How does the VA arrive at a disability rating?
The VA evaluates service-connected injuries in increments of 10 percent. They examine the medical evidence you’ve submitted with your claim and then assign a “rating”. The maximum disability rating percentage is 100%; however, most conditions receive a rating below 100%. The largest category of veterans on the compensation scale is at 10 percent disability ($123 per month), with 782,000 veterans at this rate at the beginning of fiscal year 2009 among the total 2.9 million veterans receiving disability compensation. The criteria for rating the severity of various disabilities are available online at http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_07/38cfr4_07.html. At times, a veteran may be rated at zero percent, meaning there is evidence of a service-connected condition, but it does not impair the veteran. An example is a minor scar. This zero percent rating, though not compensable, can be beneficial, since it may raise the veteran’s priority in other VA programs, such as health care eligi
