[3D-JOY]

What am I missing?

Disability is for those who must leave before completing their time and being eligible for retirement.

You can not be disabled after retirement, can you? I know you can't in the Civil Service System.

[Ciexyz]

I can see the government's position on this. I'm a federal employee, and a veteran, although not a disabled vet. Disability pay is to compensate those who can't work and have no other income. A civil service employee can't retire with a civil service pension and still receive either workers' comp payments or a disability pension (federal or military).

However, I don't mean to demean the sacrifice of America's disabled veterans. Maybe there's a compromise possible, such as a lump sum payment to compensate them for pain and suffering.

[callthemlikeyouseethem]

Lots of military retirees are diagnosed with military-related disabilities after RETIREMENT. It should be understood that we are talking about military RETIREES who are also disabled and that not all disabled veterans are retired from the military (one need not have served a given length of time to be considered for a disability, but to be eligible for retirement pay they must). A military retiree who is also considered a "disabled veteran" has their retirement payment reduced by the amount of the disability payment. The only difference is that the "disability" payment is not taxable.