Understanding VA Sleep Apnea Disability Ratings: Why a CPAP Prescription—Not Usage—Unlocks 50 Percent
Posted by Gregory M. Rada | May 21, 2025 | Firm News
VA Sleep Apnea Ratings Explained (2025): Why a CPAP Prescription Is Still 50 Percent—and How Looming Rule Changes Could Cut It
Sleep apnea remains one of the most-claimed VA disabilities. Under Diagnostic Code 6847, a veteran prescribed (or even just recommended) a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine is automatically entitled to a 50 percent rating—even if the machine gathers dust on a closet shelf. But a multiyear rule-making effort signals that the “automatic 50 %” may disappear by late 2025. Below we explain the current criteria, why prescription outranks compliance, and what VA’s rule-making docket says about the road ahead.
Table of Contents
- What Is Sleep Apnea and Why It Matters
- Current VA Rating Criteria for Sleep Apnea
- Why CPAP Prescription—Not Use—Earns 50 %
- Pending Rule Changes: 2022–2025 Timeline
- Will Existing 50 % Ratings Be Reduced?
- Tips to Strengthen Your Sleep Apnea Claim
1. What Is Sleep Apnea and Why It Matters
Obstructive, central, and mixed sleep apnea interrupt breathing hundreds of times per night, driving daytime fatigue, cardiovascular strain, and cognitive fog. Risk factors such as weight gain, PTSD, and burn-pit exposure make veterans disproportionately vulnerable. Accurate ratings translate to monthly, tax-free compensation and access to specialty care.
2. Current VA Rating Criteria for Sleep Apnea
Under 38 C.F.R. § 4.97, DC 6847, VA awards:
- 100 % – Chronic respiratory failure with CO2 retention or cor pulmonale, or requires tracheostomy.
- 50 % – Requires use (meaning: prescription or recommendation) of a CPAP/BiPAP or similar breathing-assistance device.
- 30 % – Persistent daytime hypersomnolence.
- 0 % – Documented sleep-disordered breathing, asymptomatic.
3. Why CPAP Prescription—Not Use—Earns 50 %
The regulation hinges on whether a qualified clinician says you need CPAP. Board decisions routinely grant 50 percent even when a veteran “could not tolerate CPAP” or opted for an oral appliance. Compliance data are irrelevant to rating.
4. Pending Rule Changes: 2022–2025 Timeline
| Date | Regulatory Action | Key Sleep-Apnea Language |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 15 2022 | NPRM, 87 FR 8474 | Assign 0 % “when sleep-apnea syndrome is asymptomatic, with or without treatment” and limit ratings above 10 % to cases where treatment fails or cannot be used. |
| Sept 12 2024 | SNPRM, 89 FR 74162 | Reaffirms that comments on the 2022 NPRM and 2024 SNPRM will be handled in the final rulemaking under RIN 2900-AQ72. |
| Fall 2024 Unified Agenda | Lists RIN 2900-AQ72 in the “Final Rule Stage,” projecting a final rule by Aug 2025. | The update will modernize sleep-apnea ratings based on symptom control rather than treatment type. |
5. Will Existing 50 % Ratings Be Reduced?
VA’s official stance: The February 15, 2022 news release says proposed changes “will not affect evaluations of any veteran currently receiving compensation.” Rating protections (3-, 5-, and 20-year rules) plus due-process requirements make across-the-board cuts unlikely. Reductions could occur only if a future exam shows sustained symptom relief and VA follows 38 C.F.R. § 3.105(e) procedures.
6. Tips to Strengthen Your Sleep Apnea Claim
- Secure the CPAP order. Upload the polysomnogram and the prescription or recommendation.
- Document residual symptoms. Keep fatigue logs, Epworth scores, and spousal statements.
- Link it to service. Point to in-service snoring, weight gain, PTSD, or sinusitis as causative factors.
- Explain non-compliance. Note mask discomfort or anxiety—this does not hurt the 50 % now and may matter under the new rule.
- Stay alert for the final rule. Once published (target Aug 2025), evaluate the risk-reward of filing new or increased claims.
Need help? Sleep-apnea claims mix medical nuance with evolving law. At After Service LLC we build airtight cases using nexus letters when necessary, shield existing ratings, and appeal unfair reductions. Schedule a free consultation today.
