The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) does not have a specific disability rating for reactive airway disease. Instead, the VA rates this condition under Diagnostic Code 6602 for bronchial asthma under the Schedule for Rating Disabilities.
Stone Rose Law provides legal assistance to U.S. military veterans with initial or supplemental VA disability benefit claims, including adjustments to existing VA disability ratings and appeals of denied claims.
Here we discuss the disability benefits you may be able to receive if you have service-connected reactive airway disease symptoms, how to apply for benefits, and what you can do if you have applied for benefits but the VA has denied your claim.
If you would like to receive a rating for reactive airway disease, please schedule a free consultation to evaluate your potential benefit claims by calling (480) 498-8998 or using our contact form.
The VA can assign one of four disability rating percentages under Diagnostic Code 6602: 10%, 30%, 60%, and 100%. The rating you receive depends on the medical evidence supporting your claim, the frequency and severity of the breathing difficulty episodes, and the nature and extent of the treatment you need.
FEV‑1 and the FEV‑1/FVC ratio are the primary pulmonary function test (PFT) measurements used by the VA.
With these criteria in mind, here is how the VA decides what disability you might receive.
You may receive this rating if any of the following is true:
This rating can apply to you if any of the following is true:
The VA may assign this rating to you if any of the following is true:
This total disability rating can apply to you if any of the following is true:
Even if your reactive airway disease symptoms, expressed through a bronchial tube condition like asthma, do not qualify for a 100% disability rating, you may still be able to receive the same benefit level if you qualify for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, or TDIU.
TDIU applies when your symptoms prevent you from obtaining or keeping substantially gainful employment. You can receive TDIU benefits on a schedular or an extraschedular basis.
Reactive airway disease symptoms can support a TDIU claim when:
Does the PACT Act Apply to Reactive Airway Disease Claims?
The PACT Act of 2022 established presumptive service connection for certain conditions linked to toxic exposures during military service, including burn pits. Asthma diagnosed after military service is on the PACT Act’s presumptive conditions list. Because the VA rates reactive airway disease under Diagnostic Code 6602 for bronchial asthma, veterans whose RAD symptoms support an asthma diagnosis may qualify for this streamlined claims process.
“Presumptive” means the VA automatically assumes your condition is service-connected—you do not need a nexus letter. To qualify, you must have served on or after August 2, 1990, in Southwest Asia (including Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain), or on or after September 11, 2001, in Afghanistan, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Djibouti, Uzbekistan, or Yemen.
Other covered respiratory conditions include chronic bronchitis, COPD, constrictive bronchiolitis, emphysema, and pulmonary fibrosis. You file using the same VA Form 21–526EZ, with your DD-214 showing eligible service and a current diagnosis.
If you are unsure whether your symptoms qualify for a presumptive claim, a Stone Rose Law VA benefits attorney can evaluate your service history and determine the strongest path for your claim.
Filing a benefits claim with the VA for reactive airway disease uses the same general procedure as for most disability benefit claims. You need to establish all three of the following claim elements:
You file your claim using VA Form 21‑526EZ. You can do this online, through the mail, or in person at your closest Regional VA Office.
Here are some keys to improving the chances that the VA will approve your reactive airway disease-based benefits claim.
The disability rating you may receive will depend on your ability to show the VA that your claim meets the highest possible rating requirements.
A good starting point in documenting your reactive airway disease symptoms is for your treating doctor to use the VA Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) for Respiratory Conditions, VA Form 21-0960L-1. Although the VA previously used DBQs for respiratory conditions, today the VA considers private medical opinions and examinations that use the same questionnaire.
Another important part of your supporting documentation is your nexus letter, which establishes the link between your current reactive airway disease symptoms and your military service. Your treating doctor will usually write this letter for you.
Also, written statements from people who can attest to the effects of your reactive airway disease on your ability to work and social functioning (also known as “buddy letters”) can be persuasive in demonstrating the impact of your symptoms on your life activities. These statements can be very helpful in describing the frequency of your symptoms, how often you need to use medications or an inhaler, and how often your symptoms keep you from work.
If you have an experienced VA disability benefits law firm to assist with preparing your benefits package, your VA benefits lawyer can help you gather and organize the documentary evidence you will need.
After you submit your disability benefits claim to the VA, you may be scheduled for a C&P exam. This exam is the VA’s opportunity to gather additional information about your symptoms and your reactive airway disease treatment. The C&P exam results are often important in the VA’s decision whether to approve your claim, and if it does, what disability rating to assign to you.
During the C&P exam, a VA examiner will review your service records and medical records, ask you questions about your symptoms and how they are affecting your ability to work and engage in daily life activities, and possibly have you undergo a physical exam and lung function tests. The VA examiner will usually use VA Form 21-0960L-1 during the C&P exam.
If the VA schedules you for a C&P exam, you need to attend it if at all possible. The failure to do so could jeopardize your claim. Your VA benefits attorney can help you prepare for the exam questions.
Once the C&P exam is complete, the VA examiner will prepare a report for the VA. You are entitled to a copy of this report, which your attorney can request on your behalf. If the exam report conflicts with your records, your attorney can also challenge the report’s findings.
As we have noted above, reactive airway disease is not itself a VA disability, but its breathing issues often support an asthma diagnosis, which is a condition the VA recognizes as a disability. If you have another disability for which you have a VA disability rating, and your bronchial asthma symptoms can be traced to this disability, you may be able to qualify for bronchial asthma as a secondary service-connected VA disability.
Example of primary disabling conditions that can support a secondary service connection include:
To prove a secondary service connection, you must show the VA that all the following are true:
Because reactive airway disease itself is not a VA disability, making a disability benefits claim based on reactive airway disease symptoms can be complex. The VA does not always approve initial benefit claims for these kinds of chronic lung conditions.
Furthermore, many times claims that do receive approval for a disability rating do not receive the highest possible rating because the underlying PFT results are not current, or the claim does not clearly establish how the symptoms are being treated, including the use of systemic corticosteroid treatments.
To maximize your prospects of having the VA approve your claim and to receive the maximum disability rating, having an experienced VA benefits law firm like Stone Rose Law can make an important difference for you.
Our VA benefits lawyers have decades of experience supporting veterans with initial claims, supplemental claims, disability rating adjustments, and appeals of denied claims, including claims for reactive airway disease symptoms.
To learn more about how we can assist you with your VA disability benefits claim, call us at (480) 498-8998. You can also use our online contact form to schedule a free consultation with an experienced VA disability claims attorney.
