Veterans who have multiple disabling medical conditions may qualify for higher VA disability ratings. Some veterans may have a “secondary” condition. Veterans with secondary conditions may have the ability to seek higher disability ratings due to how those conditions affect their overall health.
What Are Secondary Service-Connected Conditions?
A secondary condition is a health issue caused or aggravated by another service-connected disability. Common examples of secondary conditions include:
- Depression caused by disability due to a service-connected back injury
- Sleep apnea caused by service-connected PTSD
- Arthritis caused by overcompensation for physical impairment caused by service-connected injuries
Veterans who claim secondary conditions must have substantial medical evidence and service records to link the primary service-connected condition to their secondary condition. In many cases, veterans may rely on expert reports written by medical professionals to explain how a primary service-connected condition caused a veteran’s secondary condition.
How the VA Evaluates Secondary Conditions
When a veteran obtains a diagnosis of a secondary condition and links it to another primary service-connected condition, the VA will include the veteran’s secondary condition when evaluating their total disability rating. The VA determines whether a secondary condition qualifies as a ratable condition by evaluating whether a veteran has demonstrated a medical nexus between the secondary condition and another primary service-connected condition. A secondary condition will have a medical nexus to a primary condition if the primary condition caused or worsened the secondary condition.
The VA will consider whether a secondary condition has a medical nexus to a primary service-connected condition by reviewing the medical record, expert opinions from medical professionals, and disability benefit questionnaires completed by a veteran.
Impact on Overall Disability Rating
If the VA determines that a secondary condition has a medical nexus to a primary service-connected condition, the agency will assign the veteran a combined disability rating. The combined disability rating system determines the total disability rating for veterans with two or more qualifying medical conditions. The system does not simply add the disability rating of each medical condition together. Instead, the VA uses a chart that provides a specific combined disability rating for two individual ratings.
If a veteran has a primary service-connected condition and a secondary condition, the VA will reference the combined ratings chart to determine the total disability rating. For example, suppose a veteran’s primary condition received a 50 percent disability rating and the VA rates their secondary condition at 30 percent. In that case, the combined ratings chart assigns a total disability rating of 65, which the VA rounds up to 70 percent. When a veteran has three or more conditions, the VA determines a total disability rating by finding the combined rating of the veteran’s two highest-rated conditions, then combining that rating with the veteran’s next highest-rated condition, and so on until the VA has combined all the veteran’s conditions into a total rating.
Thus, secondary conditions can provide a veteran with a higher disability rating that can increase their monthly compensation and provide them access to additional benefits from the VA.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Common mistakes that veterans may make when pursuing claims for secondary conditions include:
- Not obtaining sufficient medical evidence to link the secondary condition to a primary service-connected condition
- Overlooking the possibility of a secondary condition having occurred or worsened due to a primary condition
- Not appealing the VA’s denial of a secondary condition claim
Veterans can avoid mistakes that may lose them disability benefits for a secondary condition by working with an experienced VA disability benefits attorney.
Contact VA Disability Lawyer Today
If you have secondary conditions, you deserve to pursue maximum benefits from the VA. Contact Veteran Esquire Legal Solutions today for a free, no-obligation consultation with a VA disability benefits attorney to learn how secondary conditions may affect your disability rating and benefits.