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Welcome to The Veterans Disability Nexus, where we provide unique insights and expertise on medical evidence related to VA-rated disabilities. Leah Bucholz, a US Army Veteran, Physician Assistant, & former Compensation & Pension Examiner shares her knowledge related to Independent Medical Opinions often referred to as “Nexus Letters” in support of your pursuit of VA Disability every Tuesday & Wednesday at 7AM Central.
Take control of your medical evidence related to your benefits and visit https://podcast.prestigeveteranmctx.info/veteran/ for more information and to connect directly with us!
Hey, guys. It's Leah Bee from Prestige Veteran Medical Consulting. I'm a US army veteran, physician assistant, and former compensation and pension examiner. So we've done several videos related to occupational specialties, in in the military, like infantrymen, medics. We've done different videos on occupational stressors, like being paratroopers.
Leah Bucholz:And today, wanna come on and do a video about MPs or military police officers. So, I'm not sure if you guys knew that veterans who served as military police or MPs may qualify for VA disability for conditions related to their service, just like any other MOS. Right? So, being an MP isn't just about enforcing rules. It's one of the most physically demanding and high stress jobs in the military, often leaving long lasting health effects, both emotional and physical.
Leah Bucholz:Right? So in today's video, I'm gonna break down what makes MP service unique, the most common service connected disabilities that we can see in MPs, how VA rates them, and resources that may be helpful. So let's understand the role of the of military police, first of all. So military police serve as the law enforcement arm of the armed forces. Their duties often include things like patrolling bases and enforcing military laws.
Leah Bucholz:They can respond to violent incidences and emergencies. They they can work at controlling detainees or prisoners of war, conduct convoy escorts. Now, also, that's not to say that other MOSs can't be involved in controlling detainees or doing some of these duties, but this is typically what those specific MOSs do. That's what that specific MOS does. Right?
Leah Bucholz:So conducting convoy escorts, route security, and combat zones, This combination of combat exposure, physical demands, and high stress puts MPs at risk for both physical and psychological injuries. Unlike many jobs, being an MP often blends frontline combat with law enforcement, creating unique health challenges. So let's talk about what some of the research says. So studies show that law enforcement roles, including MPs, come with high rates of musculoskeletal injuries and mental health concerns. A Department of Defense Health survey found that MPs had above average rates of back, knee, and shoulder injuries compared to other occupations.
Leah Bucholz:A 2020 VA study noted that veterans with military law enforcement backgrounds were more likely to file claims for PTSD, hearing loss, and joint disorders. Research in military medicine has highlighted the impact of constant stress and shift work on MPs linking it to sleep disorders, anxiety, and cardiovascular problems. All of this shows that MPs face risks not just from combat, but also from cumulative effects of their duties. So let's talk about VA disability and common MP conditions. So how does the VA approach disability ratings for MPs?
Leah Bucholz:The VA does not have a special rating just for MPs, but there are many service connected conditions that are common in this field, including things like I already mentioned, musculoskeletal injuries, like knees, backs, hips, shoulder injuries from patrols, heavy gear, physical confrontations, PTSD and mental health conditions from things like exposure to violence, detainee operations, or combat patrols, hearing loss and tinnitus from weapons, training, explosions, sirens, just loud noises. Right? Sleep disorders often secondary to PTSD, stress, or irregular shifts, traumatic brain injury or TBI from blasts or physical altercations. Ratings can depend, on the severity, but it's it's common for MPs to have multiple conditions rated together, which increases their overall combined disability rating. So secondary service connection.
Leah Bucholz:So let's talk about secondary service connection and and how they can be especially important to MPs. For example, if MP has a knee injury from patrols, it may later cause hip or back problems. And we've got a lot of videos about hip conditions related to knee conditions you can check out. PTSD may lead to depression, anxiety, substance abuse disorders, leading to a myriad of things like weight gain, diabetes, all kinds of stuff, sleep apnea. Hearing loss may be linked with tinnitus or balance problems, different types of vertigo.
Leah Bucholz:Sleep apnea may be aggravated or caused by PTSD or shift work. So veterans that claim these secondary conditions can often strengthen their case and increase their overall ratings depending on if VA finds them to be service connected. Right? So what are some challenges that veterans, who served as MPs face? So MPs face unique challenges when transitioning to civilian life.
Leah Bucholz:Some continue in law enforcement where injuries and stress can worsen. Others struggle with PTSD symptoms tied to their service experiences. May also deal with stigma believing that they should tough it out instead of seeking help. The reality is that MP service can lead lasting scars, and getting proper recognition through VA disability benefits is an important part of long term health. So MPs and any veteran can file a disability claim on their own using those tools on va.gov, or they can also consider using a VSO or an accredited claims agent or an attorney to assist them.
Leah Bucholz:So if you served as a MP and you're, filing a claim, you can, check with some of those guys. So some things to consider is making sure you're listing all injuries and conditions you experienced during service even if they seem minor at the time. Obtaining your service records can be helpful. Incident reports, patrol logs, medical visits that you had during your time as an MP. Medical evidence that can be helpful, in certain circumstances can be things like a current diagnosis, doctor's notes, specialist evaluations.
Leah Bucholz:If you think you may need a nexus letter, they're never required, but you can get one from your treating doctor. You can get one from, you can get a nexus, right, not a nexus letter. If you go to a C and P exam, the VA C and P examiner may provide a positive nexus between your issue and your service. They also may say they don't agree. Secondary conditions, make sure those are listed if you believe they're related to your service, like PTSD leading to sleep apnea or knee injuries leading to that back pain.
Leah Bucholz:The more complete your documentation, the more support you may wind up having for your case. So what are some resources for MPs? So I I'd like to go over the MOS SmartBook here in a second. I always like to touch on that. But if you served as an MP and you're struggling with service related conditions, you can go to VA clinics for mental health, orthopedics, or audiology visits.
Leah Bucholz:You can see veteran service organizations like DAV, VFW, to help you navigate those claims. The National Association of Police Organizations for law enforcement veterans, the veterans crisis line is always available at 988, and then you press 1 if you need immediate mental health support. Right? So I wanna pull up that MOS spark SmartBook with you guys. So this is a retention document that's used by, the by the army to decide whether or not to help determine whether or not you're currently meeting the specifics of your MOS.
Leah Bucholz:And sometimes I have found that this can be helpful when I'm trying to outline some of the occupational stressors, like if you didn't document things in service. Maybe you're the type that didn't wanna go to sick call or, you know, whatever the environment was. So some of this can provide some just statistical information or some info for your, you know, for you to articulate what you were experiencing and what you were required to do based on your MOS. So let me share my screen really quick. Hang on one second.
Leah Bucholz:Let's see. MOS SmartBook. Here we go. Okay. So this MOS SmartBook, we're gonna go down to my copy here shows the different MOS numbers.
Leah Bucholz:You can, type on that 31, and that's that should bring you to the hyperlink. But we're gonna go I I just hit control f, and we're gonna go to 31 bravo or military police. It may have updated. I'm not sure if it's still a 31 series, but we're gonna look at military police. Major duties, this is just like an outline of what some of those major duties are, but what I like to look at is down here in table 10.
Leah Bucholz:Right? So table 10 are the physical requirements. K? Physical requirements of the MOS. So skill level one is gonna be your, you know, privates through e four.
Leah Bucholz:Skill level two is gonna be your sergeants or e five. Skill level three is your e six. Skill level four is e seven, and then skill level five on up. Right? So at skill level one, as you can see, the MP is required to do tasks one, two, three, four, five, and six.
Leah Bucholz:And those tasks include things like lifting a maximum of 80 pounds with frequent lifting of 40 pounds, occasionally lifting and carrying 70 pounds, frequently standing for extended periods of time, frequently speaks and listens using radio equipment, writes reports, and, compiles data, must possess red green color discrimination. K? And so at at the rest of the skill levels, except for that highest skill level, everybody's gotta be able to do the same thing. K? So maybe you didn't get seen for a for a whole bunch on active duty, but you can show, like, hey.
Leah Bucholz:I was frequently required to lift 80 pounds. I I had to lift 80 pounds with frequent lifting of at least 40 pounds, and that's just to maintain your MOS qualification. K? So let me jump off this screen share. And that is, again, that is the MOS SmartBook or the Department of the Army, DA PAM.
Leah Bucholz:Let's see. What is it? Six eleven dash twenty one. K? So I hope that was helpful.
Leah Bucholz:Please drop some comments. Let me know what you guys think. I'd love to hear your experiences, especially those MPs. And as always, thank you for watching. Please like and subscribe.
Leah Bucholz:Alright. See you guys later.