Jim Hill, a Navy veteran and CEO of Trajector Medical, recently was a guest on radio station KRFE in Lubbock, Texas, to talk about why veterans should apply for VA disability benefits—even if they’re doing okay financially. Hill served during the Panama Conflict and in the Gulf War. For more than a decade, he’s made it his mission to help veterans receive the disability benefits they’ve earned. 

Many Veterans Leave Benefits on the Table 

Jim Hill shared many veterans are surprised when they realize the value of benefits they may have overlooked. He recalls his own journey, how he met his future company co-founder, Gina Uribe, and the moment he discovered the importance of the VA disability benefits process: 

I thought VA disability benefits was like a hundred bucks a month and it wasn’t worth the hassle at the time for me. And [an acquaintance] is like, “Dude, you need to call Gina.” So I call her, and she asked me some questions and asked me to give her my medical records, which I do. Two weeks later, she calls me back and says, “You’ve left $400,000 of cash VA disability benefits on the table since you’ve left the military….” 

Yeah, I was really resistive for decades, but that got my attention and I started learning what she was doing and I feel like I’m average intelligence, and there’s got to be a lot of other veterans who are missing out on this. So, she started the process, and I basically proposed to her that maybe we should partner up and I would work on helping scale the business. She does the medical, and it’s been a really fantastic journey since — and we’ve helped lots and lots of veterans along the way. 

Common reasons veterans don’t always apply: 

• They think other veterans need it more 

• Worry about the time and effort of applying 

• Unsure if medical conditions qualify 

• They may have a disability without realizing it could be service-connected 

But here’s what’s important: VA disability benefits aren’t charity—they’re something veterans have already earned. 

Why Medical Evidence Matters 

According to Jim Hill, good medical evidence is the key for veterans to successfully support their disability applications. 

“Medical evidence is the foundation of any successful legal claim for the injury,” Hill says. 

Trajector Medical focuses on helping veterans gather strong, complete medical evidence to clearly show the truth about their service-related health conditions. The company doesn’t file paperwork with the VA. Rather, it provides medical evidence packets tailored specifically to each veteran’s health needs. This approach puts veterans in control. Veterans use these medical packets to submit their applications confidently, knowing they’ve told their story completely and accurately. 

Benefits Support Veterans in Long-Term Planning 

Even if a veteran isn’t struggling financially right now, pursuing VA disability benefits can help protect the future for veterans and their families. These potential benefits give veterans more than money—they offer peace of mind. 

Key advantages of pursuing benefits, even if financially comfortable today, include: 

• Security for any future medical needs linked to military service 

• Financial support that can help ease stress on family caregivers 

• Access to additional resources and services from local and federal programs 

As Hill explains, planning with VA benefit support shows your continued commitment to family responsibility and forward thinking: 

“You might not have done it for the money, but you did serve,” says Hill. “And if you have medically, legally, and ethically qualified disabilities that warrant VA benefits… it’s very helpful not to burden your family in the future with your care that may be related to your military service.” 

Take Action Today 

Veterans have already done their part. Applying for VA disability benefits ensures they’re getting the support they’ve earned. Getting started can be simple: 

• Gather your medical records and notes on your health conditions. 

• If you’ve worked with a local veteran service organization (VSO), and feel like something may be missing, consider working with a professional medical evidence company like Trajector Medical for help assembling clear and accurate medical evidence. 

• Submit the application yourself—keeping you in control of your own process. 

Veterans deserve the care and support they qualify for after serving our country. Jim Hill and the experts at Trajector Medical are working hard to ensure veterans have accurate medical evidence so they can confidently obtain the VA benefits they’re entitled to.

In-Depth 

Read the full transcript of Jim Hill’s interview below: 

Tony – Radio Show Host (00:00): Welcome to the show, Jim Hill, Chairman, CEO, and Co-founder of Trajector Medical, based out of Gainesville, Florida. We’ve talked about Trajector Medical for the better part of a year now, and I’m thrilled to finally have you on. 

Jim Hill (00:17): Good morning, Tony. Thanks for having me.  

Tony – Radio Show Host (00:19): We are so excited to have you on, Jim. I know you have such a rich history and background, and we’ll touch on the high points. You’re a Navy veteran, combat veteran from the Panama Conflict, and served in Desert Storm and Shield, which my co-host Dennis knows a bit about as well. So, of course, thank you for your service. Looking at your education, University of Florida, MBA in Entrepreneurship, Finance, you’ve pretty much done it all. 

For those who don’t know, Trajector serves the disabled population. I’ve used them personally, my father has used them, and I’ve referred you guys close to a dozen times for fellow airmen and seamen. They still call me to this day, even though I’ve been out for four years. You’ve done amazing work for us and truly help veterans who need it. Jim, could you start with a little background on how you got started and how long Trajector has been around? 

Jim Hill (01:31): Thank you. I appreciate your service, Tony, Dennis, and all the listeners. I got into this process with Trajector Medical a little over 11 or 12 years ago. I was working as a VA certifying official for a school that trained veterans for IT careers. We all know today’s military is high-tech.  

(01:58) 

I had helped build a program that took folks with their technology training and got them into various IT careers like help desk support, network admin, etc. One day, as the VA certifying official, a fellow veteran, Thomas, asked me some questions about his GI Bill. He started by asking if I was a veteran, about my background, and if I ever got hurt. I replied, “Yeah, banged up a bit, but I’m good.” That’s a common response we hear amongst all our veterans. 

Dennis – Co-host: It definitely is. 

Jim Hill (02:30): “Any injuries?” I’d say, “I’m good.” Two lumbar fractures, a shoulder, an ankle, electrocuted with 440 volts… still “good,” right? As long as you’re breathing. He then asked, “Are you VA rated?” I said, “Nah. They tried to push me out on medical, but I fought it and finished my contract with an honorable straight discharge.” He said, “You have to talk to Gina.” I didn’t even know what this guy was talking about yet, but he insisted, “You need to call Gina because you need to talk to her about your VA disabilities.” 

At the time, like most people listening, I thought VA disability benefits were like a hundred bucks a month and not worth the hassle. He said, “Dude, you need to call Gina.” So I called her. She asked me some questions and requested my medical records, which I provided. Two weeks later, she called back and said, “You’ve left $400,000 of cash VA disability benefits on the table since you left the military.” 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (03:29): I’ve done that math too, Jim. I’ve told fellow soldiers the same thing. You’re speaking to the choir here about how many times we’ve heard that story. It’s eye-opening for them to initially think, “Hey, a couple hundred bucks, maybe a thousand bucks tops if I’m lucky,” but then when you start multiplying that by decades, you’re right, it can be a hefty sum left on the table. 

Jim Hill (03:52): Yes, I was really resistant for decades, but that got my attention. I started learning what she was doing. I felt like I’m of average intelligence, and there must be a lot of other veterans missing out on this. So she started the process, and I proposed that we partner up. I would work on helping scale the business, and she would handle the medical side. It’s been a fantastic journey since, and we’ve helped countless veterans along the way. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (04:22): So, all the way back then, Jim, it was just the two of you? The idea started with just two people meeting and wanting to help veterans? 

Jim Hill (04:31): She was already doing this solo, out of her living room and kitchen, a real cottage industry. Her adult son helped, her husband helped part-time, and her daughter helped some. They were doing great things for veterans, but it was very old-school, pen-and-paper, with no real systems to scale. I felt I could bring the system part to the equation. We brought in a third partner, Rich Blazer, to help finance the process. It’s a lengthy process because we don’t get paid until the back end, when someone achieves success. So, you have to pay a lot of bills while people are waiting to win. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (05:17): Everything is pending. 

Jim Hill (05:18): Rich was very helpful in that area, as well as with other strategic guidance. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (05:23): I’m so glad he pushed you to call her. That’s a cool origin story, Jim. It’s honestly so simple, and the biggest thing is, you just have to do it, right? Everyone says that 90% of success is just showing up. 

Not that long ago, from how you started to what you’ve accomplished now: over 12,000 reviews at a 4.6 rating. You can look at the comment section, and you can speak to someone like me, or all the people I’ve already done your marketing for, Jim. You’ve achieved prolonged success because you guys do the medical evidence. I know there are sometimes misconceptions, right? Just like the VA, it’s so large that people think every organization, partnership, or anyone who works in the VA is all the same. We obviously know that’s not the case. 

(06:25): But I wanted to go over this: you guys focus on medical evidence, and why does that matter? It says right here on your website, “Medical evidence is the foundation of any successful legal claim for an injury.” It increases the likelihood that decision-makers fully understand the cause and the extent of your disability’s future impact. I really like that portion when it talks about the future impact. There are so many things from the past that they may not extrapolate into the future, and you guys help with that. You’re able to put this medical evidence into the right terms. 

Because let’s be honest, someone trying to handle it themselves with no help. Jim, I know you’ve seen it; I’ve personally seen it; Dennis, the station owner; Wade Wilkes, who’s about to use you guys we’ve gone through this process for those who will say, “Oh, I’m going the free route.” Well, to be fair, Jim, I think your service is free because I have not heard, and I hope you don’t mind me saying this, of anyone from your team taking longer than six months to get back at least some sort of rating. I love that because, of course, we deserve that as veterans. But also, when you look at those who quote-unquote, “do the free,” I’ve talked to people who probably average five to seven years before getting something back. 

(07:39): I understand to a point. The VA has undergone a revamp from the previous administration, and depending on where you live, you may not have the right resources or a clinic like ours that’s really close. So I’m not trying to blame it all on the VA, but you guys have definitely partnered, and when you talk about speed, you guys are able to help change veterans’ lives immediately. It’s not only financial compensation. For those veterans out there like yourself, Jim, at least in the beginning, who said, “Hey, I don’t need it,” a great way it was put to me is, “Do you have any family?” It can also be used for that. So if you are the financial provider or the backbone of the family, it’s not only for medical, it’s not only finance, but in the great state of Texas, you get other compensations as well that can truly add up. 

(08:27): I’ve done the rough math, Jim, for someone who is 100% rated, as you are, for your compensation and every partnership you’re able to have, whether that be taxes or things for your house. All those things added up, from dental to everything, you’re closing in on $70,000 a year. That’s roughly what a 100% compensated, VA-claimed, rated veteran gets. So that’s not anything like when we started this show, Jim, talking about maybe the multi-hundreds. That’s not the case. 

And something a lot of people may not know, because we have many veteran spouses and children listening to the show who have friends or family in the service, is that you can tell them this: It’s not just a couple hundred bucks, and everyone gets something rated.  

(09:12): It breaks my heart when I hear someone who may have gone that free route and maybe got 10%. I’m like, there’s no way a veteran who serves for any length of time doesn’t have something wrong, because it’s your job to also help and kind of show them, “Hey, do you have this problem?” You may think, “Oh, well, that’s just normal wear and tear,” like my father, for example, going up and down flights of stairs on an aircraft carrier for 20 years, and just thinking, “Oh, it’s because I’m old.” No, it’s probably because you went up flights of stairs 20 times a day for 20 years, right? 

Dennis – Co-host (09:44): A lot of times, one of the first things I hear from these military veterans I’m talking with is, “Well, I didn’t do it for the money.” What do you say to somebody like that, Jim, or even you, Tony, when they say, “Well, I didn’t do it for the money”? 

Jim Hill (09:57): I’ll answer your question, but I do have to clarify a couple of minor points. We don’t make promises on speed, not everyone deserves 100%, and all that. Our best clients are the ones who use the free VSO services and then come to us. 

When people say, “I didn’t do it for the money,” the way I look at this is, right now, you don’t know what the future holds for you. Everyone who applies for VA benefits can check a box to not receive the financial compensation, but still get VA rated. There are so many benefits, from healthcare to nursing home services, etc. 

(10:33): So, if I’ve got somebody who’s saying, “I didn’t do it for the money,” great. My question is, “Are there other nonprofit veteran causes you’d like to support with those funds that come to you? You can do that. It’s tax-free money. You can give it away. Are all your grandkids’ and kids’ college funds fully funded?” 

You might not have done it for the money, but you did serve. If you have medically, legally, and ethically qualified disabilities that warrant VA benefits, such as nursing home care when you become elderly, we don’t know what the future holds. It’s very helpful not to burden your family in the future with your care that may be related to your military service. So you can apply for it, pursue it. You can check the box and not receive the check. Literally, the VA will not send you a check or payment through Treasury. And you can change that at any time, so at least do it as an insurance policy. I didn’t serve for the money, and I don’t  think anyone does. I really don’t think anyone does, right? 

Tony – Radio Show Host: Have you seen the paycheck? 

Jim Hill: There are a lot better ways to make 16 grand a year… 

Tony – Radio Show Host: Right? 

Jim Hill: …back in the eighties. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (11:41): Let’s go to the text line. I have a couple here. Let’s start here: “I have so many documents for my medical history. How exactly do we get these to you? I don’t want to lose them in the mail, and I’m not sure if I need copies. Do you just need certain certified copies or just things from the VA medical records?” 

Jim Hill (12:00): It comes down to identifying all the potential disabilities you may be eligible for, mapping all those symptoms, and determining the appropriate impairment level for each disability. To simplify the process, we allow people to upload documents through a secure link where they keep their originals and upload a digital copy. We walk people through this all the time; we don’t want your original copy. The VA typically has the veteran fill out a form authorizing them to secure private medical records directly from the doctor’s office that had the encounter. So what we need is everything we can from the veteran’s history, but the VA doesn’t need it to be a certified copy. The VA will actually go directly to Dr. Jones and get a copy of a CAT scan or whatever your document is. So it’s not as complicated as it may seem, but it is critical to be able to have us look through that evidence. The records are really critical, and we have systems to work around that. Great question. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (13:08): And definitely. I will say too, because of that stigma, I’ve even told people who know others who are still active duty to take that time and go do their version of sick call, right? It’s better to have it on there. I get it; there is a negative connotation of going for every little injury, but to some degree, you have to create a paper trail because that’s only going to strengthen your case. They’ll obviously be able to see the difference between just going to sick call to get out of PT, so to speak, versus actual X-rays and asking for that. I get it, being active duty for over 10 years, sometimes you have to ask, but you are your own advocate, and you have to take care of yourself, which in turn takes care of you later and your family again, to speak about the future. So I always highly recommend trying to get that information. I’m already telling Jim about you guys to people who are still active duty because I know even the best timing is when you have about three to six months left to get it started, because it does.  

(14:06) Even on the fast track, it still takes half a year at minimum. But you’re right, there are people out there working with other VSOs and types where you can go the free route. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend it. I’d want to get my stuff done as quickly as possible. And yes, financially, and with different fees, you are able to go other routes. That’s not to say other great people aren’t out there to help you. I was just all about speed. I wanted this done now when I got out. 

I always heard that medical coverage was the biggest thing that hits veterans when they come out, because when you’re in, it’s what, like $30 a month? It may not be the best care, but it’s still coverage. So when I heard that, I talked to other people, and some are paying upwards of $800,000 or more just for a family of four. When I was thinking, “Man, when I get out,” you’re right, I wasn’t doing it for the money. I just wanted to make sure, “Hey, I’m trying to get as much percentage as I can, whatever I’m legally allowed, just so I can have compensation and coverage for a wife and kids.” That’s kind of the route I went. 

Dennis – Co-host (15:12): That’s what I counter with. It’s that military ethos, right? We hear that all the time, no matter what service you were in: “We ain’t got time. The mission comes first. Rub some dirt on it. Don’t do this, don’t do that. We don’t have time for that. Suck it up.” Like you said, Jim, “Suck it up, buttercup,” until you get to be about 50. No, it’s just reality. You start getting older, and you’re like, “Look, man, it was good to serve our mission, but now you’ve got to serve yourself.” You just said that, Tony, you’ve got to be your own advocate. I’m glad you both said that because it’s so true. There are so many veterans. I have a guy, I hope he’s listening, LCDC, I’ve asked you three or four times, “Man, have you gotten into the VA?” And you keep telling me, “No.” Let’s go! 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (15:48): That is the first step. Get plugged into your local VA assisted programs, wherever. 

Dennis – Co-host: Get the records, get all that stuff. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (15:55): And then, when you hear “VA rated,” you definitely want the answer “yes,” because there are people out there, even out of state, that help. And you guys, of course, are countrywide. 

Alright, let’s go back to the text line, Jim. It says, “I’ve already been denied once. Can you still help me?” I know a lot of us get denial letters, and I’d love to know how you can turn a denial into an approval, maybe with better evidence. 

Let me just say this, Jim, real quick before you take over. I’m not exactly sure on the process, but I do know that sometimes you guys will go into a review, meaning I’ve submitted documents for my father; they hadn’t necessarily denied, but they were like, “We’re going to take a second look.” You do offer throughout the duration of this whole process to find additional documents, medical documents, maybe from a past doctor, or if you’ve moved. So I do know that you can continually add to the portal to make your case stronger. But there is a full-fledged other organization that you kind of work with that focuses on straight denials. 

Dennis – Co-host: You always appeal that, for one. 

Tony – Radio Show Host: Yeah. 

Dennis – Co-host (17:05): Appeals, always appeal. With people like Jim and his organization, or even with you, Tony… Listen, you’re not the only veteran. Always appeal. Nine times out of ten, you’re going to get an initial denial. Get with some people. I’m telling you, listen. Appeal, appeal, appeal. Sorry, Jim, go ahead. 

Jim Hill (17:23): If somebody’s been denied within the last 365 days and they’re in that active appeal window, they really need to go to a law firm and look for legal advocacy. We don’t work on claims that are in that active appeal window.  

(17:40): Because that veteran is really best served by having somebody who can bring that legal advocacy, combining the legal argument with the medical evidence, and holding the VA to get them back to that original file date for their retro pay. So if somebody’s in active appeal, wanting help on that particular disability claim, we don’t handle those directly at Trajector Medical. 

There are many great quality law firms out there. We’ve had great success with Veteran Help and Outreach Legal, etc. But there are a number of them that truly combine that legal advocacy and medical evidence skillset. That’s what I would be looking for if I were a veteran looking to do something on a claim that’s been denied within the last 365 days. 

Dennis – Co-host (18:29): A lot of times I hear that too. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you. No, go ahead, go ahead. But I get that too: “Oh, I filed a couple of years ago, but I never heard anything,” or “this and that.” Okay, reapply, because I think they’re only… Correct me if I’m wrong, both of you, but I think Jim said an active appeal is only 365 days. So if you just stop going, eventually they just assume, “Oh, okay.” But you can always re-appeal, even if you get a denial, correct? 

Jim Hill: Yes, it’s a reapplication. 

Dennis – Co-host: Reapplication. 

Jim Hill (18:54): And all you have to do for that is present new material evidence that hasn’t been sent before. That’s relatively easy to do because usually you’re having to reapply because you didn’t include the stuff the first time that makes the difference. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (19:10): Yeah, it could have just been an honest mistake, you just forgot it. Or, like I said, maybe you moved and you forgot about your old doctor. 

Dennis – Co-host (19:17): So that’s where Jim, that’s where your organization comes in then, right? 

Jim Hill (19:20): Absolutely. And then I think I heard you say you served back in the first Gulf War era, is that correct? 

Dennis – Co-host (19:27): I was in from ’86 to ’96. Yes, I did some time in Panama, and it’s not my favorite place, but yeah. And a little bit in Saudi and Kuwait. Yes sir. 

Jim Hill (19:37): I’ve been in this VA process for over a decade. What’s fascinating to me is I’ve gone through my medical records word for word, line by line, multiple times over the last dozen years. The last time I went through my records a couple years ago, I found stuff that I had not seen before. It wasn’t a new body of record. But I just had overlooked it.  

I forgot about that wrist injury that I went to medical for three times back in 88. The reason why I bring this up is our memory is not perfect. And because we’ve been somewhat conditioned or programmed to not highlight injuries, I think sometimes our brains, or at least mine, pushes it away into the background. And when you go through records going down memory lane, a lot of this stuff that’s like, oh, I totally forgot about that. I didn’t remember this. And so a lot of times when people do have these claims that they’ve been denied once before and taking a new approach on it, sometimes there’s a lot more than what they’re even aware of that’s out there. 

So what we do is we, gosh, what’s going on today? What kind of symptoms are you dealing with? How’s your knees, your shoulder, your back, your eyes, all the body systems? 

(20:50): And then we map all those symptoms to potential disabilities that are either previously underrated or not even really identified. That’s where we find all kinds of value. And then we try and figure out what’s the appropriate impairment level for each disability. And then we do the root cause analysis to determine if there’s a link to military service and what that uncovers. We’ll find people who are so excited, Hey, I’ve got my PTSD rating, and they’re rated 30% for PTSD and they’re excited about it, but we see symptoms well documented in their military records of suicidal ideation and things like that that warrant a 70% disability rating. And we’ve got folks who think they’re good and they’re getting a fair shape, but sometimes that difference between a 30% mental health PTSD rating to 70 has a huge economic impact on the family. And so I’m not saying just we’re the only solution, we’re not the right fit for all people, but if folks are out there, they want us to do an eval, we’re happy to do it, happy to talk to ’em, no charges unless they receive the benefit from the work we do. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (21:57): And that kind of goes to our next text line. It says, what if we don’t even know what conditions that I could file for? Can someone walk me through my own medical history and military record to figure that out? 

Jim Hill (22:12): Absolutely. The process I just explained of symptoms mapping to potential disabilities. When we’re done building that list, the client tells us, “Hey, these are the things I’d like to pursue further.” Then they tell us what they want us to develop the medical evidence for. This is medically, legally, and ethically qualifying stuff; we’re not creating things out of thin air. We have to go and find studies and show that peer-reviewed medical journal articles, like those published in the New England Journal of Medicine, show a correlation and causal factor. That meets the legal requirement for the VA to consider whether it’s “as likely as not.” So we have to prove it through these third-party published studies. That level of research unlocks a tremendous amount of opportunities. 

We have a process to talk people through that, and we can generally get started without them uploading all their medical records. We can conduct that initial interview. To develop the actual medical evidence packet, our clients do it themselves. We don’t fill out your forms, we don’t file your claims, we don’t do any of that. You do it yourself, and we give you a medical evidence packet to attach when you file for claims or in support of the claims you’ve chosen to file for. That evidence packet is our work product. The one you attach when you’re going after a neurogenic bladder or whatever. So we can do the discovery process typically without getting deep into the medical records, but it always helps to have all the files to develop the actual work product. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (23:56): I’m so glad, Jim, that we talked about things that happen in the future, because you’re right, one portion is memory, and the second, it could just be something you missed. When you’re going over something, and we even have things in Congress that have different ratings, so things can even change for the future. You definitely want to constantly be on that and typically ask questions, not only throughout the process but even later.

(24:11): 

That brings us to our next question on the text line, again with Jim Hill, Chairman, CEO, and Co-founder of Trajector Medical out of Gainesville, Florida, who has personally helped me, my family, and my friends with VA claims. The question says: “I used you guys for my husband’s claims, and you got him 70% right off the bat. He just went to the doctor and found seven skin cancer lesions from being on the boat dealing with hazardous waste 20 years ago. Do you think that’s something I can go back and claim?” 

Jim Hill (24:50): It’s definitely something worth pursuing, because cancer is often misunderstood. Cancer in remission is typically not ratable by the VA when it’s not active. Imagine skin cancer: you have 20 spots, you get them burned off, and you no longer have skin cancer. The VA says, “Okay, no rating available. You don’t have skin cancer anymore.” What people don’t realize is that often there are consequences of removing that cancer that have a lot of other impacts. If you had skin cancer and a spot removed from your face, neck, or head, you could have disfigurement. The scars cause disfigurement. We’ve had clients with PFB shaving bumps, but the disfigurement from the PFB resulted in an 80% disability rating due to scars and disfigurement. That’s very common for many people. 

We had a gentleman in Lake City, Florida, who worked at the VA. He was 10% rated. We found that he had cancer while he was in the Air Force, and the resection and surgeries in his jaw, neck, and face were so disfiguring that he ended up with a 100% disability rating. Because the VA had clearly overlooked those when they worked his case up in the eighties, they retroactively paid him all the way back to the eighties due to what’s called a clear and unmistakable error. He was making $13 an hour as the custodian at the VA, and he paid his house off. His dream before this was to be able to take his nieces to Disney. He was able to buy Disney passes with that 100% total permanent rating, with no real estate taxes in Florida. 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (26:50): See, that’s where the professionals come in, right? We’ve had stories, just as you said, where you could talk to someone who may have that slight variation, like the disfigurement, and the role that plays, especially if it’s something on your face that other people see all the time. That may not even bother you to a degree that you see, but again, it’s not what you think; it’s about what it is. You can’t even sometimes talk to a veteran and say, “Oh, hey, you got back issues. Oh, I got rated 20%.” “Oh, well, I got rated 50%.” You may not know the detailed portion of what that actually does. So it’s really good to just sign up with them. Just call their phone number: 888-988-3837, or you can go on their website and look around.  

(27:41):  

You can obviously look at their reviews. Simply talking to another veteran doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to get the same rating. You could get more, you could get less. But one thing is for sure: don’t be that story we told at the beginning of the show. I think my highest now, and Jim, that story going back to the eighties, that’s pretty lucky. I don’t even think they do that anymore for the most part. But I’ve talked to people who left more than a quarter of a million dollars, and even if you said, “I didn’t do it for the money,” there’s no one out there who would say, “Oh, a quarter million? No thanks,” because you could at least pay off your house. That frees you up for other financial burdens, whether that’s just helping out friends and family. You can do whatever you want with the money. If some people think, “Oh, VA money has to go only to my medical or care,” no, it can be used for anything, and it’s tax-free, so you can give it away. You can pay off your bills, pay off debt, whatever you want to do. Just because it comes from a medical background doesn’t mean you have to. No one’s watching you to make sure you’re putting it towards that. 

Dennis – Co-host (28:46): It’s funny you mention that real quick. I’ve heard this a lot lately, and hopefully you guys can quell this rumor: “If I go, I got a so-and-so rating, but if I go and find some more stuff, have somebody reapply for me and this and that, they’re going to look back at my old stuff and change my rating.” 

Tony – Radio Show Host: No. 

Dennis – Co-host: That’s what I try to tell them. Not that I’m aware. I’ve never heard of that. 

Jim Hill (29:06): The way this typically works is if you are looking for an increase on your lumbar spine, for example, somebody’s got a 10% lumbar spine and wants to see if they’re eligible for 40%, what’s really important is you need to make sure that your current medical symptoms map to a disability rating that is at least as high as what you have and is well documented. Because if you go in and you’re looking for an increase on your lumbar spine and you have no symptoms anymore related to your lumbar spine that would warrant your current rating, then the VA should lower your rating. You’re only supposed to be paid for the disability conditions you actually have. If everything is appropriately documented as far as medical symptoms, etc., you generally won’t have any of those problems. But if you just “pencil whip” it and say, “Hey, I just want to go for an increase in everything that I’ve got,” then there is a risk that they may propose a reduction, and you can appeal it and stop it. 

But make sure that if you’re getting disability benefits for something you no longer have an issue with, veterans should be honorable and can tell the VA to get lowered to what it should be. It’s dishonoring to the men and women who paid the ultimate price for our nation to seek disability benefits you don’t deserve. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (30:33): Plus, that wouldn’t make sense either. If you have that medical evidence, I doubt you’re going to turn in, “Hey, I’m better now.” I mean, I’m sure it happens, let’s be real, but if you’re not going to be supporting evidence that is further saying that, because usually things do get worse. So if you’re not going to bring that medical evidence, that’s going to show that maybe sounds like some veterans that unfortunately we know have used the system. To caveat to that, I see all these videos of people trying to take advantage of the system by doing other things, similar to where, “Oh, I may have a certain rating. And then it’s like, ‘Oh, if you say this, then you can get more.'” A lot of times those people get caught. So when they may say, “Oh, I was trying to just increase,” no, you weren’t. You were trying to abuse the system, trying to get a freebie, and you got caught, so yours got taken. 

Jim Hill (31:31): Not only that, you can go to prison. 

Tony – Radio Show Host: That’s true, fraud. 

Jim Hill: Trying to defraud benefits like this. 

Tony – Radio Show Host: As we know, the military always gets theirs in the end one way or the other. 

Jim Hill (31:45): People go to work at the VA wanting to serve veterans. We hear of folks who are VA employees today that may act in a manner that some people feel is anti-vet. As a veteran community, we own that; we created that. Imagine being that VA rating decision-maker who sees somebody trying to fake something and falsify, malinger, and manipulate the system. They become jaded sometimes. So whenever a veteran is out there trying to artificially inflate and falsify disability benefits, they’re hurting fellow veterans who are deserving of those disability benefits because it’s making it that much harder for the people who deserve it to get it. Just don’t be a dirtbag. I have no tolerance for that. So many great programs are available for veterans that you don’t need to manipulate stuff. 

Tony – Radio Show Host: No, exactly. 

Jim Hill (32:42): Take a fair shake. Not everybody deserves 100%, and not everybody’s eligible for VA disability benefits. I would trade my medical conditions and benefits. I’d do the swap. I’d rather not have any disabilities and not have the disability benefits, because it’s a lot of wear and tear every day. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (33:03): I’ll tell just a quick story, Jim, and then we’ll let you wrap it up. I’m a new Christian, I think close to four years ago, born again, figured it out, and that helped me a lot with everything veteran-related and family. I actually prayed about it. When I made that prayer, I said, again, going back to the appeals process, I just put 100% faith in the Lord. I said, “Lord, whatever you bless me with, I’m not even… whatever you do…” I said, “I know that I’m going with the right people who are doing the right job in the right places, and I just want your blessing on it. Whatever you do, I’m going to just accept it. I won’t appeal. I won’t do this and that, even if I’m entitled to. I’m just going to put 100% faith in what I’m about to do with these people.” 

(33:45): And he did. He came back and blessed me, and I didn’t appeal anything. I’m not trying to go after any more, because there are more things you can get. I mean, there’s a portion, Jim, I know we can agree, VA math doesn’t “math.” So when you add up things you think, “Oh, I’m going to get 50 and 50, and that’s 100,” no, it’s not. Many 100% rated veterans I’ve talked to have actual ratings of 200-300% of these things. Unfortunately, we live in a world where, yes, sometimes Congress, speaking about, I think, sleep apnea and mental things, can get reevaluated and kind of mess with your thing. But anyway, I just put 100% faith again into Jesus Christ. I said, “Hey, whatever you bless me with, I’m going to take that, and I’m going to take this information. I’m going to take this partnership. I’m going to take this veteran’s show, and I’m just trying to bless all those other veterans.” I mean, I want to bless everyone, but obviously, there’s a special portion in my heart for veterans and the men and women who served, and all organizations and veterans that help that community. That’s what I’ve been doing ever since. So again, Jim, I want to thank you so much for being on the show and giving all this information to all of our 14,000 veterans and our listeners. 

(34:48): Jim, anything else you want to say, shout out to any topics we may have missed? 

Jim Hill (34:54): Wow. Well, thank you for sharing that story of how you arrived at this spot in life, and I’m honored to have been able to be part of that. The message I’d like to leave is: if you’re a veteran, use the free services. If you haven’t tried the free services, they’re out there, and they can be very helpful. The free VSOs, etc. But before you throw in the towel, you may want to have a professional outfit take a look at what’s going on and see if you’re leaving anything on the table. We’re happy to help you if that’s something you want to pursue. We obviously don’t make any promises on speed; we don’t control the VA. We just want to make sure that all the relevant evidence is nicely and cleanly packaged for the decision-maker to do the job they’ve been asked to do by Congress and the VA secretary. So we’re honored to be on your show today. Thank you, and honored to serve the veterans who have served our country, and really appreciate all that you guys do. 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (35:51): Yes, sir. Again, trajectormedical.com. You can go there, click, check it out, see all the resources and ways. You guys have an A+ from the BBB, and so many comments and reviews. You definitely put your money where your mouth is, and I’m just so happy to see all those veterans out there, and hopefully that’s enough to encourage others who may be on the fence. We can do so much talking. And again, Jim Hill, Chairman, CEO, and Co-founder of Trajector, thank you for telling your stories and thank you again for your service. I’m just so happy all the way back then that you made that phone call from that big scary guy. 

Jim Hill: Thank you so much. 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (36:31): Appreciate that, Jim. Well, Jim, have a great rest of your day and week, and I’ll definitely be reaching out more. I definitely want to have you back on the show. Definitely want to partner up again. We have plenty of veterans here that would love to hear more about you. I’m only one man, so I definitely want you to get back on the airwaves. Appreciate you, Jim. 

Dennis – Co-host (36:47): Anytime. Thank you. Thank you. Hey, man, real quick, I was not advocating or trying to sound against people who get 100%. Not at all. Not at all. It was just tying into Jim’s comment about “let’s be honorable,” right? 

Tony – Radio Show Host: Definitely. 

Dennis – Co-host  (36:58): I don’t feel I deserve 100%. That’s not what it’s about. But again, just because the VA… Don’t compare myself to another veteran’s story. I’m not telling you, right? So, if you’ve got 100%, you earned your 100%, I get that. But there are folks out there. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (37:10): How else would you get there if you didn’t have the medical evidence for it? 

Dennis – Co-host: Exactly. 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (37:13): Because it works in the same regard to go the other way. People may look at you at 80%, you look like 30%. “What are you doing walking around at 80, Dennis?” 

Dennis – Co-host: Exactly. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (37:21): And then you see those little memes and stuff on Facebook and all these people, “Oh, it must be nice getting VA benefits.” And the little tagline says, “The recruiting office was open to anybody. You chose not to.” 

Dennis – Co-host: So I wasn’t knocking anybody. 

Tony – Radio Show Host: No, I appreciate that. 

Dennis – Co-host (37:37): Not at all. Quite the contrary. I want it to go right. It’s there for… I’m going to actually call Jim and his organization. I’m having them look at my stuff. I know we have to wrap up, but I wanted to make sure that point was clear, because you gave me that look, dude. I was like… 

Tony – Radio Show Host: No, no, no, you’re good. 

Dennis – Co-host: I was like, no, I’m not about to get beat up. 

Tony – Radio Show Host  (37:50): No, that’s a great point. It’s not about, I mean, there may be a stigma of thinking, “Oh, I have to get to a certain percentage.” No, what you have to do is submit the medical evidence. They’re going to put it in a format, in a way that’s understood by the professionals. Sometimes, even when I say “do the free route,” sometimes it’s not even working with the VA. So if you think that you, and maybe with ChatGPT out, maybe… I don’t mess with any of that. It’s totally worth it. When I talk about Trajector Medical, and we didn’t necessarily go into the details, it’s different. There is compensation provided for what you get, but again, that has to do with speed, but then you get back pay, so it works out to pretty much the same. My thing was, I just want speed, because it broke my heart to go to the DMV, and I told the story before. I met a veteran who was, I forget which war it was, but he was like, “Oh, I’ve been battling this for 30 years, and I’ve been stuck because of my paperwork and whatnot.” 

(38:46): So I actually gave him Trajector Medical’s phone number, and I said, “Hey, call these people. I guarantee you, I’ll never see you again.” Even if you give him one year, okay, I’ll double what I’ve personally experienced from me, my father, and everyone else. I just want to say, “Hey, just make that call. It’s not about getting the max percentage; it’s about just getting what you’re compensated for, medical evidence bound, and that’s going to help you.” Even a shoe… I’m telling my dad, “Hey, if you just want to spoil me, you don’t have to get…” I mean, he’s at 70%, but again, that kind of opens up stuff for homes for later on in life, because I’m going through it now. 10 grand, 15 grand to start. I’m like, who has that laying around? 

Dennis – Co-host  (39:23): But I like what he said too, and maybe this is because I’m going to call him too, is that they look at everything. I loved when he said that. He’s like, “We look at everything.” Some things, like I was law enforcement; I’m not a medical guy, I don’t know all that jargon. But those who do these kinds of things, they’ll know to make sure that every fact, and I love you said, every fact, is given to the decision-maker on your case, and something that we may overlook. Like Jim said, “I’ve looked at my stuff all these years, and I still found some stuff.” That’s their job. 

Tony – Radio Show Host (39:51): I should look at my stuff again. 

Dennis – Co-host  (39:52): Yes, that’s their job. So yeah, reach out to them. Good guest.