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The Department of Veterans Affairs has two different programs for veterans who suffer from disabilities. Disability compensation is a program to compensate those whose disabilities, whether physical or emotional, are directly tied to service. Disability pension, on the other hand, is a program for veterans who have served in times of war and have become disables but whose conditions are not directly connected to service.

The way the VA determines the level of disability and compensation by what they call ratings exams. The VA will send you to an evaluation by a physician (or psychologist psychiatrist for mental health issues) who will give the VA a report on various criteria about the severity of your condition. Depending on the nature of your condition, your rating can be anywhere from as low as 0 percent up to 100 percent. Typically, many claims are rated in the 10 to 30 percent range, but more severe claims may be rated anywhere from 60 to 100 percent.

If you have a condition caused by service in a war that later results in another limiting condition, that secondary condition can be claimed as a secondary service connection just as if it were caused by service.

Benefits available for veterans affected by Agent Orange vary considerably It depends entirely on what condition or conditions have been determined by the VA to be service-connected based on Agent Orange. There are a number of conditions that can be service-connected based on Agent Orange such as soft tissue problems, cancers, Type II Diabetes and more. The compensation rate varies depending on your rating from the VA.