Infertility and VA disability benefits: Can veterans get service-connection?

MRPY Professional Services
3 hours ago
3 min read

Infertility in women is defined as the inability to become pregnant after one year of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse. In women above age 35, infertility occurs after 6 months of inability to become pregnant. This can be a result of many different factors – and men can also be infertile, so it's important for both partners to undergo fertility testing to understand what's going on.

Many veterans experience fertility challenges. Here's everything to know about infertility and how the VA handles it:

Unfortunately, infertility is not a standalone service-connectable condition

The VA does not consider infertility a service-connected condition, meaning that veterans cannot get VA disability benefits for it. As a standalone condition, it doesn't count for compensation purposes.

However, the VA does recognize the link between other underlying injuries or diseases that might be the cause of infertility. This means that the VA defines infertility as "the inability to successfully procreate (with or without medical intervention), as a result of a Veteran’s SC injury or disease."

The VA might cover costs if infertility was caused by a service-connected condition

So, a veteran's claim for infertility should instead be a claim for a specific underlying injury or disease that caused it. This is what is possible to earn service-connection and compensation for. In addition, the VA might also cover infertility costs as a downstream effect of an underlying disease that may have caused it.

If the veteran is unable to attribute their fertility to a specific service-connectable diagnosis, the VA will follow the directives in the M21-1, Part V, Subpart ii, 3.A.1.h.

This guidance requires VA reviewers to look at all possible paths to service connection – not just the obvious ones. Instead of denying a claim because the veteran doesn’t know the medical cause, the VA must consider whether the infertility could be linked to any in-service event, exposure, illness, injury, or even treatments received during military service.

They’re also required to gather medical opinions when needed and evaluate the full body of evidence before making a decision. In short, the veteran gets a fair and comprehensive review, even when the exact cause isn’t immediately clear.

What are some service-connected conditions that women veterans face?

Although fertility isn't a standalone service-connectable condition, there are other common women-specific conditions that are eligible for VA disability benefits. Here are a few of them:

Although it can be difficult to prove women-specific conditions to the VA, by getting the right evidence early on and speaking up for your case, it's still possible. Read more about why women-specific conditions can be tough to prove to the VA here.

Stay tuned for upcoming blogs about male conditions relating to infertility.

We help veterans document their conditions to prove them to the VA

Your medical story, our support and expertise. At MRPY Professional Services, we help veterans prove their conditions to the VA through Nexus Letters, DBQs, and other additional services to boost your claim.

Each veteran starts for a Medical Evidence Assessment (every veteran starts here).

You can also view other services here. Rather than struggling alone, work with one of our professional medical experts to get exactly what you need without all of the confusion.