Plantar fasciitis and foot VA rating
The VA rates plantar fasciitis and foot under DC 5271 / 5276 / 5284, and most ratings land in the 10–50% range. What decides yours is the criteria below and what your record actually documents.
What the criteria ask for at each level
DC 5271 / 5276 / 5269 — 38 CFR §4.71a
| Rating | What the record has to show |
|---|---|
| 10–20% (ankle, DC 5271) | Moderate limitation 10%; marked limitation (<5° dorsiflexion or <10° plantar flexion) 20%. |
| 10–50% (flat feet, DC 5276) | Up to 50% for pronounced bilateral pes planus: marked pronation, extreme tenderness, not improved by orthopedic shoes. |
| 10–30% (plantar fasciitis, DC 5269) | 10% standard; 20% unilateral with no relief from treatment; 30% bilateral with no relief from treatment. |
The schedule's own words
Ratings turn on specific terms, and a record that describes the same reality in different language often reads as a lower rating. These are the words this code measures:
- marked pronation
- extreme tenderness
- not improved by orthopedic shoes or appliances
- no relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment
Evidence that moves this rating
- Podiatry records documenting failed treatments
- Imaging and gait observations
What your statement has to cover
Doctors chart symptoms; they rarely chart consequences. That part is yours, and it is usually what separates a documented rating from a reported one.
- State which treatments you've tried (inserts, orthopedic shoes, injections, surgery) and that they did NOT relieve symptoms — "no relief despite treatment" drives the higher levels.
- Both feet affected = say so explicitly (bilateral ratings + bilateral factor).
Our Statement Builderwalks through the questions that produce that kind of statement, in the schedule's own terms.
What plantar fasciitis and foot can lead to7 documented pathways
A secondary claim runs through a condition the VA already accepts, so the argument about your service is already won. What is left is the medical link — and a nexus opinion has to name the mechanism, not just the pair.
| Can lead to | The mechanism a nexus has to state |
|---|---|
| Erectile dysfunction / FSAD | Long-term NSAID and pain-medication use causes erectile dysfunction as a side effect. |
| Degenerative arthritis | Altered gait places abnormal load on joint mechanics, causing arthritis. |
| GERD (acid reflux) | Long-term NSAID / pain-medication use for this condition damages the stomach lining and relaxes the esophageal sphincter — a well-established medication-side-effect pathway. |
| Knee condition | Gait imbalance travels up the kinetic chain, stressing the knees. |
| Hip condition (bursitis, arthritis, limited motion) | Gait imbalances force abnormal movements up the kinetic chain, causing hip bursitis or osteoarthritis. |
| Lower back condition (lumbar spine) | "Ankle-spine syndrome" — compensatory posture strains the lumbar spine. |
| Depression | Chronic pain, lost mobility, and isolation degrade mental health. |
A pathway existing in the literature is not the same as your claim being granted — your records and the VA decide that. How secondary claims work covers the argument.
Before you spend money on this claim
VA ratings do not add. Each new rating applies only to the part of you the VA still counts as unimpaired, then rounds to the nearest ten — so from 70%, a new 10% condition leaves you at exactly 70% and changes your payment by nothing.
That does not make the claim worthless; it can still matter for TDIU, for SMC, or later when something else is added. But it is worth knowing before you pay for a nexus letter rather than after. Check what one more condition does at your rating — it takes a minute.