Question:

My husband was recently diagnosed with ALS. He is currently employed but we expect he will have to quit his job before too long. He served in the Navy in the mid-80’s and I have heard he may be eligible for VA benefits. Is this true?

Answer:

All veterans with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (“ALS”) or Lou Gehrig’s disease, will receive full disability, lifetime health and their survivors will receive death benefits regardless of when or where they served. There are three types of the disease

  • ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) is the most common form and accounts for approximately 60% to 70% of all cases.
  • PBP (progressive bulbar palsy) accounts for about 20% of all cases.
  • PMA (progressive muscular atrophy) accounts for the remaining 10% of cases.

Although the reasons are unclear, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies has acknowledged that there is an association between ALS and military service.

According to VA regulations the VA will treat a veterans ALS as though it were connected to or caused by their military service. This is true where the development of ALS happens at any time after discharge from active duty where the veteran had at least 90 consecutive days of active duty. There must not be any evidence that the ALS was not related to the veterans military service or that the ALS was the result of the veterans willful misconduct.

This means that, unless there is clear evidence otherwise, the development of ALS at any time after discharge or release from active military, naval, or air service lasting more than 90 continuous days is presumed to be service connected. Further, veterans who have a diagnosis of ALS are considered service connected regardless of the number of years following discharge that they were diagnosed.

In addition to the broad presumption, VA has also made a recent change to the Diagnostic Codes that sets the minimum rating for ALS at 100 percent. In other words, VA will assign a total disability rating for any veteran who is diagnosed with ALS. Previously, the minimum rating for ALS was 30 percent, but the VA determined that providing a 100-percent evaluation in all cases would eliminate the need to reassess and reevaluate veterans with ALS repeatedly over short periods of time because the condition worsens and inevitably progresses to total disability.

As the proposed rule explained, ALS is a rapidly progressing disease, and establishment of a 100-percent evaluation for ALS will not adversely affect how ALS is evaluated for rating purposes. A veteran may receive compensation at the 100-percent rate based either on a 100-percent evaluation specifically for ALS or on a combined evaluation for ALS and other service-connected conditions. On either basis VA may consider the veteran for varying levels of special monthly compensation, which is an amount of compensation in addition to amounts payable for service-connected disability, including disabilities rated 100-percent disabling.

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