Question:
My husband just received permanent and total, TDIU, SMC (S). He has ED, should he ask for the SMC K in addition to the SMC S? The DAV says not to open the claim up again because of the risk of reduction of benefits.
Jim's Reply:
I'd suggest that he wait a couple months to let the dust settle from this recent claim and file for SMC-k as a stand alone claim not associated with anything else. The benefit will pay him over $1000.00 each year, not an insignificant amount of money for the totally disabled veteran. Although any time we ask VA to open our file we risk their reviews and mistakes, we have to balance risk and reward. In this case I see the risk as low and the reward as high. If it were me, I'd file.