No disability pay until separations pay is recouped?

Sgt Jennifer Mohler — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 08:34:08 -0400

I got my disability determination in the mail on Friday. It isn't much (20%), but the money would help a lot as I am currently STILL unemployed. The letter stated that I would not receive payment until my separation pay is recouped. This means I will see no check until 2017. This doesn't seem right at all to me and I have no idea where to begin to check this out. I don't understand what my last check from the Marine Corps has to do with the VA or a meager disability rating. Can RP help me understand what is happening and if this sounds right? I have never heard of this before.

MSG Wade Huffman , SSG V. Michelle Woods

Response by SPC James Mcneil made Oct 26 at 2014 9:02 AM

SPC James Mcneil — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 09:02:45 -0400

It didn't make sense to me at first either. The VA rep explained to me that the separation pay was in fact an "advance" on disability pay. I still said hogwash, but they've covered their bases.

Now if they could only put as much effort into caring for veterans as they've put into doing as little as possible... (At least that's the way it seems to me.)

Response by Sgt Jennifer Mohler made Oct 26 at 2014 10:54 AM

Sgt Jennifer Mohler — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 10:54:48 -0400

Who can I talk to about this? The letter which should have brought relief was actually devastating. Thanks for the help!

Response by Sgt Randy Novak made Oct 26 at 2014 2:28 PM

Sgt Randy Novak — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 14:28:42 -0400

The same thing happened to me. I was High Tenured and received Seps Pay. It took 2 Years of retropay before I ever received my first Disability payment. I think it is a load of S#!t. One pot of money has nothing to do with the other. I was sooo pissed when I learned that I had to wait.

Response by MSG Wade Huffman made Oct 26 at 2014 2:41 PM

MSG Wade Huffman — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 14:41:48 -0400

The letter is correct. If you receive separation pay from the service, then your VA payments are 'recouped' until the two are offset. I understand that it doesn't seem right, like many other things, but there is no way around it. Sorry I can't give you better news than that.
This should have been explained during your TAP classes and again by whoever assisted you in fling your claim.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 26 at 2014 3:20 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 15:20:35 -0400

Sgt Jennifer Mohler, was your severance pay considered 'disability severance pay' ?

To read more about it:

Go to the link below:

http://www.benefits....MS/M21_1MR3.asp

Scroll down to :
Chapter 4 - Elections, Waivers, and Recoupments

Click on:
Section B
- Recoupment of Readjustment, Separation, and Severance Pay

DFAS Q&A:
http://www.dfas.mil/retiredmilitary/newsevents/news/separationrecoupmentfaqs.html

Response by SSG V. Michelle Woods made Oct 26 at 2014 10:22 PM

SSG V. Michelle Woods — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 22:22:42 -0400

Oh my gosh, that is terrible! I am so sorry you're going through this but unfortunately something similar happened to my brother when he got out of the Army. He received some type of disability lump sum pay from the Army and later on was paid disability by the VA, however the Army made him pay back a portion of his disability lump sum.

Im sorry I don't have better guidance for you but hopefully one of the other leaders can shed some light on this.
Good luck sister!

Response by SSG Genaro Negrete made Oct 26 at 2014 10:49 PM

SSG Genaro Negrete — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 22:49:19 -0400

I recently received a briefing on this. I don't know how much this translates into the Marine Corps, but here's what they told me: sep pay is classified as a type of pay advance. Since the military won't get that money back through continued service, it ends up as a deficit owed by the SM. Now the Military and the VA are two separate federal entities. There is something about you can't draw pay from these two entities at the same time. So the VA pays your disability money towards your advance pay deficit from the military. I was told they try to avoid this scenario when ever possible, but since it's written into law, the VA can't do anything. It's a "letter to your congressman" type issue. The VA's answer to help soften the blow is a) discourage sep pay when ever possible and b) have the deficit paid off as soon as possible through the disability payments.

I'm not fully through the process yet. This is just information I received through mandatory briefings. Did you have a choice to take separation pay?

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 27 at 2014 4:30 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 27 Oct 2014 16:30:48 -0400

What others have stated is true; VA's hands are tied as it is federal law that governs the recoupment of separation pay before VA disability is paid. Your only recourse is for your elected representatives at the federal level to change the law. Getting them to do so is up to the voting public.

Response by LT Catherine Pace made Jul 25 at 2016 12:30 AM

LT Catherine Pace — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 00:30:49 -0400

In the last five years, the VA withheld more than $401 million in disability compensation from 24,988 veterans, with $261 million scheduled to be withheld from future benefits, according to Meagan Lutz, a spokesperson for the VA.
38 U.S.C. was written in 1943 and involuntarily separated are not receiving duplicate pay; however, U.S. Code › Title 10 › Subtitle A › Part II › Chapter 59 › § 1174 does cover CONGRESS. It was amended in 1993

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 9 at 2017 10:16 AM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Mar 2017 10:16:24 -0500

There is a waiver you can do that will overrule the waiting period.

Response by PO2 Gil Martinez made Apr 3 at 2017 7:45 PM

PO2 Gil Martinez — Mon, 03 Apr 2017 19:45:51 -0400

Where do i go to check the remaining balance? DFAS? I want to know the day i finish the final payment and keep track myself. thanks