The Top Five Most Common VA Disability Claims
Updated Nov. 12, 2024
When you’ve been injured, disabled, or traumatized by your military service, you should be compensated for your sacrifice. Whether your disability is visible like a stiff, painful back, or something more subtle like depression, you deserve to be compensated for your service protecting the country.
I’ve spent more than 17 years helping Veterans navigate the VA benefits appeals process for all kinds of disabilities. However, throughout my experience, these are the most common VA disability claims.
Contents
Back pain and spinal disabilities
Back Pain
Back pain is incredibly common among Veterans, with one study finding that more than 21% of Veterans report severe back pain.
The VA’s rating schedule for spinal injuries and diseases is explained in Title 38, Section 4.71a of the Code of Federal Regulations. Ratings for back pain and spinal conditions vary depending on your level of ankylosis. (Ankylosis essentially means stiffness. If your back is very stiff, causes you pain, and you can’t move it well, the VA would call it ‘unfavorable ankylosis.’)
When the VA assesses you for back pain-related disability claims, they look at three areas of your back:
The thoracolumbar cervical spine (lower and upper back)
The cervical spine (neck)
Your intervertebral discs
Want to learn more about what to expect from your C&P Exam for back pain, the VA’s rating schedule for back pain, and the details for each type of back pain the VA compensates? Check out our dedicated guide to understanding VA ratings for back pain in 2024.
Depression
Military service can be a profoundly rewarding experience, but it can also damage your mental health. If you have depression as a result of your military service, you’re far from alone; according to the VA, nearly a third of all Veterans experience symptoms of depression, making it one of the most common VA disabilities.
However, just because a disability is common among the Veteran population doesn’t mean that your claim will be automatically granted. You’ll need to prove a service connection to your depression to receive the compensation you deserve for depression.
To learn more about the VA rating schedule for depression and how you can file a strong claim, check read our in-depth guide to the VA disability rating for depression in 2024.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is one of the most common disabilities among Veterans. In fact, one study found that over half of the Veteran participants had the disorder.
Sleep apnea is a disorder that prevents you from breathing normally during your sleep. This results in weak breaths or full-on pauses in breathing. Sleep apnea presents itself in multiple three ways:
Obstructive sleep apnea
Central sleep apnea
Complex sleep apnea
Sleep apnea isn’t just a problem for the Veteran community because it’s so prevalent; sleep apnea can lead to numerous other health issues. Veterans with sleep apnea are at an increased risk for other disabilities including depression, heart disease, and high blood pressure.
If you haven’t been sleeping well and you think sleep apnea is the cause, make sure to read out deep dive into the VA rating for sleep apnea before filing your claim.
Shoulder Pain
Shoulder and arm pain, or a limited range of motion in the arm, represented the fourth most-common VA disability in 2023, with over 100,000 new VA benefits recipients. A limited range of motion, often due to the result of pain from injuries sustained during service, can significantly impact your quality of life.
There are many different types of shoulder and arm disabilities that the VA compensates, ranging from the shoulder to the forearm. However, disabilities of the hands are rated separately. Rating determinations are made through a combination of factors including measurements of your range of motion, pain, weakness, and fatigue experienced during motion, buddy letters and lay statements, and more.
To learn more, check out our detailed guide to the VA’s rating for shoulder pain, arm pain, and other arm disabilities.
Tinnitus
Tinnitus is not only common in Veterans, affecting as much as 30% of the community, it’s a highly-frustrating disorder. Tinnitus is the perception of noise — usually a ringing, buzzing, or hissing noise.
Not to be confused with hearing loss, which is caused by damage to the inner or outer ear, tinnitus is difficult to diagnose because there are very few observable symptoms to an outside evaluator.
The difficulty in pinning tinnitus down makes granting compensation for it difficult. While some claim tinnitus is the easiest VA disability to get, it requires the same standard of evidence as any other claim.
If you received an unfavorable decision on your tinnitus claim, it could have been due to one or several of the three most common reasons tinnitus claims are denied. To learn more about how a VA claim for tinnitus is denied, check out our guide.
FAQs About Common VA Disabilities and the Claim Process
If you have one of these disabilities or disorders, you might be considering making a claim. Let’s take a moment to answer some frequently-asked questions about the VA disability claims and appeals process.
How Can I Make the Best Claim?
If you’re filing your initial disability claim, the best thing you can do is take the time to put together a solid claim. Make sure you demonstrate the three core parts of a successful claim:
A diagnosis of the disability or disorder;
An event in your service that caused the disorder;
A clear connection between the in-service event and your current disability or disorder.
Make sure to include plenty of evidence, like using buddy letters to clarify when events occurred during your service, and using a nexus letter to clarify the connection between your current disability and the in-service event.
What’s the Average Time for a VA Appeal?
As of March 2024, the VA takes an average of 159 days to make a decision on disability claims. If your claim was denied and you appeal the decision, your wait time will vary depending on the type of appeal you choose and whether your appeal was filed under the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA) (appeals filed since August 23, 2017) or a prior process.
As of fiscal year 2023, Higher-Level Reviews took an average of 314 days, Supplemental Claims appeals to an average of 695 days, and appeals for a hearing with the Board of Veterans’ Appeals took an average of 927 days.
If you want to learn more about the Veterans’ benefits appeals timeline, check out our article on what to expect during the VA appeals process.
What Types of Military Discharge Qualify for Disability Benefits?
Veterans who served in the armed forces to protect America are entitled to compensation if their service left them with disabilities. However, Veterans who didn’t fulfill their duties or did things like desert, spied for the enemy, or were convicted of felonies typically can’t receive those benefits.
However, not every veteran with an other-than-honorable discharge was given it for the right reasons. Wondering what benefits you get with other-than-honorable discharge? Check out our dedicated resource on the topic.
About The Law Office of Michael D.J. Eisenberg
If you applied for a service-connected disability and were denied, there may have been an error in your application or an error by the VA. Fortunately, a denied claim isn’t the end of the road.
Appealing your claim decision can give you the benefits that allow you to maintain your quality of life and help compensate for your depression’s impact on your life. I’ve spent over 17 years navigating the appeals process and helping Veterans like you craft winning appeals strategies.
If you want to learn more about filing an appeal, schedule your free* benefits appeal consultation today.
Note: Consultations for Veterans’ Benefits Appeals Matters are free; however, consultations for Military Records Correction Issues and Medical/Physical Evaluation Boards are paid.
The information contained in this article is for general information only, and should not be construed as legal advice, nor does this article establish a client-attorney relationship.