Legal Help for Veterans blog.
Medical Issues / Disability, PTSD
At Legal Help For Veterans, PLLC, we represent many survivors of Military Sexual Trauma, also called MST. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, take a look at our recent blog covering Military Sexual Trauma Disability Claims. In this article, we will address some common misconceptions people often have about MST. Misconception #1 Only young women […]
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Veterans Law
As unfortunate as it is, many service members will experience some form of sexual assault, harassment, or other trauma during their military service. These experiences have profound impacts on survivors, but some relief could come in the form of compensation and other benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Military Sexual Trauma (MST) Though many […]
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News and Press
As unfortunate as it is, many service members will experience some form of sexual assault, harassment or other trauma during their time in the military. These experiences have a profound effect on the survivor and could potentially qualify them for compensation and other benefits from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Military sexual trauma (MST) can […]
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News and Press
Kristina Derro Veteran Advocate U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is leading the charge to end sex crimes in the military by giving a panel of seasoned, independent military trial lawyers the power to decide whether to prosecute sexual assault cases. Currently, this power is held by a small number of high-ranking military officials. Senator Gillibrand argues […]
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Medical Issues / Disability, Mental Health, News and Press
The suicide rate among military veterans has been given significant attention in the last decade from the media and military officials. Through past reports, experts were able to determine that active service members are less likely to commit suicide. Only when they leave the military do suicide rates skyrocket. Though much research has been conducted […]
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News and Press
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) has told Politico that she is planning to push for a new vote on her military sexual assault reform bill. Last year, the senator’s bill was defeated in Congress. Gillibrand’s bill sought to put the decision to prosecute sexual assault cases into the hands of prosecutors, not commanding officers. But those […]
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Claims Processing, Medical Issues / Disability, Mental Health
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced in early December that it would expand eligibility for veterans in need of mental health care due to sexual assault or sexual harassment that occurred during their military service. This expansion comes under the authority from the recent VACAA legislation (Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014). […]
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News and Press
Over the past two years, there has been about a 60% spike in sexual assaults reported in the military, according to numbers coming from the Pentagon that have been reported to the Associated Press (AP). Officials report that there were almost 6,000 victims of reported assaults in 2014, compared with just over 5,500 last year. […]
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Claims Processing, PTSD, Veterans Law
Veterans may not realize that they do not need new evidence in order to resubmit a previously denied claim for PTSD benefits related to military sexual trauma (MST), according to a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report also claims evidence that an overwhelming number of veterans who are aware of […]
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News and Press
Reports of sexual assaults by members of the military shot-up 50% in the past year, according to the Pentagon’s annual report released last week. But that sharp increase could be a result of a vigorous campaign to make victims feel more comfortable to come forward about being sexually assaulted, officials say. “There is no indication […]
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