When Treatment Becomes a Liability: Why Veterans Must Reject Disability Policies That Punish Care
For veterans and service members living with service-connected injuries and illnesses, treatment is not optional. Medication often stands between stability and crisis, between daily functioning and permanent deterioration. Any policy that treats medical care as a factor that reduces entitlement rather than evidence of ongoing disability strikes at the core of the promise made to those who serve.
That is why the Department of Veterans Affairs interim final rule titled “Evaluative Rating Impact of Medication” sparked such immediate and forceful backlash. The rule was issued on February 17 without input from veterans’ groups and with “immediate effect,” meaning it applied to all claims or appeals filed on or after that date. It required medical providers evaluating disabilities to consider how a veteran functions while medicated, rather than on the underlying severity and permanence of the service-connected condition. If a treatment or medication lowered the level of disability, the rating must be based on that lower level.
This approach misunderstands both medicine and service. Medication does not erase injury. It masks symptoms, manages pain, stabilizes mental health, and in many cases introduces serious side effects that themselves limit employment, cognition, mobility, and quality of life. Measuring disability through a medicated snapshot ignores the full reality of what veterans endure every day.
More troubling still, the rule placed veterans in an impossible position. If disability ratings depend on medicated performance, veterans may feel pressured to refuse treatment, discontinue medication, or endure unmanaged symptoms to prove the seriousness of their condition. That is not a theoretical concern. Veterans routinely face scrutiny during evaluations, and even subtle incentives can shape behavior when benefits, health care access, and family stability are at stake.
Disability compensation exists to acknowledge loss, not compliance. It recognizes that service-connected conditions carry lifelong consequences regardless of how diligently a veteran pursues treatment. A policy that effectively penalizes veterans for following medical advice undermines the very purpose of the system.
The response from the veteran community reflected this reality. Tens of thousands of comments flooded the Federal Register within days. Veterans, advocates, clinicians, and service organizations raised alarms about fairness, legality, and safety. The message was clear. Veterans should never be punished for seeking care.
In response, VA Secretary Collins announced that the VA would continue collecting public comment, but the rule would not be enforced. While this pause is significant, it does not erase the broader concern, especially in light of Secretary Collins’ statement that the public was mischaracterizing the rule as having a negative effect on veterans. Rules can be proposed again. Interpretations can quietly shift. Administrative changes often move faster than public awareness.
For service members approaching separation, veterans navigating disability claims, and federal and civil servants whose careers and retirements depend on accurate medical assessments, vigilance is essential. Disability determinations frequently serve as the gateway to retirement eligibility, employment protections, health care continuity, and financial security. Policies that narrow or redefine those determinations without full transparency put lives in limbo.
Defending veterans’ rights requires more than reacting after harm occurs. It requires sustained scrutiny of regulatory changes, meaningful public engagement, and a firm insistence that medical treatment never be weaponized against those who rely on it.
The covenant between the nation and those who serve does not end when a prescription is filled. It endures precisely because service-connected injuries endure. Any policy that forgets that truth deserves to be challenged early and often.
About
The Law Offices of David P. Sheldon, PLLC, based in Washington, DC, represents service members, veterans, and federal and civil employees in matters involving military justice, disability retirement, VA benefits, federal employment law, constitutional rights, and privacy protections. The firm advocates nationally for those whose service places them at the intersection of health, employment, and federal policy.
Disclaimer
This opinion piece is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Individuals should consult qualified legal counsel regarding their specific circumstances.
References
Official Government Source
Evaluative Rating Impact of Medication (Federal Register, Interim Final Rule)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/02/17/2026-03068/evaluative-rating-impact-of-medication
News Coverage
VA halts implementation of controversial disability rating rule following backlash (Military Times)
https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/2026/02/19/va-halts-implementation-of-controversial-disability-rating-rule-following-backlash/
VA to consider medical management of symptoms in determining disability ratings (Military Times)
https://www.militarytimes.com/veterans/2026/02/18/va-to-consider-medical-management-of-symptoms-in-determining-disability-ratings/
In rare move, Veterans Affairs pulls back on controversial disability rule (Washington Post)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/02/19/veteran-affairs-disability-rule/
Veterans and Advocacy Statements
VFW Demands VA Rescind Disability Rating Rule Change (Veterans of Foreign Wars)
https://www.vfw.org/media-and-events/latest-releases/archives/2026/2/vfw-demands-va-rescind-disability-rating-rule-change
DAV statement on halting of VA rule (Disabled American Veterans)
https://www.dav.org/learn-more/news/2026/dav-statement-on-the-halting-of-va-rule/
NCOA Formal Opposition to VA Medication Based Ratings Rule
https://www.ncoausa.org/news/ncoa-submits-formal-opposition-to-va-ifrr
Additional Background
New VA Rule Ties Disability Ratings to Medicated Symptoms (Military.com)
https://www.military.com/benefits/veterans-health-care/new-va-rule-ties-disability-ratings-medicated-symptoms-drawing-fire-veterans-groups.html