Reversals in initially denied Department of Veterans Affairs' PTSD disability claims after 17 years: a cohort study of gender differences.

Background: In 2011, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) strengthened its disability claims processes for military sexual trauma, hoping to reduce gender differences in initial posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) disability awards. These process improvements should also have helped women reverse previously denied claims and, potentially, diminished gender discrepancies in appealed claims' outcomes. Our objectives were to examine gender differences in reversals of denied PTSD claims' outcomes after 2011, determine whether disability awards (also known as "service connection") for other disorders offset any PTSD gender discrepancy, and identify mediating confounders that could explain any persisting discrepancy.

Persistent Serious Mental Illness Among Former Applicants for VA PTSD Disability Benefits and Long-Term Outcomes: Symptoms, Functioning, and Employment.

Unlabelled: Millions of U.S. veterans have returned from military service with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for which a substantial number receive U.