Everything You Need To Know About A C&P Exam

If you’ve filed a veterans disability claim, you must have come across a Compensation & Pension exam (C&P). It is quite important, yet many veterans have no idea what to expect and are somewhat dreading the prospect of it.

For instance, it’s common to hear questions about it such as is a C&P exam a good sign or what happens when you fail. 

Today, we’ll answer all those questions, and by the end of the article, this exam won’t seem so scary. 

What Is A C&p Exam?

For starters, this is not a written exam but a medical evaluation scheduled by the VA during the veteran disability claim process. It’s usually conducted by a medical provider unaffiliated with the government in your local area. 

The goal of this examination is to check the veteran’s symptoms and determine if the claimed disability is connected to their time in active military service. The medical professional will take a close look at all the symptoms and ascertain how severe they are according to their duration and frequency.

The same applies to cases in which a veteran believes they deserve a higher disability rating. The purpose of the C&P exam here will be to figure out if the symptoms are worsening, thus warranting an increase in the rating criteria.

Is The C&p Exam Necessary?

Again, you may be wondering is a C&P exam a good sign, but what if VA didn’t even require it? 

This happens sometimes, as this exam is not necessary for every case. In short, the exam is only there to gather extra information. So, if VA doesn’t require you to go through it, chances are they already have plenty of information and the documentation you gathered beforehand is adequate to base a sound decision on.

This is good news, which means you are one step closer to receiving the disability benefits you deserve!

What Happens If You Fail Your C&p Exam?

This is another fear many veterans feel when they’re required to attend this exam. To dispel your worries, you actually can’t fail this exam in the traditional sense. The purpose of it is only to gather relevant medical information and establish if your symptoms are service-connected.

In other words, you just need to show up with your medical records and be straightforward with the medical professional examining you. Afterward, the findings of the C&P exam will be used to generate a report the VA will use to decide if your disability claim is valid. 

However, it’s worth noting that there’s a chance the C&P exam won’t support your claim. Furthermore, it may even reflect a lower disability degree than you have. There are many cases in which there is a clash between the opinions of the C&P examiner and your treating physician. 

Unfortunately, these exams are very influential and carry a ton of weight in regard to the final decision. Simply put, the results of the C&P examination can make or break your disability claim.

The VA relies on these findings when it comes to issues such as the severity of symptoms, service connection, as well as medical etiology (cause and origin of the condition).

A favorable C&P exam that may result in a claim approval will have a medical opinion that supports your symptoms, stating they are ‘’at least as likely as not’’ service-connected. On the other hand, an unfavorable medical opinion will state your symptoms are ‘’less likely than not’’ service-connected and will typically result in your claim getting denied. 

We’ll go over how to deal with a negative C&P exam in detail later. 

What If You Get A Second C&p Exam?

There are instances in which a veteran already attended one examination and got invited to a second one. In that case, you may be wondering is a C&P exam a good sign if you’re invited for a repeat. 

In most cases, yes. This can actually lead to a better VA decision and potentially prevent a denial.

There are many reasons why the VA will request an additional C&P exam, but for the most poart, it’s to clear up confusion or fix errors. For example, maybe the findings on the first exam were unfavorable and the VA decided they should preemptively request a second opinion from a different medical professional. This is generally the best-case scenario.

Otherwise, it could be that the first exam didn’t go as well as expected and you requested a new C&P exam. The VA concurred and decided to follow through with your request.

Lastly, there is a possibility the VA found some errors in the first C&P exam. For instance, ‘’Duty to Assist’’ errors are quite common and they refer to events in which an examiner fails to address the medical etiology, service connection by aggravation (previous injuries which were exacerbated during service), or secondary service connection (a disability that resulted from another service-related condition). In that case, the VA will request a second C&P exam to clear up the mistake.

How To Request A New C&p Exam

Thankfully, a bad C&P exam is not the end of the world. If you believe the medical professional didn’t examine you properly, you can request a second opinion. 

There are three ways you can go about it:

1. Call 1-800-292-1919. This is the VA hotline where you can speak to a representative about your claim. You can file a complaint about the exam and remind the representative to add your request for a new exam to your file.
2. Visit the official Veterans Affairs website. Here you can upload a Memorandum for Record to your file. You can note down all the complaints about the exam, challenge their assertions, add reminders if the examiner hasn’t considered all the evidence, and request a second C&P exam.
3. If all else fails and you’re still not approved for a second examination, you can write a formal complaint letter to the congressmen of your state.

A C&p Exam Is Nothing To Fear

All new experiences seem scary at first, even if they’re meant to help you. Yes, it does seem frustrating that a government institution is questioning your disability, but in all honesty, it’s a normal step of the process.

In fact, if you’re legitimately suffering due to your condition, you have nothing to fear. Chances are the medical professional will agree with the findings of your general physician and you’ll be one step closer to receiving the benefits you deserve.

Nevertheless, if the exam doesn’t go as expected, you can request a second opinion and still positively affect the outcome of your claim