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VA proposes changes to disability ratings for mental disorders, and other conditions
“Evaluating mental health conditions based on a more robust and holistic approach that assesses how impactful the disability is to cognition, interpersonal relationships, task completion, life activities and self-care.”
The VA has recently proposed new changes to the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities. The suggested revisions focus on how the VA evaluates, and gives ratings, for the respiratory, auditory, and mental disorders body systems.
According to the VA, the reasoning behind the proposals “…would incorporate medical advancements for treating certain disabilities and modern medical knowledge to more accurately compensate Veterans.”
VA Secretary Denis McDonough making his first official tour of a VA facility in Washington, D.C. Feb 10 2021. VA photos by Robert Turtil
Mental disorders
The VA post made the following example of the proposed change:
“Evaluating mental health conditions based on a more robust and holistic approach that assesses how impactful the disability is to cognition, interpersonal relationships, task completion, life activities and self-care.”
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In the past, a zero precent rating for a mental health disorder was sufficient to prove the VA acknowledged the issue, but not enough to receive financial compensation.
Under the new proposal, the evaluation criteria would begin to include a 10% minimum evaluation for Veterans who have one or more service-connected mental health conditions. Furthermore, it would no longer require “total occupational and social impairment” for the applicant to attain a 100% evaluation.
The proposal is massive and covers topics such as, inclusion of eating disorders, updates to the manuals used to diagnose, and functional impairments. Read the proposal in its entirety by clicking the link below:
87 FR 8498 – Schedule for Rating Disabilities: Mental Disorders – Content Details – 2022-02051.
The VA also stated, “No change to a Veteran’s current rating would occur due to these proposed changes. If the proposed changes are finalized, Veterans who currently receive compensation for a service-connected condition can apply for increased compensation, but no reductions shall be made unless an improvement in the Veteran’s disability is shown to have occurred.”
Sleep apnea
The VA post made the following example of the proposed change:
“Modernizing the evaluative rating criteria for sleep apnea, using developments in medical knowledge to evaluate it based on its responsiveness to treatment, bringing the rating criteria for sleep apnea more closely in line with the stated purpose of the rating schedule.”
Additionally, the proposal outlines how a Veteran would be rated at zero percent (and not receive compensation) if symptoms are fully treated by a CPAP machine, or other forms of treatments.
However, this comes shortly after the VA mass emailed Veterans to inform them that Phillips issued a recall on some of their sleep apnea devices.
Tinnitus
The VA post made the following example of the proposed change:
“Evaluating tinnitus (ringing in the ears) as a symptom of the underlying disease which causes it, rather than as a stand-alone disability.”
Read the proposal in its entirety by clicking the link below:
Voice your opinions
The VA is asking, “Veterans and the public to comment on these proposed changes over the next 60 days.”
To view these notices on the Federal Register, you can find them posted here and here. These being the same links listed above.
Rating impacts on mental disorders and other maladies
Thomas Murphy, Northeast district director, stated, “Veterans who currently receive compensation for a service-connected condition in these body systems will not have their disability rating impacted when the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities is updated.”
Murphy, who is performing the delegable duties of the undersecretary for benefits, added, “Updating the rating schedule allows Veterans to receive decisions based on the most current medical knowledge relating to their condition.”
