How does the VA use the Combined Ratings Table to combine disability percentages?
Executive summary
The VA does not add individual disability percentages arithmetically; it uses the Combined Ratings Table to apply each lower-rated condition to the remaining "efficiency" after the highest-rated condition, then rounds the final result to the nearest 10% (and in some cases up) for the official combined rating (see VA guidance and the regulatory table) [1] [2]. The Combined Ratings Table and VA explanations show the process: sort disabilities by severity, combine the two largest via the table, then continue combining additional ratings sequentially; bilateral conditions get a bilateral factor applied afterward [3] [4].
1. How the VA’s “VA Math” actually works — the nuts and bolts
The VA treats a veteran as 100% “whole” and reduces that remaining whole by each disability in turn, using the Combined Ratings Table to look up the appropriate combined value rather than summing percentages. Practically, you list your disabilities from largest to smallest, combine the highest two using the table, then take that combined value and combine it with the next rating, and so on, until you reach a single figure which is then rounded to the nearest multiple of ten for the official rating [1] [3]. The federal regulation that defines the table gives concrete examples — e.g., 50% plus 30% produces a combined value of 65% which the VA converts to 70% as the final degree of disability [2].
2. Why veterans see “weird” results — the efficiency idea
The system is designed to reflect diminishing remaining functional capacity: a 50% disability leaves 50% of efficiency; a subsequent 30% is applied to that remaining 50% rather than to the original 100%, producing an intermediate combined figure that the table supplies. That’s why multiple large ratings do not simply add to 100% in linear fashion and why two 50% ratings won’t equal 100% in VA math [3] [5].
3. Rounding and the final published rating — important money implications
After the table gives a combined figure, the VA converts that number to the nearest 10% increment for the official rating used to determine compensation; federal examples show 65% becoming 70%, and other sources note that totals like 95% may be rounded up to 100% in practice [2] [5]. These rounding rules materially affect monthly pay and eligibility for dependent allowances, and the VA’s rate tables show how different final ratings map to payments [6] [3].
4. The bilateral factor and special adjustments — when ratings get a boost
When the veteran has bilateral impairments (both limbs or paired organs), VA guidance and secondary resources explain a bilateral factor is applied: you combine the two limb ratings, then add 10% of that combined value as an additional adjustment before continuing to combine other disabilities [4]. Benefits offices and calculators often flag this step because failing to include the bilateral factor can understate a final combined rating [4] [7].
5. Official tools, calculators, and common third‑party explanations
The VA publishes explanations, calculators, and the Combined Ratings Table so veterans can reproduce the calculation themselves online [1] [8]. Private sites and veterans’ organizations provide calculators and worked examples; they correctly emphasize that percentages are not simply additive and demonstrate typical examples (30% + 20% → combined via table; sequences like 50% and 30% → 65% then rounded to 70%) [7] [9] [10].
6. Disputes, recent commentary and “updates” to watch for
Some outlets and legal blogs describe the process as “VA Math” and note periodic regulatory updates and illustrative rulings; the eCFR text and public guides show the rule structure and examples that the VA follows [2] [5]. There are claims in some local reporting about rule changes favoring veterans in late 2025–2026 — those are reported by news sites but not substantiated in the official VA regulation excerpts provided here; available sources do not mention finalized large-scale methodology changes to the Combined Ratings Table in the official VA pages and the eCFR excerpt [2] [1] [11].
7. Practical advice and limits of this reporting
Use the VA’s own combined ratings table or their online calculator to verify your case; because rounding rules, bilateral factors and order of combination affect outcomes, small differences change monthly pay and dependent eligibility [1] [4] [6]. This summary relies on VA guidance, the eCFR combined ratings section, and explanatory veterans’ resources included in the available set of documents; it does not assert any procedural changes beyond what those sources state and does not evaluate individual claims [2] [1] [3].