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

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. From a nationally representative cohort created in 1998, we examined service connection outcomes in 253 men and 663 women whose initial PTSD claims were denied. The primary outcome was PTSD service connection as of August 24, 2016. Secondary outcomes were service connection for any disorder and total disability rating. The total disability rating determines the generosity of Veterans' benefits. 51.4% of men and 31.3% of women were service connected for PTSD by study's end (p