Gerd/IBS at 30%

[Kuwaitin08]

I’m currently rated at 30% for IBS/Gerd. I recently submitted a claim for diverticulitis which I believe would be rated under IBS.

My diverticulitis symptoms are quite severe and am fairly certain it will be service connected especially considering my VA Gastro Doc provided a nexus letter. 
 

I know IBS is maxed at 30% and Gerd is 60%… So being that my IBS and Gerd are combined, would that mean that with my new Diverticultis (IBS) disability that my rating could be bumped up? 

 

[broncovet]

Maybe.  Review the criteria for IBS/Gerd.  You need to look those up yourself.  

As an example, many Veterans have "dual" mental health disorders..PTSD and Bipolar, and or something else.  

For mental health disorders, once service connected, they are rated on SYMPTOMS.  Generally, VA compensates you for your percentage of your loss of an ability to earn an income.  

IDK what your symptoms are for IBS/Gerd and I dont know which symptoms overlap.  But I do know that you dont get paid for the same symptom twice.  

Let me cite a hypothetical example:

Lets say you have bouts of painful diarrhea which last 2 or 3 days where you can not work with Gerd "and also" with IBS.  You would get compensated for one, not the other.  

But the Gerd may have an additional symptom.  With mental heatlh disorders you get paid for all they symptoms combined into one disorder.  If that makes sense.  Pyramiding prevents a Veteran from getting paid for the same symptom twice.  

But, if I was service connected for my Right knee issue and the main symptom was pain which hurt when I walked.  

However, lets assume I was also SC for my back "including" back pain.  Well I could get paid for symptoms of my back pain and my knee pain especially if they dont occur at the same time and I could not work 2 days a month due to back pain, and 1 day a week due to knee pain.  

[El Train]

You're maxed out.  Not sure what you would gain.

[pacmanx1]

Due to the fact that the veteran is having multiple symptoms within this category, The VA could actually rate him higher with a 60% rating. This of course does not mean they will.   

These are the criteria for each rating: GERD.

• 60 percent – the veteran experiences “pain, vomiting, material weight loss and hematemesis or melena with moderate anemia; or other symptom combinations productive of severe impairment of health.”
• 30 percent – the veteran experiences “persistently recurrent epigastric distress with dysphagia, pyrosis, and regurgitation, accompanied by substernal or arm and shoulder pain, productive of considerable impairment of heath.”
• 10 percent – the veteran has two or more symptoms of the 30 percent rating, but less severe.

 

4.7 Higher of two evaluations.

Where there is a question as to which of two evaluations shall be applied, the higher evaluation will be assigned if the disability picture more nearly approximates the criteria required for that rating. Otherwise, the lower rating will be assigned.

[pacmanx1]

Depending on your 90% rating breakdown, you could be 93% or 94% and the VA rounds down to a combined 90% but the additional 30% from 30% to 60% could possibly get you a 100% combined rating. All you would need is that your rating hit 95% and the VA would round up to 100% schedular. 

[broncovet]

Another way is to apply for tdiu, that is, assuming you are not working.  Or, if you are working, there may be other claims you overlooked.