VA plans to lower disability ratings if meds provide any benefit to veterans

5,331 Views | 157 Replies | Last: 27 min ago by insulator_king
FatZilla
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10:10p, 2/19/26
AG
https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/veterans-disability-rating-federal-rule-change/

100% against this. Absolutely stupid rule that will cause veterans who rely on the extra income to stop or never take meds that could help them if it means loosing their earned disability payments in service to this nation. Ramming this through closed door hidden sessions without public comment period when there is zero emergency to enact the rule speaks volumes to how ****ty they know their new "interpretation" is. This needs to be blocked immediately and then litigated to keep the status quo in tact.
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FatZilla
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10:15p, 2/19/26
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Looks like they tucked tail already luckily i just saw. So crisis temporarily averted atleast. https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/2026/02/19/va-halts-implementation-of-controversial-disability-rating-rule-following-backlash/
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TAMUallen
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10:18p, 2/19/26
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They're bad at everything, any surprise?
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Aston04
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10:18p, 2/19/26
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Make substantive change to counter the frequent fraud in the va disability system and then I would be sympathetic.
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Sims
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10:34p, 2/19/26
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Ironic that "interpretation" got quotes in a thread about "disability" ratings
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rwtxag83
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In reply to Aston04 • 10:39p, 2/19/26
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Aston04 said:
Make substantive change to counter the frequent fraud in the va disability system and then I would sympathetic.


This! Fraud is widespread in the disability system. Far, far too many people being paid money who shouldn't be. It needs a serious overhaul.
Greater love hath no man than this....
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TAMUallen
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In reply to rwtxag83 • 10:46p, 2/19/26
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rwtxag83 said:
Aston04 said:
Make substantive change to counter the frequent fraud in the va disability system and then I would sympathetic.


This! Fraud is widespread in the disability system. Far, far too many people being paid money who shouldn't be. It needs a serious overhaul.


If there's a place to hit, you hit at anybody continuing it after they're clearly warned. You don't come after VA and VA benefits as they are now, unfortunately
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Mr.Milkshake
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10:58p, 2/19/26
Idc and they deserve whatever they can get, but I know several that game the vet disability pay with no didability
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rwtxag83
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In reply to TAMUallen • 11:02p, 2/19/26
AG
A female on active duty who gets pregnant and has a cesarean section birth qualifies for a 60% disability rating. There is absolutely ZERO reason we should be paying ANYTHING to someone who got pregnant and had a cesarean. This has NOTHING to do with your service.

This is the kind of thing that needs to change.

I have friends who had crushed skull and vertebrae who had to fight for over 10 years to get anything. My buddy has serious bowel issues that drugs won't work on.

The Air Force actually sends people leaving the service to a class to teach them how to maximize what they can get.

Change needs to happen. Period.
Greater love hath no man than this....
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Teslag
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In reply to rwtxag83 • 11:11p, 2/19/26
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A cesarean doesn't get you 60%. I've easily helped almost 100 soldiers now with claims and that isn't a thing. At most you might get 10% for the scar.
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EFR
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In reply to Teslag • 11:25p, 2/19/26
Please explain why we, the taxpayers, should pay someone for the rest of their lives because of a scar related to a voluntary pregnancy just because of where they were employed at the time?
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Teslag
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In reply to EFR • 11:36p, 2/19/26
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EFR said:
Please explain why we, the taxpayers, should pay someone for the rest of their lives because of a scar related to a voluntary pregnancy just because of where they were employed at the time?


Why should I have to explain it? I didn't write the CFR.
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jja79
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11:37p, 2/19/26
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I'm 100% in favor of legitimate benefits for deserving veterans but it's out of control. I have 2 friends with deadbeat veteran kids and it infuriates me. One kid got a DUO on base and was drummed out of the Army. He's been collecting $4K/month while going to college for 7 years on VA benefits. The other was a barber on a ship stationed in Japan during the Iraq Afghanistan war. A friend of his from HS was killed in Iraq. Though he was thousands of miles from Iraq he now has a service dog and collects VA disability for PTSD. We're being scammed.
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Teslag
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In reply to EFR • 11:37p, 2/19/26
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Also you need to realize the VA isn't tasked to protect the taxpayer. They are tasked with taking care of the veteran.
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EFR
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In reply to Teslag • 11:43p, 2/19/26
And that right there is a huge problem. It is a government agency, so fiscal responsibility should be a priority. Any agency funded by the taxpayer but feels that they don't have an obligation to the taxpayer to wisely spend the money they are given needs major overhaul.
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Teslag
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In reply to EFR • 11:54p, 2/19/26
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It was given major overhaul two years ago and were given billions more to compensate even more conditions with the PACT act.
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montanagriz
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12:10a, 2/20/26
S
I work with many veterans, guys and girls earning 6 figures with no disabilities but its very easy to get 100% disability by just knowing the right things to say. My wife works with another guy that gets 100% and there is nothing wrong with him. He makes 300k to 400k a year and gets full disability. Yes, he is scamming, he is one of those with no morales and takes pride in scamming stuff.

I think most vets feel entitled to 100%disability because they served our country. I can see that view but taking money away from the pool hurts those vets that really need the help
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Marlin39m
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12:33a, 2/20/26
It's not just direct benefits. Look at the tax exemptions. Vehicle registration and property taxes are waived or significantly reduced.
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APHIS AG
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In reply to Aston04 • 12:51a, 2/20/26
Aston04 said:
Make substantive change to counter the frequent fraud in the va disability system and then I would sympathetic.

This. Also change the regulation that states that if you receive a military retirement and have a less than 50% disability, the disability payment will be deducted from your retirement payment.
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Eliminatus
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1:06a, 2/20/26
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Love how everyone here on F16 just spazzes out when they see "VA disability" and waxes on about "I know a guy…" and completely ignores whatever the actual topic is. It might be worse than teachers and their "two month vacations! >:[ ". It's red meat for this board.

Reminds me of the golden rule of any sort of compensation. Which is to STFU about it. People get really, really weird and aggressive about it. From family to complete strangers. Seen it so many times now second hand. You can be 10%, you can be 100%, it doesn't matter. You are going to get an earful no matter what about their opinions on it.

Which is just part of it though of course. People have zero need to know in the first place and yes, I have also seen the braggarts who proudly share what they get to the world. They are just as bad of course and the STFU applies to them first and foremost.

And yes, I agree fraud prevention needs to be heightened ftr. That should always be ongoing. For every department in the gubment.

As to the actual topic at hand, it does seem illogical to me. Have an ailment that requires lifetime treatment or medication but don't count it as such because of said treatment? Even if treatment is the only thing keeping it at bay or controlled? It's not cured. It didn't go away. The person is still broken. It's just managed at best. And that management is always in a state of flux for anyone who has ever taken medication or treatment long term. Just seems so shortsighted I guess and that is even before thinking about the actual motivations behind this move.
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Vepp
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1:44a, 2/20/26
As someone who exited from the military 5 years ago, the amount of people who looked at me wide eyes when I told them I wasn't going to play the disability system was 100%. They couldn't believe that I wouldn't play their fraud game.

Not to mention that I know many other veterans in real life who shouldn't be milking their fellow taxpayers when very little is actually wrong with them.

This is not an attack on those that ACTUALLY became disabled in the military, but the massive fraud must stop. It won't be a popular political decision, but we need reform because the current system is RIFE with people who don't deserve an extra monthly check.

This is one of the hills I'll die on due to overwhelming personal experience. I immediately lose respect for any fellow veteran who starts talking about how they gamed the system to get a check.
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Rocky Rider
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In reply to Vepp • 3:44a, 2/20/26
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"This is one of the hills I'll die on due to overwhelming personal experience. I immediately lose respect for any fellow veteran who starts talking about how they gamed the system to get a check."

I have no problem taking care of veterans, but medical benefit fraud is a different matter
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Psycho Bunny
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4:16a, 2/20/26
So this explains why ever other car on the freeway has DV plates. Years ago, it was a unicorn in the wild to see DV plates. Now days, family of family have them on their cars.
Whether I get life's question right or wrong free will is an illusion.
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MouthBQ98
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5:47a, 2/20/26
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There's also a huge amount of socisl security and Medicaid disability fraud. I think it reached a certain critical mass where so many people are doing it they can rationalize that others are also doing it and have no shame
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Ellis Wyatt
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In reply to MouthBQ98 • 6:52a
Sure. That's what happens in a nation that is no longer "moral and religious."
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Capt. Augustus McCrae
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In reply to Psycho Bunny • 7:13a
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Psycho Bunny said:
So this explains why ever other car on the freeway has DV plates. Years ago, it was a unicorn in the wild to see DV plates. Now days, family of family have them on their cars.


They get reduced vehicle registration rates and get to park in handicap parking spots with those plates too. It always makes me laugh when I see a lifted truck in a handicap parking spot.
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BBRex
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7:16a
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The question is are we paying disability to compensate them for their injury, to make up for potential lost compensation after military life or both? Because I can imagine two different scenarios.

First, my coworker was seriously hurt in Iraq. She'll have injuries forever that she deserves compensation for. At the same time, she works a full-time job, has a good salary after earning her degree with her benefits, and takes advantage of a ton of perks that other people don't get. So while I do think she deserves compensation, her injuries haven't prevented her from participating in everyday life like everyone else, and in fact, she's able to live a lot nicer life than most.

Second, a lot of people in the military do the same work as comparable civilians, and they get the same physical stress and strain as a veteran doing the same job. Why give one a lifetime of extra compensation and the other not?

That's a lot of words to say that if medication or other treatments reduce or remove the symptoms that a veteran is receiving disability for, then why not reduce the benefits of the disability accordingly? I wouldn't necessarily remove all of the benefits they receive for that injury, but I wouldn't definitely rule out reducing them.
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Burdizzo
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In reply to Aston04 • 7:17a
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Aston04 said:
Make substantive change to counter the frequent fraud in the va disability system and then I would be sympathetic.


I saw a Lamborghini with DV plates in San Antonio. The least the guy could have done was bought American like a Corvette or Ford GT
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nortex97
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In reply to montanagriz • 7:18a
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montanagriz said:
I work with many veterans, guys and girls earning 6 figures with no disabilities but its very easy to get 100% disability by just knowing the right things to say. My wife works with another guy that gets 100% and there is nothing wrong with him. He makes 300k to 400k a year and gets full disability. Yes, he is scamming, he is one of those with no morales and takes pride in scamming stuff.

I think most vets feel entitled to 100%disability because they served our country. I can see that view but taking money away from the pool hurts those vets that really need the help

Agree with this. It's infuriating, and it is unlikely to ever get fixed because it is such a political hot potato.
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Burdizzo
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In reply to Capt. Augustus McCrae • 7:19a
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Capt. Augustus McCrae said:
Psycho Bunny said:
So this explains why ever other car on the freeway has DV plates. Years ago, it was a unicorn in the wild to see DV plates. Now days, family of family have them on their cars.


They get reduced vehicle registration rates and get to park in handicap parking spots with those plates too. It always makes me laugh when I see a lifted truck in a handicap parking spot.



Most city codes have done away with handicap parking for DV plates, but then again I don't recall the last time I ever same anyone get tickets for violating that rule
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Teslag
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In reply to Psycho Bunny • 7:20a
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Psycho Bunny said:
So this explains why ever other car on the freeway has DV plates. Years ago, it was a unicorn in the wild to see DV plates. Now days, family of family have them on their cars.


The main reason you see so many DV plates now is the expansion of toll roads in Texas. DV plates exempt you from the tolls.
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Ellis Wyatt
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In reply to BBRex • 7:22a
It's definitely a mixed bag. I know a guy who got a significant disability percentage for blowing out his knee playing basketball at lunch on post stateside.
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Maroon Dawn
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7:27a
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I simply don't understand how anyone can look at the VA and think "See what a great job they do?! Let's expand this to 400 million people!"
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cecil77
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In reply to Teslag • 7:33a
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Teslag said:
Also you need to realize the VA isn't tasked to protect the taxpayer. They are tasked with taking care of the veteran.


Stupid take. Taxpayer money is not unlimited. Efficient use of taxpayer money take benefit deserving vets absolutely IS their task.
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BBRex
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In reply to Maroon Dawn • 7:38a
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True, but at the same time, my coworker had VA cover an expensive fertility treatment that was in no way connected to her military disability while my brother-in-law and his wife can't get their fertility treatment paid for by insurance and are having to pony up $10 grand or more. When people see that, they want in on the racket.
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