An other-than-honorable (OTH) discharge does not automatically bar VA benefits, but it does trigger a "character of discharge" determination under 38 CFR 3.12 before VA will process a disability claim. VA regional offices review the circumstances of the discharge to decide whether it counts as a bar to benefits (for example, discharges tied to willful and persistent misconduct) or whether an exception applies, such as evidence that the misconduct stemmed from a mental health condition, including PTSD or TBI, that existed at the time of service.
Separately, you can seek to have the discharge itself upgraded through your branch's Discharge Review Board (DRB) using DD Form 293, or through a Board for Correction of Military/Naval Records (BCMR/BCNR) using DD Form 149 if you are seeking correction of the record itself, which can include reasons for discharge, narrative reason, or RE code. These boards are required to give liberal consideration to claims involving PTSD, TBI, sexual trauma, or other mental health conditions connected to misconduct, following DoD guidance issued after the Hagel and Kurta memos.
Official 2026 VA monthly compensation, including the 2.8% COLA increase.
Dependent add-ons start at a 30% rating. Child-only and dependent-parent rates: see the full 2026 pay chart.
| Rating | Monthly (2026, incl. 2.8% COLA) |
|---|---|
| 10% | $180.42 |
| 20% | $356.66 |
| 30% | $552.47 |
| 40% | $795.84 |
| 50% | $1,132.90 |
| 60% | $1,435.02 |
| 70% | $1,808.45 |
| 80% | $2,102.15 |
| 90% | $2,362.30 |
| 100% | $3,938.58 |
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Analyze my claim free →Manker v. Del Toro was a class-action lawsuit against the Navy and Marine Corps discharge review boards alleging they were not properly applying that liberal-consideration standard to veterans with OTH discharges linked to PTSD or related conditions. The settlement required the Naval Discharge Review Board to reconsider nine years of prior decisions under the corrected standard. It does not automatically upgrade anyone's discharge or guarantee a different outcome; it only ensures the board applies the right legal standard when reviewing eligible cases. If your discharge was reviewed by the Naval DRB during that window and you believe PTSD, TBI, or related conditions were not properly weighed, you may be eligible to request reconsideration.
A discharge upgrade and a VA character-of-discharge determination are two separate processes, and winning one does not automatically resolve the other, though an upgraded discharge generally removes the character-of-discharge bar for VA purposes. If you currently have an OTH discharge and have not yet filed for VA disability benefits, you can still submit a claim; VA is required to make its own character-of-discharge determination independent of your service discharge paperwork. The concrete next step is to request your full service treatment and personnel records, then file for discharge review or record correction while separately submitting (or continuing) a VA disability claim so both processes move forward in parallel.
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