VA Disability for Neck Arthritis

Neck pain can be a debilitating problem that impacts literally every area of your life. Arthritis in the neck, otherwise known as the cervical spine in the VA rating schedule, can make even day-to-day actions unbearably painful and can cause serious disruptions to employment, mobility, and personal autonomy. If you are suffering from neck arthritis, jumping through the hoops of the VA disability process can seem overwhelming and cumbersome. Getting the compensation you need to live your life is no small matter, and navigating the VA system’s eligibility requirements can be an obstacle to that progress. If you are seeking VA disability for neck arthritis, you likely have a lot of questions about the process and how to get started. Let’s dive deeper into what you need to know, including how to appeal a denial from Veteran Affairs for your neck arthritis claim.

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that you already filed a claim with the VA for neck arthritis and were denied service connection benefits. This can be frustrating and disappointing, but it’s important that you don’t see this bump in the road as a defeat. Unfortunately, many valid claims are initially denied by the VA. This can happen for a variety of reasons, but one of the common ones is a lack of adequate supporting evidence about the injury or its severity.

While this is certainly not everyone’s experience, it’s important to be prepared for the reality that establishing service connection and obtaining VA disability for neck arthritis may be a long and arduous process for some veterans. If you have been denied or if you are preparing your initial claim and want to make sure you do everything you can to make the process go smoothly, it’s important to know the details about how the VA disability process works for neck arthritis injuries.

The VA rating system works more or less the same regardless of the type of injury, but the nature of neck arthritis can cause some unexpected challenges.

A VA disability rating percentage is awarded in multiples of 10, representing the severity of the impact of the disease or injury. For example, if someone is given a 30% disability rate, it would indicate that the injury is impairing the individual so that they see a decrease of 30% to their overall health and functionality. Each disability receives a separate rating, and the combined, or overall rating, is used to determine the amount of monthly compensation you will receive.

Each VA rating is determined by a multitude of factors, some of which are within your direct control. It’s important to make sure you are providing the most accurate, up-to-date, and detailed medical evidence possible so that your rating will reflect your actual disability. These factors include the following:

• Evidence provided directly from the patient to the VA: This typically includes doctor’s reports and the results of medical testing. It will be your responsibility to make sure these files are complete, accurate, and submitted.
• VA claim exam results: Sometimes, the VA will require a claim exam, otherwise known as a C&P exam, from their own appointed medical professionals. If this exam is ordered, the results will be used as part of your rating analysis.
• Additional information: This information may be gathered from a variety of sources (including federal agencies) in determining the nature of your injury and its relation to service-related work. Lay statements from yourself or others who can provide first-hand knowledge related to the severity of your disability can also be important.

The VA will also recognize that an individual can be impacted by more than one service-related injury. In these cases, the rating for the injuries may be combined, but it will never exceed 100%.

For neck arthritis, the VA is going to be looking for evidence of impairment related to mobility of the neck, including range of motion testing. In particular, the information submitted or measured during the C&P exam will need to include details on cervical spine flexion, which is a measure of the movement in turning the head and tilting at the shoulder.