WASHINGTON — The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States (VFW) is demanding that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) immediately rescind its interim final rule changing how disability ratings are evaluated, warning that the policy threatens to unfairly reduce benefits for disabled veterans.
In a letter sent yesterday, the VFW raised serious concerns about the rule’s broad impact on veterans with musculoskeletal injuries, chronic pain and mental health conditions, as well as VA’s decision to bypass the traditional notice-and-comment process. The VA’s response, the VFW said, failed to address those concerns.
“The VA’s response to the well-articulated concerns raised by so many has been dismissive and unacceptable,” said VFW National Commander Carol Whitmore. “Disabled veterans should never be forced to choose between following their doctor’s orders and protecting their earned benefits. This interim rule puts that stability at risk, and it must be withdrawn.”
The rule directs VA adjudicators to evaluate veterans based on their level of functioning while on medication, rather than the true underlying severity of their service-connected conditions in a shift that contradicts long-standing court precedent and risks penalizing veterans who follow prescribed treatment.
“VA’s disability compensation system exists to compensate veterans for the average impairment in earning capacity resulting from service-connected conditions,” said Whitmore. “It should not penalize veterans for seeking treatment, nor should it sidestep the system of judicial accountability Congress deliberately put in place.”
Since the creation of judicial review in 1988, veterans law has evolved through a constructive dialogue between the courts, Congress and VA. If the Department disagrees with judicial interpretation, the appropriate response is engagement through the rulemaking process or legislative clarification, not the use of emergency procedures to bypass public input while casting binding precedent as an obstacle.
The VFW believes that invoking “good cause” to avoid notice-and-comment procedures, particularly where the rule materially affects earned disability compensation, undermines transparency and risks eroding confidence in the veteran-centric, non-adversarial benefits system Congress intended.
“Congress created judicial review of VA decisions to ensure accountability, uniformity and fidelity to the law,” said VFW General Counsel John Muckelbauer. “When Congress established the United States Court of Veterans Appeals, which is now the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, it did so to end decades of unchecked administrative decision-making and to provide veterans with an independent forum for review. Judicial oversight is not a disruption; it is a statutory safeguard.”
In addition to rescinding the rule, the VFW is calling on VA to restore the prior evaluation standard pending full regulatory review; and engage Congress and stakeholders in a transparent process that respects judicial precedent and protects veterans’ earned benefits.
The VFW will continue to submit formal comments, consult with Congress and evaluate all available options to ensure the integrity of the veterans benefits system is preserved.
To submit your comment to the Federal Register, calling to rescind this rule change, click here.