A C&P examiner meets you once, for a short appointment. Your own treating providers have watched your condition over months or years. Under the law, that longitudinal record can carry real weight — often more than a single exam snapshot.
Why treating records matter
Consistent treatment notes establish the frequency and severity of your symptoms, document flare-ups as they happen, and show the ongoing nature of your condition. They are contemporaneous — written when it mattered, not reconstructed later.
Gather them deliberately
- Request complete records from every relevant provider
- Highlight the entries that match the rating criteria
- Ask a treating provider for a nexus opinion when appropriate
The VA must consider all the evidence, not just its own exam. Put your treating providers' records in front of the rater and make them impossible to ignore.