--- title: "Psych News Alert: Federal Rule Could Make It Easier for Thousands of Vets to Receive Benefits for TBI" description: The Department of Veterans Affairs this week issued a new proposed rule that will make it easier for veterans to receive health care and com... image: https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_97402025-Jun-24-2025-03-28-38-4636-PM.jpg --- 12/12/12 12:00 AM # Federal Rule Could Make It Easier for Thousands of Vets to Receive Benefits for TBI ![Picture of Psychiatric News Alert](https://alert.psychnews.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Psych%20News%20Email%20Banners/PN-Blue-Box_rgb.png?width=50&name=PN-Blue-Box_rgb.png) [ Psychiatric News Alert ](https://alert.psychnews.org/author/psychiatric-news-alert) Share: [facebook-f icon ](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html) [linkedin-in icon ](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html) [Twitter icon ](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html) [pinterest-p icon ](http://pinterest.com/pin/create/link/?url=https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html) [envelope icon ](mailto:?body=https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html) | [![](https://alert.psychnews.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_97402025-Jun-24-2025-03-28-37-5854-PM.jpg?width=200&height=133&name=shutterstock_97402025-Jun-24-2025-03-28-37-5854-PM.jpg)](https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_97402025-Jun-24-2025-03-28-37-5854-PM.jpg) | | | --- | --- | The Department of Veterans Affairs this week issued a new proposed rule that will make it easier for veterans to receive health care and compensation for certain illnesses that have been linked to traumatic brain injury (TBI) . The proposed rule lists Parkinsonism, unprovoked seizures , certain dementias, depression, and hormone-deficiency diseases related to the hypothalamus, pituitary, or adrenal glands as eligible for the expanded benefits. The proposed rule will be open to public comment for 60 days before being finalized.  A December 7 *New York Times* article on the proposed rule notes that it could open the door to tens of thousands of veterans filing claims with the VA. Since 2000, more than 250,000 service members have received diagnoses of TBI. Though TBI is commonly thought to result from blast exposure, the vast majority of those injuries were diagnosed in nondeployed troops who were involved in vehicle crashes, training accidents, or sports injuries, according to the *Times*. The Department of Veterans Affairs says that a much smaller number of veterans—about 51,000—are receiving benefits for service-connected TBIs. However the department acknowledges that thousands more troops with TBI may be eligible for the expanded benefits. The text of the proposed rule in the *Federal Register* is posted [here](https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2012/12/10/2012-29709/secondary-service-connection-for-diagnosable-illnesses-associated-with-traumatic-brain-injury) . For more information on traumatic brain injury and the role of psychiatry in treating it, see *Psychiatric New* *s* [here](http://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/newsarticle.aspx?articleid=1484652). Also see the *[Textbook of Traumatic Brain Injury, Second Edition](http://www.appi.org/SearchCenter/Pages/SearchDetail.aspx?ItemId=62357)*, from American Psychiatric Publishing. 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[ Read more ](https://alert.psychnews.org/2011/07/vietnam-vets-may-have-survived-war-but.html) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Psychiatric News Alert", "url" : "https://alert.psychnews.org/author/psychiatric-news-alert" }, "dateModified" : "2025-06-24T15:32:42.960Z", "datePublished" : "2012-12-12T05:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "Psych News Alert: Federal Rule Could Make It Easier for Thousands of Vets to Receive Benefits for TBI", "image" : [ "https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_97402025-Jun-24-2025-03-28-38-4636-PM.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://alert.psychnews.org/2012/12/federal-rule-could-make-it-easier-for.html", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/PN-Blue-Box.jpg" } } } ```