Which VA benefits you may qualify for.
We look at your service, your rating, and your family, and tell you which VA benefits are worth a closer look. Disability pay is the benefit most people know. It is not the only one, and a rating can open others: health care, job training, education, home loans, and support for the people who depend on you.
The benefits worth asking about.
Disability compensation
Monthly, tax-free pay for conditions connected to your service, set by your combined rating. What each rating pays.
VA health care
Medical care through the VA, including its clinics in Columbus and at Fort Benning.
Veterans Pension
A needs-based benefit for wartime veterans with limited income and net worth who are 65 or older, or who meet a disability requirement.
Veteran Readiness and Employment
Help with training, education and work when a service-connected condition limits your ability to work.
Education and home loans
GI Bill education benefits, and a VA-backed home loan.
Survivors' benefits
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for the surviving spouse, children or parents of a veteran whose death was connected to service.
Where we start.
We start with what you already have: your rating, your decision letters, and your service history. Then we look at what each one makes you eligible for, and which benefits are worth applying for now.
If your rating looks lower than your record supports, that comes first, because the rating decides what several other benefits pay and whether you qualify for them. What to do about a rating that sits too low.
Questions veterans ask.
Is VA pension the same as disability compensation?
No. Disability compensation is paid for conditions connected to your service, whatever your income. Veterans Pension is a needs-based benefit for wartime veterans with limited income and net worth who are 65 or older, permanently and totally disabled, in a nursing home for long-term care, or receiving Social Security disability or SSI.
Do my dependents change what I am paid?
At a combined rating of 30% or higher, yes. A spouse, children, or dependent parents raise the monthly amount. At 10% and 20% the rate is the same with or without dependents.
Can a surviving spouse get benefits?
In many cases, yes. Dependency and Indemnity Compensation is a tax-free monthly benefit for the eligible surviving spouse, children or parents of a service member who died in the line of duty, or of a veteran who died from a service-connected condition. It takes its own Intent to File.
Where is VA health care near Columbus?
The VA runs clinics in Columbus and at Fort Benning, and the Columbus Vet Center offers free, confidential counseling. We list their addresses on our resources page.
More of what we help with.
- Help filing your VA disability claim
- Getting a claim prepared and ready to file
- Protecting your effective date with an Intent to File
- Guidance after a denial or a rating that sits too low
- Putting your records in order, from your DD214 to treatment records
- Connecting you with the right veteran resources
Start with a private intake.
MVAC reviews each submission and follows up directly, within 2 business days, Monday thru Thursday. Sensitive details are stored encrypted and viewed only through the protected admin.