How Does the VA Evaluate Sleep Apnea? The VA evaluates sleep apnea under 38 C.F.R. § 4.97-13, Code 6847 as Sleep Apnea Syndromes (obstructive, central, mixed). The lowest possible rating, 0 percent, does not qualify you for any monthly compensation, but it makes you eligible for other benefits, such as healthcare.

How do I prove VA disability for sleep apnea?

To show your disability began during service, you will need to:

1. Have a current diagnosis of sleep apnea with a sleep study;
2. Provide VA with competent and credible lay evidence of symptoms of sleep apnea that occurred during your time in service (and which continued thereafter); plus.

What is the VA rate for sleep apnea?

How Does VA Rate Sleep Apnea Now? Right now, service-connected sleep apnea is assigned a 50 percent rating if you are prescribed a CPAP machine. If you have a CPAP and you also have chronic respiratory failure or similar conditions, you can get a 100 percent rating.

How hard is it to get VA disability for sleep apnea?

A sleep apnea diagnosis alone will not qualify for VA benefits unless you can prove that it was connected in some way to your service. This almost always requires a strong medical opinion. Providing copies of research alone will not give VA decision-makers what they need.

What is the highest VA disability rating for sleep apnea?

How Sleep Apnea VA Ratings Are Decided. VA rates sleep apnea for veterans' disability under 38 CFR § 4.97, Diagnostic Code 6847. With the highest possible rating being 100% and the lowest being 0%.

How to Get Sleep Apnea VA Disability Benefits

Is there a C&P exam for sleep apnea?

What Happens During C&P Exams for Sleep Apnea? During the C&P exam for sleep apnea, the examiners will ask questions about your condition and how it affects you. VA examiners might complete a Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) for sleep apnea as well.

Why do so many veterans have sleep apnea?

Sleep apnea is especially common among veterans, whose exposure to materials such as dust and fumes, as well as mental anxiety related to combat, make them more likely to develop chronic health conditions. According to the VA, 1 in 5 veterans has obstructive sleep apnea.

Can you get a VA rating for insomnia and sleep apnea?

VA offers service-connected compensation for multiple sleep disturbances, including sleep apnea, insomnia, and narcolepsy. Importantly, service connection for sleep disorders can be awarded on a direct, secondary, or presumptive basis.

How is PTSD connected to sleep apnea?

In order to get service connection for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD, the veteran must establish a nexus between the two conditions. This means providing the VA with evidence that his or her sleep apnea is the result of his or her PTSD.

Can military service cause sleep apnea?

For U.S. veterans, sleep apnea can be a real problem—one that may be associated with long-term exposure to chemicals and dust during military service. Many veterans qualify for benefits on the basis of a secondary service-connection to a condition such as exposure to Agent Orange.

What should you not say at C&P exam?

Don't Lie or Stretch the Truth. This is a big one. Don't ever lie or stretch the truth when it comes to your VA disability claim. At your C&P exam, you should think, look, act, and speak as you would on a normal day.

Do I need a nexus letter for sleep apnea?

To make your case with the VA, you'll need what's known as a “nexus” letter from a doctor. A nexus letter is a letter simply states that your sleep apnea is as likely as not to have been caused by your service-connected PTSD, or another service-connected condition.

Does VA recognize sleep apnea secondary to PTSD?

The short answer: yes. PTSD can lead to sleep apnea. From a VA disability standpoint, this means a Veteran could develop sleep apnea secondary to PTSD and would therefore be entitled to compensation.

What conditions are secondary to sleep apnea?

Some of the following conditions can be secondary to sleep apnea, while others may be the primary condition to which sleep apnea is secondary.

• Allergic Rhinitis.
• ALS.
• Atrial Fibrillation.
• Back Pain.
• Brain Infection.
• Spinal Cord injury.
• Cervical nerve conditions.
• Toxic Exposure.

What is the VA disability rating for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD?

Diagnostic Code 6847 dictates that sleep apnea that requires the use of a CPAP machine warrants a 50 percent disability rating. Thus, the veteran's sleep apnea already warranted a 50 percent disability rating prior to it being aggravated by PTSD.

How do you prove your sleep apnea is service connected?

Veterans can also prove service connection for sleep apnea by showing that their sleep apnea began in service using service medical records, or by providing a nexus opinion from a medical professional that links their current diagnosis of sleep apnea to signs or symptoms they experienced in service.

What is the highest VA rating for insomnia?

Yes, insomnia is considered a VA Disability and it can get a disability rating anywhere from 0% to 100%. This is according to the Schedule of Ratings for Mental Disorders (38 CFR § 4.130).

How do I file a VA claim for sleep apnea?

Veterans planning to file a VA disability compensation claim for sleep apnea are encouraged to ask their medical provider to complete the VA Form 21-0960L-2 Sleep Apnea Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) to support the claim. The Sleep Apnea Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) form can be found here.

How do I get a 100% VA rating?

If veterans are trying to get a 100 percent VA disability rating, and they do not have a 100 percent rating for any one service-connected condition, the only way to get there is to reach a combined disability rating of 95 percent or higher according to VA math.

Does sleep apnea go away?

For the most part, sleep apnea is a chronic condition that does not go away. Anatomy tends to remain fixed, especially after adolescence has ended. Therefore, children with sleep apnea may retain hope for the condition being successfully and definitively treated.

Will the VA pay for my CPAP machine?

If you do receive a rating of 50% or higher, you can get a CPAP machine provided to you by the VA on top of your benefits. Regarding CPAP machines, a recent VA report on VHA health care spending for sleep apnea has called on the VA to implement spending reforms cutting up to $200 million over the next 5 years.

Does the VA check CPAP compliance?

There are two changes being made to the rating. Change 1: A veteran must show that the CPAP he's using is a medical necessity. Thus, a letter from your doctor will be needed to explain that the prescribed breathing device is needed for medical treatment of your sleep apnea.

Is anxiety secondary to sleep apnea?

The physician opined that the sleep apnea was directly related to anxiety and secondary to weight gain. The physician indicated that if VA concluded that the sleep apnea is related to the Veteran's obesity, then the obesity was also related to the depression and anxiety which was the cause of overeating and anxiety.

Will a VA doctor write a nexus letter?

VA and VA-contracted doctors typically WILL NOT write nexus letters in support of veterans' claims for direct service connection.

Can a nurse practitioner write a nexus letter?

Only a medical professional with the appropriate medical training should write a disability nexus letter. In limited circumstances, non-doctors such as physician's assistants and nurse practitioners can write them.