How To Calculate Va Disability Rates

Date:

Share post:

Examples Of Combining Two Disabilities

Compensation 101: How did I get this rating?

If a Veteran has a 50 percent disability and a 30 percent disability, the combined value will be found to be 65 percent, but the 65 percent must be converted to 70 percent to represent the final degree of disability.

Similarly, with a disability of 40 percent, and another disability of 20 percent, the combined value is found to be 52 percent, but the 52 percent must be converted to the nearest degree divisible by 10, which is 50 percent.

How The Va Calculates Compensation Rates

When you prepare to retire or separate from military service, starting your VA disability claims process is among the things many must do as you out-process. You can also apply after youve left military service.

When you apply for compensation, the VA reviews your claims and assigns disability percentage ratings in 10% increments. For example, if you have a knee injury, the VA will determine the severity of that injury .

The VA may rate your condition between 10% up to 100% based on how it affects your life. Your rating percentage determines your compensation.

Some veterans may be entitled to more disability pay if certain conditions apply such as:

  • The veteran is living with severe disabilities
  • The veteran has lost one or more limbs
  • The veteran has a spouse, children or dependent parents
  • The veteran has a spouse who is experiencing a serious disability.

Many veterans have more than one medical issue, disability or disease. Each issue is rated separately, and you may be awarded a combined VA disability.

Combined totals are not the sum of multiple percentages. In cases where the VA must rate a veteran for more than one medical issue, the VA uses a combined ratings table to determine the final percentage.

For example, if you have a 50% disability rating for one condition and a 60% rating for a different condition does not mean you are entitled to a 110% VA disability combined rating. In fact, by law veterans cannot earn more than a 100% disability rating.

What If I Have Multiple Disabilities And Ratings

If you have multiple ratings , the VA does not simply add them together to create your final rating. What the VA does is combine your ratings according to a formula. To apply this formula, the VA uses a Combined Ratings Table. The combined rating is then rounded up or down to the nearest whole number. In no case can you receive a rating that is higher than 100%.

For example, say you have one disability rated at 40% and another rated at 60%. Again, you might think this entitles you to a 100% rating, but it does not. You can use the Combined Ratings Table to see what your combined rating will be. Go across the table to where you find the 40, then scroll down until you see the number 60 in the left hand column. There you will find the number 76, which will be rounded up to the nearest increment of 10, which is 80. Your combined disability rating will be 80%.

Don’t Miss: Short Term Disability In Massachusetts

Best Va Disability Calculator: How Do I Calculate My Combined Va Disability Rating

The amount of monthly tax-free disability compensation youll receive depends on your overall combined VA rating, which is based on a fuzzy VA Math calculation.

Veterans can use our #1 rated VA disability calculator to calculate your VA rating percentage quickly, and determine your monthly payment amount, in just a few clicks.

How To Get A 100% Va Rating The Three Ways To Reach 100%

60 VA Disability Benefits Explained

There are three main paths to get a 100% combined VA rating:

  • If the VAs fuzzy math calculation puts you at or above 95.00% or higher, the VA will round you up to 100%.
  • One of your conditions might be rated at 100% out of the gate.
  • If your disability renders you unable to maintain substantial gainful employment, you may receive the pay and benefits of a 100% VA ratingeven if your combined VA rating is below 100%. For example, a Vietnam veteran might have a 70% rating because they suffer from cancer due to Agent Orange. But if the chemotherapy treatments and hospitalizations make substantially gainful employment impossible, they may instead be deemed Unemployable, which is also known as Total Disability Individual Unemployability .

Recommended Reading: Companies That Hire People With Disabilities

Calculating Combined Disability Ratings Using Va Math

Calculations are based on a descending efficiency scale used by the VA. They will assign a numerical rating to each injury or illness. VA ratings are determined by starting with the highest rating and working their way down. As a starting point, you will always have a rating of 100. With every new disability, you have a new baseline to start from.

Stacking and racking disabilities are the first step. Based on the example above, we have ratings of 30%, 20%, and 10%. The 30% is added first, then the 20%, then the 10%, and then the final 10%. Again, we’re not subtracting here we’re doing VA math.

The efficiency rate of 100 is multiplied by the disability rating, then subtracted from the original rating. The answer would be 30 if you multiplied 30% by 100. The result is 70 when you subtract 100 from it. You now have a rating of 70 for efficiency and 30 for disability.

The next calculation will be based on this point. When you are done with the rating, you repeat the process. Taking 20% and multiplying it by 70 gives you 14. By subtracting 14 from 70, you are left with 56. As a result, your efficiency rating has decreased to 56, and your disability rating has increased to 44. For every additional disability rating, you need to repeat the process.

What Other Factors Does The Va Take Into Account For Disability

When deciding on a disability claim, the VA looks at your eligibility first. Then, it considers your conditions overall impact on your daily life, activities and employability.

If you think your VA rating is too high or too low, you can file an appeal to try to get the VA to increase your rating. Be sure to include evidence of your conditions impact on your life, like statements from doctors, employers or others close to you.

» MORE: Check your VA home loan eligibility with today’s top lenders

Recommended Reading: Short Term Disability For Mental Health

What Is The Bilateral Factor

The bilateral factor is an additional 10% that can be factored into your equation if you have two or more conditions that affect the opposite limbs . The idea is if you have one condition on your right leg and another on your left, those are going to make each other worse and ultimately cause a worse disability.

Online Veterans Disability Calculator

The VA Disability Calculator, Understanding the Fuzzy VA Math.

It’s great to know how to use the combined rating table so you can verify your disability rating for yourself. But it’s also nice to use a VA Disability calculator that considers all these factors. Several websites have useful online veteran disability calculators you can use to calculate your rating automatically.

Applying for cash benefits from VA can seem overwhelming for some Veterans. If you want disability compensation benefits, check out our article on how to find the right disability lawyer. You can visit DisabilityHelp.org today for more information!

You May Like: New Jersey Disability Claim Status

Va Disability Calculator For Service

If you develop a disability as a result of your military service, you will receive a rating from VA that determines how much monetary compensation you are entitled to each month. If you are suffering from two or more disabilities as a result of your military service, the rating gets slightly more complicated.

You may receive a rating that you do not understand or have difficulty figuring out how it was calculated. This VA disability calculator can combine ratings and help you comprehend how VA does its computations.

Calculate Combined Disability Ratings Using Va Math

The VA uses a descending efficiency scale for its calculations. The VA will give each injury or illness a numerical rating.

When it comes time to determine the overall rating, the VA will start with the highest rating, then work its way down. You will always begin with an efficiency rating of 100. Each new disability gives you a new baseline.

We start by racking and stacking the disabilities. In the example above, we have ratings of 30%, 20%, 10% and 10%. We start with the 30%, then factor in the 20%, the 10% then the final 10%.

Again, we arent subtracting here were doing VA math.

You start with your efficiency rate of 100, multiply it by your disability rating, then subtract the result from your original rating.

In this case, you would multiply 30% times 100 and get 30. You subtract that from 100 and come up with 70.

Your new efficiency rating is 70, and your disability rating is 30.

This is the starting point for the next calculation. You repeat the process for the next rating. You take 20%, multiply it by 70, and come up with 14. You subtract 14 from 70, and you get 56.

Your new efficiency rating is 56, and your disability rating is 44. You repeat the process for each additional disability rating.

Caption: The VA rounds final ratings to the nearest 10 . Approximately symbols in the example above indicate rounding to the nearest whole number.

Also Check: Social Security Disability Mental Health

Va Math: The Fuzzy Math Behind Your Va Disability Rating

If you have one disability, then the rating for that disability and the rating for your total disability will be one and the same.

However, most of us have more than one service-connected disability.

So how does the VA consider all of them and wind up with one combined VA rating percentage?

If you receive several ratings for corresponding disabilities, they will not just be added together in a cumulative nature.

If you are rated at 70% for PTSD and 50% for Sleep Apnea, you wont be 70% + 50% = 120% disabled.

Why?

Because its physically impossible to be more than 100% disabled.

Instead, the VA starts with your highest overall rating, multiplies the next highest rating into the previous one, adds it on, and so on.

In the example I just gave, the VA would take the highest rating first, the 70% for PTSD.

According to that number, they would assume that 100% 70% = 30% of you is still healthy.

Then they multiply that remaining 30% by the rating for your Sleep Apnea disability, which is 50%.

Take 50% of 30% and you wind up with 15%.

Add that 15% onto the original 70%, and you wind up with an 85% total disability rating, which would be rounded up to a 90% combined VA disability rating.

The process continues for each disability remaining from highest to lowest.

Is that clear?

Clear as mud, but its the system we have.

But rather than trying to run your own calculations, just use our FREE Combined VA Rating Calculator above!

Can I Receive Sbp Or Rcsbp Payments And Dic At The Same Time

Understanding VA Math

In most cases, you cant receive a full SBP or RCSBP payment and a full DIC payment at the same time. The exception is if you’re receiving an SBP or RCSBP annuity from one spouse, then you remarry after age 55 and become eligible for DIC based on the service-connected disability of your new spouse. In this case you can receive full benefits through both programs at the same time.

If the exception doesn’t apply to you, the DFAS will reduce your SBP or RCSBP payment by one-third of your DIC payment through the end of this year. If your DIC payment is greater than your total SBP or RCSBP payment, the DFAS will stop your SBP or RCSBP payments. This is called the SBP/DIC offset.

Also Check: What Is The Elimination Period Of An Individual Disability Policy

How To Calculate Your Combined Va Disability Rating

The VA uses the combined ratings table to determine a final disability rating for a veteran with multiple disabilities.

To use this table, you must first list each of your disability ratings in order of severity . Find the first one in the left column, and then find where it intersects with the top column number representing your second highest disability rating. Round to the nearest 10 if those are your only two ratings. If not, put the number from the intersection point in the left column, then find where it intersects with the top row number representing your third-highest percentage.

Repeat this process until you have run the numbers for all disability ratings, then round to the nearest 10.

For example, a veteran rated for a 50% disability and a 30% disability, would receive a combined rating of 65%, which the VA rounds to the nearest 10, so 70%.

In a different example on the VA official site, a veteran rated with two disabilities at 40% and 20% has a combined value of 52%. The VA rounds that number down to 50%.

How The Va Rates Multiple Disabilities

The aforementioned example with the veteran who had a knee injury covers the most basic situation a single disability rating. Things get more interesting when you have more disability ratings. Lets run through an example, building on the previous profile.

Lets add a few conditions for this 40-year-old retiree.

Lets say our retiree has the following service-connected disability ratings:

  • 10% rating for his right knee
  • 30% rating for a back injury
  • 20% rating for right shoulder injury
  • 10% for hearing loss.

Read Also: Self-employment Grants For Service-disabled Veterans

The Va Disability Rating System

If youre wonder how to calculate VA disability rates, for every disability claim, the VA determines a severity rating ranging from 0-to 100%. This rating moves in increments of 10% and is based on service treatment records, VA medical records, and private medical records directly relating to the disability.

You may also receive additional benefits if:

  • You have severe disabilities or loss of limb
  • You have a spouse, child, or dependent parents
  • You have a disabled spouse

Assistance With Claims And Appeals

Using the VA Combined Rating Table and VA Math

Veterans may work with an accredited attorney, claims agent, or Veterans Services Officer to file your claim or appeal. These professionals are trained and certified in the VAs claims and appeals processes, making them well-equipped to answer your questions, meet your needs, and get you the disability compensation you deserve.

VA Disability Group PLLC is ready to take on your claim to get you the compensation you qualify for. Contact us online or call us at 1-844-VET-LAWS to request a consultation now.

Recommended Reading: Iphone Disabled How To Unlock

Michigan Va Disability Calculator Attorney

The disability rating that the VA assigns a veteran will determine the amount of compensation he or she will receive. Understanding how the VA disability calculator works, including for multiple conditions, is therefore critical.

Disability Law Group is dedicated to working with veterans to make sure they receive the benefits they need and deserve. We can help you determine the amount of compensation to which you are entitled and appeal any adverse decisions made by the VA.

What Are The Current Va Disability Rates

The amount of VA disability compensation veterans receive depends on their combined VA rating.

As of December 1st, 2021 the VA disability rate benefit amounts are as follows:

  • 0 percent disability rating: $0.00 per month
  • 10 percent disability rating: $152.64 per month
  • 20 percent disability rating: $301.74 per month
  • 30 percent disability rating: $467.39 per month
  • 40 percent disability rating: $673.28 per month
  • 50 percent disability rating: $958.44 per month
  • 60 percent disability rating: $1,214.03 per month
  • 70 percent disability rating: $1,529.95 per month
  • 80 percent disability rating: $1,778.43 per month
  • 90 percent disability rating: $1,998.52 per month
  • 100 percent disability rating: $3,332.06 per month

Also Check: What Happens When An Employee Goes On Long-term Disability

Should I Apply For An Increased Rating

Its best to answer this question on a case-by-case basis. Increasing your disability rating is not guaranteed, and your entire file may be reviewed, not just the condition you want to be reviewed.

You can get closer to a decision in many ways, but the answer is not simple. The VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities or 38 CFR Book C is an excellent place to start.

You can benefit significantly from reviewing this document to understand better what the VA is looking for, how they rate your specific condition, and what compensation percentages are.

It is possible to re-apply for VA benefits. Still, if you do not understand how the VA does this, how additional compensation is justified, and the maximum amount for your condition, you are taking a risk.

The Math Behind Combined Va Disability Ratings

VA Math ⢠Military Disability Made Easy ⢠#1 in Veterans Disability

VA uses its own specific formula to calculate final ratings through the VA calculator. Different ratings are not added together as a flat amount as you might expect at first glance. Instead, successive disability ratings are added to the highest rating as a percentage of the remaining percentage. Then the total combined disability rating is rounded to the nearest 10%. This formula can be used to calculate the rating for any number of disabilities.

For example, lets say you have a back injury rated at 60%, and a right leg injury rated at 40%. The VA combined rating calculator begins with your highest percentage then adds the percent of your next highest rating as a percent of the remaining value between your first rating and 100.

In this case, the total rating minus your first rating equals the remainder . Your second rating will be added as a portion of the remainder, 40% of 40%, which is 16%. Therefore your final rating would be 76%, which rounds up to 80%.

If you had three separate service-connected disabilities, you would need to repeat this process once more. The ratings are added from greatest to least. Taking the numbers from the last example, lets say you were also diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder at 30%. Even though the running total rounds up to 80% for your first two disabilities, the actual value is 76%, so thats your starting number.

You May Like: List Of Disabilities For Ssi

Related articles

Can’t Work Due To Disability

Can You Get Disability For Migraine ...

Back Pay For Va Disability

Who Can File A Va Disability Claim ...

Filing For Disability In Nc

The Disability Application Process VA...