Migraines are a complex neurological condition involving intense, throbbing pain, nausea, vomiting, and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. These episodes can last for hours or even days, significantly disrupting a person’s life and ability to function. For veterans whose migraines are connected to their military service, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides disability compensation. The VA rates the severity of the condition based on the frequency and severity of debilitating attacks and their impact on a veteran’s daily life.
Establishing Service Connection
Before the VA can assign any disability percentage for migraines, a veteran must demonstrate a service connection, proving the condition originated or was worsened during military duty. This requires satisfying three distinct elements.
The first is a current, official medical diagnosis of migraines from a qualified healthcare provider. The second element involves identifying an in-service event, injury, or exposure linked to the onset of the migraines. This could be a specific incident, such as a traumatic brain injury (TBI), or chronic factors like continuous exposure to loud noises or extreme stress.
The third element is establishing a medical nexus, which links the current diagnosis and the in-service event. A medical professional must provide an opinion stating that the veteran’s migraines are “at least as likely as not” caused by military service. This connection can be direct, or secondary, meaning the migraines developed as a result of another service-connected condition (e.g., PTSD, tinnitus, or a neck injury).
Understanding the VA Rating Scale for Migraines
The VA evaluates and rates migraines under Diagnostic Code 8100 within the Schedule for Rating Disabilities for Neurological Conditions. This rating scale ranges from 0% to a maximum of 50%, reflecting the frequency and severity of the attacks.
The central term in this evaluation is “prostrating attack,” defined as an episode causing incapacitation that requires the veteran to lie down and rest, resulting in a substantial inability to engage in normal activities.
The lowest compensable rating is 10%, assigned for characteristic prostrating attacks that occur on average once every two months. A higher rating of 30% is warranted when prostrating attacks increase in frequency to an average of once a month. A non-compensable 0% rating is assigned when attacks are less frequent than the one-in-two-months threshold. Although the 0% rating does not provide monthly financial compensation, it formally recognizes the condition as service-connected and allows the veteran to receive VA healthcare for the migraines.
Criteria for the Highest Possible Rating
The highest schedular VA disability rating a veteran can receive for migraines is 50%. This maximum rating is reserved for the most severe cases and requires the veteran to experience “very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability.”
The term “completely prostrating” signifies a severe degree of incapacitation, resulting in an almost total inability to function during the episode. “Very frequent” is not precisely defined but means substantially more often than the once-per-month criteria for the 30% rating, often implying multiple attacks per month. The attacks must also be “prolonged,” typically lasting a full day or longer.
The defining element of the 50% rating is the requirement for the attacks to be “productive of severe economic inadaptability.” This means the migraines must interfere with the ability to maintain substantially gainful employment. Examples of severe economic inadaptability include frequent and recurring absences from work, the need to use excessive sick leave, or being forced to change jobs to accommodate the severity and unpredictability of the attacks.
Court rulings interpret “productive of” to mean the migraines must be capable of producing severe economic inadaptability, not that the veteran must already be unemployed. The focus is on the severity of the attacks and their inherent capacity to disrupt consistent employment.
Required Documentation and Examinations
A successful claim for a high migraine rating requires meticulous documentation supporting the asserted frequency and severity of the attacks. A current diagnosis and complete medical records detailing the history of treatment, medications, and physician notes are foundational to the claim.
One of the most important pieces of evidence is a detailed migraine diary or log, crucial for substantiating frequency thresholds. This log should record the date, time, duration, symptoms, and functional impact of every attack, noting whether it was a prostrating or completely prostrating event that required stopping all activity.
The Compensation and Pension (C&P) examination is a mandatory step where a VA-appointed examiner assesses the veteran’s condition. Veterans should accurately describe the frequency and severity of their most severe attacks, ensuring they do not minimize the debilitating effects on their daily life and work. The examiner’s report heavily influences the final rating decision.
Lay statements, often called “buddy statements,” from friends, family, or coworkers are highly valuable, particularly for the 50% rating. These statements provide firsthand accounts of the veteran’s migraine episodes, corroborating the frequency, duration, and resulting social and economic limitations. This evidence helps the VA understand the true scope of “severe economic inadaptability.”