⚠️ Upcoming VA Disability Rating Changes

📌 None of these are in effect yet

Every entry below is either proposed, under review, or rescinded. Existing ratings are protected — if any rule is finalized, veterans already rated under today's criteria are typically grandfathered.

Filing a claim today? You're evaluated under today's rules. Don't delay your claim waiting for a "better" rule that may never come.

VA proposed eliminating the automatic 50% rating for veterans whose sleep apnea is managed by a CPAP machine. Under the new criteria, CPAP-managed cases would drop to 10%.

VA's February 15, 2022 proposed rule for respiratory conditions would revise how sleep apnea is evaluated. The current schedule assigns 50% when a breathing assistance device such as CPAP is required. The proposal would evaluate sleep apnea based on treatment response and residual impairment rather than automatically assigning 50% for CPAP use. The proposal remains pending; no final rule has been published as of June 17, 2026.

VA proposed adding a dedicated diagnostic code for constrictive/obliterative bronchiolitis, a PACT Act burn-pit presumptive respiratory condition currently rated by analogy.

A September 12, 2024 supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking would add DC 6605 for constrictive bronchiolitis (also called obliterative bronchiolitis) and rate it under the proposed General Rating Formula for Respiratory Conditions. VA said CB is the only respiratory condition listed in PACT Act section 406 without its own VASRD diagnostic code.

Tinnitus would lose its standalone 10% rating. It would instead only be compensated as a symptom of another condition (like hearing loss) under the proposed rule.

VA's February 15, 2022 proposed auditory rule would remove standalone compensation for recurrent tinnitus under DC 6260 and evaluate tinnitus only as part of the underlying disease that causes it, when applicable. The proposal remains pending; no final rule has been published as of June 17, 2026.

Mental health ratings would move to a domain-based system that's expected to make it easier to qualify for 70% and 100% ratings, plus a guaranteed 10% minimum for any service-connected mental health diagnosis.

VA's February 15, 2022 mental-disorders proposal would replace the current General Rating Formula with a domain-based framework covering cognition, interpersonal interactions and relationships, task completion, life activities/navigating environments, and self-care. It would also set a 10% minimum for service-connected mental disorders. No final rule has been published as of June 17, 2026.

VA proposed revising DC 7009 to provide a minimum 10% evaluation after permanent pacemaker implantation for symptomatic bradycardia/bradyarrhythmia.

The January 30, 2026 proposed rule would revise DC 7009 so bradycardia requiring permanent pacemaker implantation receives a temporary 100% for one month after hospital discharge, then evaluation under the General Rating Formula with a minimum 10%. VA also proposed removing the current bradycardia definition note.

VA proposed updates to neurological conditions and convulsive disorders ratings to incorporate medical advancements and update terminology. Affects codes 8000-8999.

VA's November 12, 2024 proposed neurological rule would update 38 CFR 4.120 and 4.123-4.124a, modernize terminology, add or revise neurological diagnostic codes, and remove or modify obsolete codes. The comment period closed January 13, 2025. No final rule has been published as of June 17, 2026.

VA proposed removing the DC 7629 note requiring endometriosis diagnosis to be confirmed by laparoscopy for service connection.

The October 1, 2025 proposed rule would remove the note under DC 7629 requiring laparoscopy to substantiate an endometriosis diagnosis. VA says the change would align the schedule with current medical practice and reduce barriers where clinicians use non-invasive evidence such as clinical history, exam, ultrasound, MRI, or CT.

VA briefly required examiners to discount medication's effect when rating disabilities (Feb 17 2026). Following backlash, the rule was rescinded Feb 27 2026 and will not be enforced. The underlying Ingram v. Collins appeal is still pending.

On February 17, 2026, VA published an interim final rule amending § 4.10 to require examiners to NOT estimate or discount improvements due to medication or treatment when rating a disability. This would have potentially reduced ratings for many veterans whose conditions are controlled by medication. The rule met immediate backlash from veterans service organizations and lawmakers. On February 19, 2026, VA paused enforcement, and on February 27, 2026, the rule was formally rescinded. VA's Federal Circuit appeal of Ingram v. Collins (the case the rule was responding to) remains pending, so the underlying legal question is not fully resolved. VA Secretary stated the rule 'will not be enforced at any time in the future.'

VA proposed adding a note to DC 7804 clarifying that painful-scar ratings require objective evidence of pain on evaluation or demonstration.

The September 29, 2025 proposed rule would add a clarifying note under DC 7804 stating that objective evidence of pain is required before a scar is rated as painful. VA says this is intended to confirm longstanding policy, not change the percentage levels for unstable or painful scars.