Question:
Jim, hello, I've been following you for a little while now and I can't seem to find my exact question in your mail bag. My situation is this, I'm a medically retired veteran that was separated back in 2017 for a serious mental health issue (schizophrenia). Although I'm almost 100% sure I don't have the condition, because I've exhibited mostly negative symptoms rather than any positive ones. Which by the way is associated with a number of other mental health problems, such as Major Depression and PTSD. I suspect however that those diagnoses were sweeped under the rug, so as not to conduct an investigation as to what was really happening in my work center. So I was pretty much labeled as being out of touch with reality and absolutely non of my claims about certain personnel E5 and above were taken seriously. Suffice it to say I was speed out of the military with a 70% combined rating.I started to self medicate(cannabis) when the meds they gave me couldn't quite handle my insomnia. Now my question is this because I've heard a number of things from a number of people. One of those things is your lose your rating from the DOD and VA should you pop positive for Cannabis, no matter the state you are in, because it's still a federally controlled substance. Is there any truth to these claims, should I be worried? What is your experience with the situation?
Jim's Reply:
I can't speak to DoD policy but the VA doesn't penalize veterans for substance abuse. You will not lose a VA disability rating because of any drug screen.