Washington ( CNN ) -- Anthony Koller 's squad was ambushed in Iraq . He saw his friend die . He spent 14 months at war and returned home with a diagnosis that has become all too common for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans : post-traumatic stress disorder . The Army discharged him but he did not receive medical benefits to which he said he was entitled . There were times when the family , with three small children , did not have any health care coverage at all . But relief is on its way for Koller and more than 1,000 other Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who suffer from PTSD . Under the terms of a class-action lawsuit settlement announced Friday by a veterans advocacy group , those veterans will now receive lifetime disability benefits . The National Veterans Legal Services Program said the U.S. military violated the law by failing to assign the veterans a 50 % or higher disability rating that is needed to qualify for benefits . `` These veterans served our country in time of war , but have waited three to eight years to receive the disability benefits which they 've earned for their service , '' said Bart Stichman , co-executive director of the veterans advocacy group . `` Today , a terrible wrong to our nation 's war veterans is being righted , '' he said . The case affects as many as 4,000 veterans who were medically discharged because of the disorder between 2003 and 2008 . Some were receiving benefits but will now receive higher compensation . `` This is a happy ending to a sad chapter of military mistreatment of those who served our country in time of war , '' Stichman said . Lawyers for the veterans group , the Justice Department and the armed services urged a speedy court approval for the tenative settlement to avoid further delays . Expediting the settlement will help soldiers like Timothy Martin , a Bradley gunner in Iraq who lived through several firefights and bombings . Martin , a single father , was told he could no longer serve in the military due to his PTSD , but `` was separated from the military without retirement benefits and a low disability rating , well below what the law stipulated , '' the veterans group said . Martin said in a court statement that his family was struggling to make ends meet . Now he will finally be able to get help from the military . CNN 's Paul Courson contributed to this report .
Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder filed a class-action lawsuit . They claimed they were denied benefits . A settlement in the case will afford them compensation . Thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan vets suffer from PTSD .