Back and neck conditions are among the most common service-connected disabilities in the VA system. Degenerative disc disease, herniated discs, lumbar strain, cervical strain, spinal stenosis, and spondylolisthesis affect thousands of veterans whose bodies absorbed years of heavy lifting, rucking, airborne operations, vehicle impacts, and the general physical toll of military service. VA rates these […]

If VA denied your claim, gave you a rating that’s too low, or assigned an effective date you believe is wrong, you have the right to appeal. Under the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA), which took effect on February 19, 2019, veterans who disagree with a VA decision can choose from three review lanes: a supplemental […]

If you have a service-connected back or neck condition and you experience pain, numbness, tingling, or weakness that radiates into your arms or legs, you may be entitled to separate VA disability ratings for those symptoms. This condition is called radiculopathy (or sciatica, when it involves the sciatic nerve in the lower back and legs), […]

If you have a 70% rating for PTSD and a 40% rating for a back condition, your combined VA disability rating is not 110%. It’s not even 100%. Under VA’s combined ratings formula, those two ratings produce a combined value of 82%, which rounds to 80%. Most veterans discover this for the first time when […]

Last updated June 2026 with the most recent poverty threshold figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. If you receive TDIU (a total disability rating based on individual unemployability), or you are thinking about applying, one number matters more than almost any other: the poverty threshold for one person. That figure sets the TDIU income limits […]

A vocational expert opinion is often the most important piece of evidence in a TDIU appeal. C&P examiners are medical professionals. They can evaluate the severity of your symptoms and describe your functional limitations. What they generally cannot do is determine whether those limitations actually prevent you from finding and keeping a job. That’s a […]

Veterans who are incapable of securing and maintaining substantially gainful employment may qualify for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (a “TDIU” or “IU”). If awarded a TDIU, a veteran will be paid at the 100% disability rate even though their combined disability rating is less than 100%. Substantially gainful employment is generally […]

A nexus letter is a medical opinion that links a veteran’s current condition to their military service or to another service-connected disability. VA doesn’t require you to submit one, but in many claims, particularly secondary service connection claims, claims filed years after separation, and appeals of prior denials, a nexus letter is the single most […]

The Compensation and Pension exam is, in many cases, the single most important event in a VA mental health claim. VA will generally give more weight to the C&P examiner’s findings than to your treating provider’s records, your lay statements, or anything else in the file. A good exam can result in an accurate rating […]

Many veterans who are unable to work due to service-connected disabilities are also eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance. The two programs are administered by different agencies, use different standards, and evaluate disability differently. But they are not mutually exclusive. In most cases, veterans can receive both TDIU and SSDI simultaneously, with no offset or […]