Common Conditions & Ratings
The difference between a 30% rating and a 70% rating is often thousands of dollars a year. The VA focuses on specific medical criteria—do you know what they are?
Why Your Rating Matters
Many veterans make the mistake of filing a claim for "pain" or "sadness." But the VA rates claims based on strict legal criteria found in the Schedule for Rating Disabilities.
Below are common areas where veterans face denials and the specific factors the VA often overlooks.
PTSD & Mental Health
The Scale: 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, 100%.
This is a very litigated area of VA law. The rating is not based on your trauma, but on your current level of social and occupational impairment.
Different ratings correspond to different levels of severity. For example, a lower rating might be assigned for occasional symptoms, while higher ratings (50%, 70%, or 100%) are reserved for conditions that significantly limit your ability to work or maintain relationships.
Are you underrated? If your condition has worsened or restricts your daily life more than your current rating reflects, you may be eligible for an increased rating.
Orthopedic Injuries (Back, Knees, Joints)
The Key Factor: Range of Motion (ROM) and Functional Loss.
Pain alone is usually the minimum rating. To receive a higher rating for a back or knee condition, the VA typically looks at how limited your movement is. The less you can move due to pain or stiffness, the higher the rating generally goes.
The Flare-Up Rule: The VA must consider your functional loss during a "flare-up," not just how you feel on your best day. If your rating does not account for your worst days, you may be entitled to an increase.
Presumptive Conditions (Toxic Exposure)
If you served in specific locations during specific timeframes, the VA presumes certain medical conditions were caused by your service. This streamlines the process, but denials still happen.
Common Presumptive Categories:
- Vietnam Era (Agent Orange): Conditions such as Type 2 Diabetes, Ischemic Heart Disease, Parkinson's, and certain cancers.
- Camp Lejeune (Water Contamination): For veterans who served at Camp Lejeune (Aug 1953 – Dec 1987), conditions include Kidney Cancer, Liver Cancer, Bladder Cancer, and more.
- PACT Act (Burn Pits): For post-9/11 veterans (Iraq, Afghanistan) exposed to burn pits, covering Asthma, Rhinitis, Sinusitis, and various respiratory cancers.
Why You Need a Lawyer: Even with "presumptive" status, the VA frequently denies these claims by arguing the diagnosis is incorrect or didn't occur within the required timeframe.
TDIU: Total Disability / Unemployability
The Concept: Getting paid at the 100% rate even if your math doesn't add up to 100%.
If your service-connected disabilities prevent you from maintaining "substantially gainful employment," you are entitled to TDIU.
Our Approach: We argue that your unique combination of disabilities makes it impossible for you to work, regardless of what the ratings schedule says. We focus on the "whole picture" impact on your ability to earn a living.
Other Common Conditions
Our firm also handles appeals involving the following conditions:
Understanding "VA Math"
The VA uses a "Whole Person Concept" to calculate your disability. They do not simply add your numbers together.
Example: 60% Rating + 20% Rating
(100% - 60% = 40% health remaining)
Instead of adding 20% to the total, they take 20% of the remaining 40%.
(20% of 40 = 8%)
60% + 8% = 68% Combined Value.
The VA rounds this to 70% (Not 80%).
Combined Ratings Table (38 CFR § 4.25)
Find your current rating on the left, and your new rating on the top to find your combined total.
| Current Rating |
10% | 20% | 30% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% | 80% | 90% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | 19 | 28 | 37 | 46 | 55 | 64 | 73 | 82 | 91 |
| 20% | 28 | 36 | 44 | 52 | 60 | 68 | 76 | 84 | 92 |
| 30% | 37 | 44 | 51 | 58 | 65 | 72 | 79 | 86 | 93 |
| 40% | 46 | 52 | 58 | 64 | 70 | 76 | 82 | 88 | 94 |
| 50% | 55 | 60 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 | 85 | 90 | 95 |
| 60% | 64 | 68 | 72 | 76 | 80 | 84 | 88 | 92 | 96 |
| 70% | 73 | 76 | 79 | 82 | 85 | 88 | 91 | 94 | 97 |
| 80% | 82 | 84 | 86 | 88 | 90 | 92 | 94 | 96 | 98 |
| 90% | 91 | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 |
Is Your Rating Too Low?
If you believe your condition is worse than the VA gives you credit for, you have the right to appeal.
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