PTSD. The last 7 I get no benefit from because I am at 100% before they are figured in.
Do I believe there are people falsely claiming PTSD? As long as attorneys are able to counsel service members on how to scam the system and collect up to 33.33% of how much the veteran receives (in my son-in-law's father's case they got over $34,000). It took 3 years to get the 100% rating. So today, an attorney can make today over $47,000 if the claim takes 3 years to resolve. Not bad for a couple hours work counseling someone and filing paper work that various organzations file for free.
I don't believe every veteran who serves in a combat zone suffers some level of PTSD. I believe that most of those who claim PTSD are scaming the system. Yes there is PTSD but not close to the rate it is being compensated for.

You don't know if he has PTSD, it is such a personal thing. What gives PTSD to one person isn't even a blink of concern to another. I was in the Army, then was an Army wife fearing for my husband's life, no trouble. But after working at the Humane Society and having to put many animals to sleep, the VA doctor told me I suffer from PTSD because of my job, and offered to put me in a counseling group of combat soldiers. I would not have felt comfortable listening to soldiers talking about killing people, and then having to talk about killing dogs and cats, but I did learn that PTSD is in more places than I would have thought.

I retired from the Army, but none the less have seen the services push for making disability claims when service members exit the military. I myself have the mindset that I entered the service with everything, including my brain working, and upon retirement had only a few problems to deal with, so proudly claim I refused to apply for VA disability. I see people now that are able bodied and work normal jobs out of the military who spend a great deal of their time trying to up the disability number to 100%. They are not content with the 40%, 60% or whatever they claimed. 100% is the goal. I was working with a staff NCO (E7) in the supply/logistics area that never even came close to a hostile situation, put in retirement papers from Afghanistan and then started the PTSD claims and ended up with 100% disability. It is no wonder the VA has a huge backlog, the system is eaten up- with fraudulent claims and no way apparently to go back and check up on these fraudulent claims.

I am a firm believer that anyone who has claimed PTSD, AKA Battle Rattle, should be allowed to buy a gun, get a concealed carry permit/license, or even hunt. Nobody can help them if they are totally disabled with PTSD. Look at what happened to the "American Sniper" Chris Kyle trying to help out ex-military members who claimed PTSD.

PTSD is a condition that is evaluated by the VA or other doctor outside the VA. Most people know what degree they have PTSD anyway. I know I have it as I still have symptoms of it and always will. You don't spend a year or more in ANY combat zone designated as such even if you never fire you weapon and not have PTSD to some extent. PTSD is nothing more than the human brain's response to a high level of stress. I remember for instance on my first deployment in BALAD we would get mortared almost every night or day sometimes. When I first arrived I would dive for the nearest bunker when the alarms went off shaking in my boots. Then I would watch many many other airmen and Soldiers looking at me and laughing while continuing on to their location. Eventually I got t where I did the same and mostly ignored the mortars. Did I have PTSD after that deployment. Did I claim PTSD on my VA claim. No I did not. Why? Because I just didn't feel my PTSD was serious enough to be getting a VA check for. So people who claim PTSD who were EVER in a combat zone deserve that whether they were a hardened combat Soldier or a clerk who never went outside the wire. Now while you are entitled to your opinion, it is the VA who ultimately decides who has PTSD and who does not. Not us Soldiers.
Now here is the kicker to my story. After serving 32 years in the Military mostly around aircraft, I have severe hearing loss. When I reported this to the VA they gave me hearing test. They confirmed my severe hearing loss but the civilian who commented on it did not believe it to be..."SERVICE RELATED" LOL. Go figure. I never appealed it as I don't really care too. Perhaps another symptom of PTSD or depression that makes me not care much about such things after the shit I have seen in my career.

Unless this is a case for which you have specific knowledge and you were with him on every single duty assignment 100% of the time and have recordings of what he has said to family members this is all secondary information. It is not credible. Please tell us what your qualifications are to determine whether this person has PTSD or not. So many suffer silently because they don't want to be mocked by people like you.