The process of claiming disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) relies heavily on medical evidence, primarily gathered through the Compensation and Pension examination, commonly referred to as the C&P exam. This mandatory appointment is scheduled by the VA after a veteran files a claim for a service-connected disability. The primary purpose of the C&P exam is not to provide medical treatment but to gather necessary medical evidence supporting the veteran’s claim. The outcome of this examination often determines whether a claim is approved, denied, or what disability rating the veteran ultimately receives.
Defining the Compensation and Pension Exam
The Compensation and Pension (C&P) exam is a non-treatment medical evaluation ordered by the VA to gather evidence for a disability claim. Its function is to establish three elements required for a successful claim: a current medical diagnosis, a connection between the disability and military service (known as a nexus), and the present severity of the condition. The examiner reviews the veteran’s claims file and conducts an assessment to provide an objective medical opinion on these factors.
The healthcare provider will not offer treatment or prescribe medication. Instead, the examiner acts as a fact-finder for the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA). Their findings are documented on a specific form called a Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ), which translates medical information into a format the VA uses for rating decisions.
C&P exams are conducted by licensed medical professionals, who may be VA employees or contracted providers from third-party companies. The VA uses contract examiners to manage the high volume of disability claims and ensure timely processing. Regardless of the examiner’s affiliation, they must follow the same training and procedural standards established by the VA.
Preparing for Your C&P Appointment
Preparation is important because the examination is often brief and focused. Before the appointment, veterans should review their original claim and the specific conditions being examined. Understanding the medical details of the claimed disability and how it has progressed since military service is helpful.
Veterans should gather and organize any non-VA medical evidence, such as private doctor’s notes, test results, or statements from family and friends (lay evidence). While the examiner is supposed to have access to the veteran’s complete claims file (C-file), bringing copies of the most relevant documents ensures they are considered. This evidence can help corroborate the veteran’s current symptoms and functional limitations.
The veteran should create a concise list of current symptoms, focusing on how the disability affects their daily life and ability to work. This preparation helps ensure that all relevant information is relayed to the examiner during the limited appointment time. Being honest and detailed about the full impact of the condition, including the severity on “bad days,” is more helpful than downplaying symptoms.
Veterans should identify the specific Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) related to their claimed condition. Reviewing the DBQ allows the veteran to anticipate the types of questions the examiner must answer and prepare responses with specific examples of functional impairment. Being punctual for the scheduled appointment is important, as failing to attend or showing up late can significantly delay the claims process.
What Happens During the Examination
The C&P exam structure is dictated by the need to complete the DBQ for the claimed condition. The examiner reviews the veteran’s medical history and current records, which they should have done before the appointment. The appointment itself is a focused interview and physical assessment designed to gather the necessary data points.
The examiner will ask detailed questions about the onset of the symptoms, how the condition relates to service, and the present functional limitations. For a physical condition, this often includes specific measurements, such as range of motion testing for musculoskeletal injuries. For a mental health exam, the procedure is primarily an interview focused on mood, behavior, memory, and occupational and social functioning.
It is important for the veteran to accurately describe their current symptoms and how they experience them on their worst days, not just the day of the exam. Since the examiner is assessing the severity of the disability over time, describing the frequency and intensity of flare-ups is necessary. The veteran’s description of their current functional capacity and restrictions directly informs the data the examiner records on the DBQ.
The examiner will use the information gathered to complete the DBQ, which requires them to check boxes and provide narrative responses that correspond to the rating schedule criteria. The DBQ is designed to capture the clinical findings and the examiner’s medical opinion on the nexus, diagnosis, and severity. This completed form is the medical evidence that is ultimately sent back to the VA for adjudication.
How the Exam Influences Your VA Claim
The report generated from the C&P exam, particularly the completed Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ), is a key piece of evidence in the VA’s decision-making process. The examiner’s findings provide a current medical snapshot of the veteran’s condition, which is often relied upon heavily by the VA Rater. This report is added to the veteran’s claims file and reviewed alongside service records and any private medical documentation.
The VA Rater uses the DBQ to determine service connection—whether the disability is “at least as likely as not” related to military service—and the appropriate disability percentage. The assigned percentage is based on the severity of the symptoms and functional limitations documented by the examiner, according to the criteria in the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities.
An examiner’s medical opinion that finds a service connection, combined with a clear description of severe functional impairment, increases the likelihood of a successful claim and a higher rating. Conversely, if the examiner documents minimal symptoms or concludes there is no medical nexus to service, the claim may be denied or assigned a lower rating. The C&P exam serves as the VA’s primary way to fulfill its duty to assist the veteran in developing medical evidence for the claim.