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Which Doctors Are VA Compensation and Pension (C&P) Exams a Good Side Gig For?

  • 1 hour ago
  • 6 min read

Many members of our online physician community are looking for flexible ways to supplement their income, particularly if they’re in a building time in their career or practice, or if they want to do meaningful clinical work in a different phase of life. With their structured nature, flexible scheduling, and relatively low clinical liability or risk profile, performing Compensation & Pension (C&P) exams for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) can be a great available option. However, just like with any side gig, these exams may not be a great fit for everyone. Below, we explore who C&P exams are a good side gig for to help you assess whether this is an opportunity you want to explore. If you’re interested, we also have resources to help you get started.


Disclosure/Disclaimer: Our content is for generalized educational purposes.  While we try to ensure it is accurate and updated, we cannot guarantee it. We are not formal financial, legal, or tax professionals and do not provide individualized advice specific to your situation. You should consult these as appropriate and/or do your own due diligence before making decisions based on this page. To learn more, visit our disclaimers and disclosures.


Who are compensation & pension (C&P) exams for veterans a good side gig for?


What are Compensation & Pension (C&P) exams?


Compensation & Pension (C&P) exams are medical evaluations conducted for the VA. These exams are used to determine a veteran’s eligibility for disability benefits. During these exams, the evaluator reviews the veteran’s medical records and service history, performs a physical or mental health evaluation, and documents the findings back to the VA through their provided standardized questionnaires.


We’ve covered in more detail what the process of completing a C&P exam entails.



Which doctors are C&P exams a good side gig for?


While we have several suggestions of who C&P exams can be a good fit for below, this isn’t an all-inclusive list. If you’re interested in helping out the service members in our country through these exams, there are a few main eligibility criteria to understand:

  • You must have an active and unrestricted license

  • You generally cannot have gaps in your CV of more than 6 months

  • You usually must make a minimum commitment of 0.25 - 3 days per week (depending on the location)



How can I get started with C&P exams as a side gig?


If you’re interested in performing these exams, working with a third-party company that contracts with VA vendors for these exams can help ease the administrative burden of onboarding and scheduling, as well as open up options from a logistical perspective.


Members of our Physician Side Gigs group (it’s free to join, but you must be a vetted MD/DO) can sign up for our free disability & eligibility exams side gig matching database for alerts of local opportunities that meet their criteria.



C&P exam opportunities for early career physicians building or growing their private practice


While not all C&P exam opportunities require having your own office, many do, which can make them a better fit for private practice physicians who already have access to office space without having to get permission from an employer, as well as any needed liability coverage.


With the flexibility of scheduling offered, C&P exams can be an additional income stream to add around your existing schedule. This can be beneficial for private practice physicians who are working on building up their own practice and have available time around existing patients, or physicians who don’t have a full panel or gaps in their templates. This can help provide income while building your patient roster, and can also suit physicians looking to grow a practice - with the added benefit of providing a highly needed service for a great patient population. 



The benefits of C&P exams for mid-career physicians seeking better work-life balance


Many mid-career physicians reach a stage where they want to reduce burnout while maintaining income. C&P exams are primarily evaluations to document the existence of any work-related disabilities and their severity, rather than diagnosing new medical issues. They are not treatment relationships for patients. For physicians looking to shift some of their workload away from traditional patient care, C&P exams can offer an appealing compromise.


C&P exams can provide:

  • Lower-acuity encounters

  • Less complex medical decision making

  • Less malpractice risk

  • A pleasant patient population


C&P exams are especially well suited for primary care physicians who are familiar with these types of exams, but any licensed physician can perform them. This includes pediatricians who are comfortable assessing for C & P type issues in adults.



C&P exams as a side gig or main gig option for late-career or retired physicians


C&P exams can also appeal to late-career physicians looking to cut back clinically without fully retiring. This allows them to step away from many of the demands of the typical ongoing physician-patient relationship while still supplementing their income and giving them the opportunity to continue interacting with patients. The flexibility of scheduling is also ideal for retired physicians who want to travel more or spend more time with family or their hobbies. Being able to choose a few hours or days a week, as well as being able to choose which weeks of the month they do these exams, gives retired physicians the ability to work a schedule of their choosing.



C&P opportunities are often available in rural areas or areas away from major cities


Many in-person side gig opportunities are focused in high-density populations, which can exclude our physician members in rural areas. For C&P exams, the VA is often actively searching for physicians in these areas to help veterans who don’t live in the large metropolitan areas. If you’ve been looking for ways to increase your revenue without having to expand your practice location, C&P exams could be a good fit.



Physicians at the VA looking to do additional work can perform C&P exams


While many of the C&P exam side gig opportunities require physicians to have their own office to perform the evaluations at, there are per diem options available across the nation as well. These per diem options can be a great fit for physicians working at the VA who are looking for additional ways to work with veterans outside of their regular clinical work.


Related PSG Resource:



C&P exams allows doctors to give back to our veterans


Some of our members are drawn to C&P exams because they value the opportunity to work with veterans.


These exams play a key role in helping the VA determine whether a veteran’s condition is related to their military service and how severe it is. The goal of these exams isn’t to deny benefits to veterans. The goal is to help ensure that veterans receive the benefits they’ve earned through their service to our country.



When are C&P exams not the right fit as a side gig?


These exams are often less appealing for doctors who:

  • Dislike detailed documentation (the work can involve reviewing large medical records and writing precise reports, which some doctors may find tedious)

  • Feel uncomfortable participating in disability evaluations

  • Are looking for a one-off side gig opportunity (the VA is typically looking for doctors to help address a backlog of assessments, and hope to use you regularly)

  • Are high-paid specialists looking for compensation similar to their other clinical work


Understanding these realities can help physicians determine whether this opportunity aligns with their preferences.



Conclusion


C&P exams offer flexible, lower-acuity work outside of the traditional physician-patient relationship. For many doctors, particularly early-career and late-career ones in private practice, C&P exams can be a reliable way to generate additional income while maintaining a manageable schedule and supporting our nation’s heroes. 



Related resources for physicians


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