Woods and Woods, LLC, Veterans Disability Lawyer, Veterans Disability Benefits Attorneys Helping Veterans Nationwide, Published on April 14, 2020 by Neil Woods Last Updated on August 31, 2022. 8. However, certain activities that place strain on the feet can trigger or cause the symptoms. The bilateral factor will be applied to such bilateral disabilities before other combinations are carried out and the rating for such disabilities including the bilateral factor in this section will be treated as 1 disability for the purpose of arranging in order of severity and for all further combinations. Yes. These cookies may be set through our website by our advertising partners. If tension and stress on this bowstring become too great, small tears can occur in the fascia. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter to stay updated on VA news, policy changes, and more. To qualify for secondary service connection, veterans generally must provide medical evidence linking the secondary condition to the service-connected condition. There are generally two ways that a veteran can qualify for TDIU: Forschedular TDIU, veterans must meet the criteria listed under38 CFR 4.16a. Research has shownthat veterans are at a much higher risk of developing these conditions. Foot and ankle injuries can also cause flat feet. Are you having trouble getting VAdisability for flat feet and plantar fasciitis? How to Get a VA Disability Rating for Flat Feet and Plantar Fasciitis, How Foot Pain Impacts Your OverallCompensation. Its FREE to get started, so click Go Elite Now below to complete our 3-step intake process. There are several risk factors for flat feet including: Obesity, injuries to your foot or ankles, rheumatoid arthritis, aging, and diabetes. You will need to get an outside opinion from a non-VA doctor and argue against the original examiners conclusions. Lastly, if your foot pain VA disability is so bad that you have effectively lost the use of them, you mayqualify for loss of use with the VA. Pes planus and plantar fasciitis are two very common foot conditions that affect veterans. DATES: Effective February 7, 2021. This can strain the tissues on the bottom of the feet and worsen plantar fasciitis. They may also be used to keep track of what [products, video, links, etc.] Plantar fasciitis is a common condition of the foot in which the plantar fascia, a thick band of tissue running across the bottom of the foot connecting the heel bone to the toes, becomes inflamed. This website adheres to the W3Cs AA Accessibility guidelines. 20. However, activities and conditions that place strain on the feet can often aggravate the condition, resulting in pain, tissue damage, and difficulty with movement. For instance, which pages you go to most. Total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU). Specifically, veterans will fill out and submitVA Form 21-526 an original claim for service connection. Congenital plantar fasciitis is NOT compensable or pensionable unless you claim aggravation of a pre-service condition.. 4. you viewed to avoid repetition. If VA denied your claim for pes planus or plantar fasciitis, Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick may be able to help you appeal the decision. Other conditions linked to flat feet in a bi-directional relationship include leg length differences, pregnancy, Marfans syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, and scoliosis, obesity, injuries to your foot or ankles, and diabetes. If your military service aggravated your flat feet (made it worse), leading to plantar fasciitis (severe heel pain), you can still be rated and compensated under the law. 19. Veterans can learn more about how to qualify for TDIU benefits here. If your case of plantar fasciitis is deemed severe, you may be eligible to receive a VA disability rating of 20-30%. How to claim secondary service connection for a VA disability, you should call us for a free review of your case, Without Woods and Woods I would still be stuck at 30%, Your weight-bearing line is over your big toe, You experience pain upon manipulation orwhen using the foot, You have inbound bowing of the Achilles tendon, Pain when the foot is used or manipulated, Swelling occurring after use of the foot or feet, Presence of characteristic callosities (calluses), Increased pain when you move or use the foot/feet, Presence of callosities (calluses) particular to plantar fasciitis, There is marked inward displacement and pronation(inward rolling of the foot), Orthopedic shoes and inserts do not provide relief or reduce the symptoms, Your Achilles tendon spasms when it is touched, A current diagnosis of your foot condition, Record of an in-service event or aggravation, A medical nexus, or link, between the in-service event and the current disability. The most severecategory of pes planus is pronounced, and depending on whether the affliction is bilateral or unilateral a veteran can receive aVA disability rating for foot pain of 30-50%. Once the form is filled out, veterans can submit the form to VA online, in person, or by mail. Plantar fasciitis can make walking and other physical activities significantly more difficult. Los Angeles, CA: 10880 Wilshire Blvd., Ste 1101, Los Angeles, CA 90025 According to the National Institute of Health, this is because pes planus can cause an increased strain at the origin of the plantar fascia. These cookies may be set through our website by our advertising partners. You Deserve It: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Veteran Benefits Youve Earned, 9 Secrets Strategies for Winning Your VA Disability Claim, long-distance running (such as military PT), poor arch and heel support (e.g., military combat boots), occupations that require a lot of standing (active duty military service, perhaps combat deployments), Heel pain (especially after standing, walking, or running), 30%: No relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment, bilateral, 20%: No relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment, unilateral. Due to the fact that plantar fasciitisand flat feet arecommonlylinkedand plantar fasciitis does not have its own rating codeit is often rated under thediagnostic code for acquired flatfoot. San Jose, CA: 2880 Zanker Road, Ste. While we still have our home base in Florida, If youre stuck, frustrated, underrated, and currently rated between 0%-90%, VA Claims Insider Elite is for you! Flat feet are considered a type of foot deformity (that can be exacerbated or triggered by strain). Youll likely be referred from your Primary Care Doctor to a Podiatrist, who is a medical professional that specializes in the treatment of disorders of the foot, ankle, and related structures of the leg. 30 percent rating when the veteran has received no relief from surgical or non-surgical treatment methods, such as wearing orthopedic shoes, inserts, or arch supports. If you are a US veteran suffering from either flat feet or plantar fasciitis that are service-connected, the VA should be paying you monthly for that disability. Have you been affected by Camp Lejeune water contamination? Does the Veteran have marked inward displacement and severe spasm of the Achilles tendon (rigid hindfoot) on manipulation of one or both feet? However, if you go back there might be a paper trail that ties your affliction to service-related activities. To get your VA claim for flat feet approved, you need to prove 3 essential elements: How Do I Get a Flat Feet VA Disability Rating? Plantar fasciitis is the name for injury caused to the plantar fascia, which is the band of tissue that covers the bottom ofones foot. These cookies are also used to let affiliates know if you came to one of our websites from an affiliate and if your visit resulted in the use or purchase of a product or service from us, including details of the product or service purchased. This information is not a substitute for legal advice. A current diagnosis of plantar fasciitis; and, Medical evidence demonstrating the link between pes planus and plantar, Veterans with pronounced unilateral flat foot are rated at, Veterans with severe bilateral flat feet are rated at, Veterans with severe unilateral flat foot are rated at. The reason it is a risk is that the arch of ones foot directly acts to protect the tissue of the plantar fascia. Once such arthritis has been documented, even if in the past, no further imaging studies are required by VA, even if arthritis has worsened. You will also need to ensure that you get a fair plantar fasciitis VA rating during the evaluation process. If pronounced pes planus is present in both feet (and supports do not help), veterans can receive the VA disability rating of 50%. For example, here is a 2008 BVA case decision where a Veteran received entitlement to service connection for a bilateral foot disorder as secondary to a service-connected left knee disability. This storage is often necessary for basic functionality of the web site or the storage may be used for the purposes of marketing, analytics, and personalization of the web site such as storing your preferences. These cookies do not store any personal information. Since 2016, VA Claims Insider has helped thousands of Veterans just like you get the VA rating and compensation they deserve in less time. TDIU stands for total disability individual unemployability. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) looks for the following three criteria when receiving a disability claim for plantar fasciitis: Military service requires soldiers to spend hours on their feet each day, often on rough terrain which may lead to all sorts of feet conditions like plantar fasciitis, pes planus, hallux valgus, and more. Medical records for aggravated or secondary conditions must prove that the new injury is not temporary. What many veterans dont know is that they may be able to receive service-connected disability compensation for their plantar fasciitis if they can demonstrate a connection. His frustration with the8-step VA disability claims processled him to createVA Claims Insider,which provides U.S. military veterans with tips, strategies, and lessons learned for successfully submitting or re-submitting a winning VA disability compensation claim. If you have flat feet but are able to find relief through the use of inserts, or orthotic arch supports, the VA will consider yours a mild and non-compensatablecondition. Disclaimer: This information is not legal advice. Pes Planus, often referred to as flat feet, is a common foot deformity in which the arch of the foot is flattened to the point where it touches, or nearly touches, the ground. An important requirement for VA disability rating purposes is whether your foot condition is congenital or acquired. A medical nexus, or link, connecting pes planus to the in-service event. To qualify for TDIU, which offers monthly compensation equal to a 100 percent rating, veterans must prove they are unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment due to their service-connected condition(s). The exact amount of compensation that you will receive for your foot pain depends on a number of factors. Plantar Fasciitis and Flat Foot VA Ratings. The only time you would then get a bilateral factor is if you have BOTH bilateral pes planus and bilateral plantar fasciitis. His eBook, the9 Secrets Strategies for Winning Your VA Disability Claimhas been downloaded more than 300,000 times in the past three years and is the #1 rated free VA disability claims guide for veterans. Where pes planus is bilateral and pronounced, with marked pronation, extreme tenderness of plantar surfaces of the feet, marked inward displacement, and severe spasm of the tendo achillis on manipulation, not improved by orthopedic shoes or appliances, a 50 percent rating is to be assigned. Veterans can be rated between0 percentand50 percenton a scale of mild (least severe) to pronounced (most severe). Cookies help us deliver the best experience on our website. Without these cookies, services you have asked for cannot be provided. If the VA doctor makes an incorrect analysis, you are free to contest this, in which case a copy of the C&P examination will be useful. To enhance your chances of success, you shouldalso talk to aVA disability lawyer. Okay, veterans lets take a minute to explore the law regarding the symptoms and impairment required to warrant a VA disability rating for plantar fasciitis. Camp Lejeune Lawsuit. The Veteran's service-connected bilateral pes planus with plantar fasciitis is rated at a 30 percent disability rating prior to December 28, 2012, and at a 50 percent disability rating thereafter. There is also a bilateral factormeaning veterans can get a higher VA rating for plantar fasciitis if they have the disability in both feet. Does the Veteran have characteristic calluses? CCK Recognized for Donations to American Veterans Disabled For Life Memorial, CCK Successfully Argues for a Precedential Decision About Protected Work Environment, A Day in the Life of a Paralegal (Claims Advocate) at CCK. Veterans who qualify for TDIU must demonstrate they are unable to maintain gainful employment due to a 100 percent combined disability rating. However, in some cases, it can become a chronic condition. Some Veterans may experience plantar fasciitis symptoms in both feet simultaneously or just one foot at a time. Is there evidence of pain on any of the following? This information is not a substitute for legal advice. Available to vets all over the US, we specialize in getting veterans the compensation they deserve. These requirements include: If you are service connected for pes planus and later develop plantar fasciitis, you can file a claim for service connection on a secondary basis. The plantar fascia acts as a shock absorber and supports the arch of the foot. Now that we are clear on the differences and overlap of flat feet and plantar fasciitis, lets get into the details on theVA disability rating for foot pain. Does procured evidence (statements from the Veteran) suggest pain, fatigability, weakness, lack of endurance, or incoordination which significantly limits functional ability during flare-ups and/or after repeated use over time? His eBook, the9 Secrets Strategies for Winning Your VA Disability Claimhas been downloaded more than 300,000 times in the past three years and is the #1 rated free VA disability claims guide for veterans. Is there indication of swelling on use? The most trusted name in education-based resources for Veterans. If you have yet to claim VAdisability for flat feet and plantar fasciitis, you should do so without delay. The Department of Veterans Affairs changed its schedule of ratings for plantar fasciitis effective February 7, 2021. How to File a Claim on VA.gov (step-by-step)! If you think you have a foot disorder such as pes planus (flat feet), but dont have a medical diagnosis,pick-up the phone and call the VA facility nearest youto make an appointment right away. Copyright 2023 Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD. All Rights Reserved. 38 C.F.R. Doctors and patients sometimes refer to plantar fasciitis as runners heel, painful sole syndrome, or neuritis. The Department of Veterans Affairs sometimes needs more information to determine whether a veteran has a legitimate impairment and to assign the appropriate disability rating. The 50 percent VA rating is appropriate for severe bilateral flat feet pronounced with marked pronation, extreme tenderness of plantar surfaces of the feet, marked inward displacement and severe spasm of the tendo achillis on manipulation, not improved by orthopedic shoes or appliances. During a C & P exam for plantar fasciitis, a doctor may take X-rays and likely physically examine each foot. you viewed to avoid repetition. Have you been affected by Camp Lejeune water contamination? Click the button below to start for FREE. The highest possible schedular VA disability rating for bilateral plantar fasciitis is now 30% (not 50%), which includes symptoms such as no relief from both non-surgical (orthopedic shoes or appliances) and surgical treatment. Standing for extended periods and activities such as running can often trigger symptoms of pes planus. The 0 percent VA disability rating for flat feet is appropriate for mild symptoms relieved by built-up shoe or arch support . If only one foot displays symptoms, veterans are eligible for the next highestVA disability rating for foot pain of 30%. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_3" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_4" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_5" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Were you stationed at Camp Lejeune before 1987?
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