Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) VA Rating

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is rated under diagnostic code 9411. In the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities it appears as Posttraumatic stress disorder, within the Mental Disorders section of 38 CFR Part 4.

The essentials

Other names for this condition

VA and treating providers may use different terms for the same condition. If your records use any of these, they may still support a claim for Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD):

• PTSD
• post-traumatic stress disorder
• post traumatic stress disorder

What evidence decides the rating

For mental disorders conditions, these are the findings VA weighs when assigning a percentage. If your examination did not address them, the examination may be inadequate for rating purposes — which is itself an argument on appeal.

• Occupational and social impairment — the General Rating Formula rates function, not diagnosis
• Frequency, severity and duration of specific symptoms, not just their presence
• Treatment records showing medication changes, therapy frequency, hospitalisations
• Work history: missed days, accommodations, terminations, reduced hours
• Lay statements from family or co-workers describing day-to-day functioning

Why these claims get denied or under-rated

These are the failure patterns we see most often on posttraumatic stress disorder (ptsd) and related mental disorders claims:

• The examiner assigned a summary level of impairment that does not match the symptoms they recorded in the same report
• VA relied on a single snapshot examination rather than the full treatment record
• A stressor was not conceded because VA did not attempt JSRRC or unit-records development
• Symptoms were attributed to a non-service-connected condition without the medical rationale required to separate them — where they cannot be separated, Mittleider requires VA to attribute all symptoms to the service-connected condition

Secondary service connection

Under 38 CFR §3.310, a condition caused or aggravated by an already service-connected condition is itself service-connected. Secondary claims are where most veterans are leaving compensation on the table — and where most denials turn on the nexus opinion rather than the diagnosis.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is commonly claimed secondary to

• Traumatic brain injury
• Chronic pain from a service-connected condition

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) commonly causes or aggravates

• Sleep apnea
• GERD
• Hypertension
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Migraine
• Erectile dysfunction
• Insomnia
• Substance use disorders

If you are already service-connected for posttraumatic stress disorder (ptsd) and any of these apply to you, they may be claimable as secondary conditions.

If your claim was denied or under-rated

A denial is not the end of the claim. Which route is right depends on why VA decided the way it did:

• Higher-Level Review — when the evidence already in the file supports a grant and VA got the decision wrong, or the examination was inadequate.
• Supplemental Claim — when you have new and relevant evidence, such as a private nexus opinion.
• Board Appeal — when you need a Veterans Law Judge to decide, or want a hearing.
• Clear and Unmistakable Error — when a decision more than a year old contains an undebatable error, which can recover retroactive pay.

Effective dates matter as much as the percentage. See effective dates and back pay for how far back an award can reach.

Sources

• 38 CFR Part 4 rating criteria on eCFR
• VA Disability Benefits Questionnaires (DBQ) index

Related conditions

• Panic disorder (DC 9412)
• Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) (DC 9404)
• Generalized anxiety disorder (DC 9400)
• Bipolar disorder (DC 9432)
• Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) (DC 9433)
• Major depressive disorder (DC 9434)