VA Benefits: Full List of Senators Pushing Back on Major Disability Change
A group of nearly 50 Senate Democrats and independents is pushing back against a proposed change to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability benefits that they say could significantly reduce compensation for veterans suffering from sleep apnea and tinnitus.
“VA must make clear it will not punish veterans seeking effective sleep apnea treatments or deny veterans with service-connected tinnitus the benefits and health care they have earned,” a letter from the lawmakers to VA Secretary Doug Collins read this week, in part.
The opposition comes as part of a broader fight over a sweeping legislative package that includes the proposed changes that could affect more than 1 million veterans.
Why It Matters
The proposal has become one of the most consequential debates over veterans' benefits in years because it directly affects how the VA compensates some of the most common service-connected conditions. It also could reshape how disability payments are calculated going forward.
By moving away from fixed disability ratings toward a system that ties compensation more closely to how well a condition is managed with treatment, payments for veterans whose conditions are controlled by medical care could drop sharply.
What To Know
The lawmakers in their letter to Collins this week referenced a February attempt by the VA to implement a new rule that stipulates that disability levels will be based on how well veterans function while on medication, instead of the underlying disability or injury itself. The rule caused an uproar in the veteran community, leading to its rescission.
"We laud your decision earlier this year to rescind an interim final rule after it faced significant backlash from the veterans' community,” the letter from the lawmakers to Collins read.
“At the time you stated, ‘Veterans spoke, and [VA] listened.’ We ask that you again heed concerns from the medical and veterans' communities about the benefits they receive to address tinnitus and sleep apnea.”
What Is The Take Care of America’s Veterans Act?
At the center of the dispute is a draft VA rule tied to the "Take Care of America's Veterans Act," a large legislative package that includes dozens of veterans-related provisions.
What Rule Would Change for Sleep Apnea and Tinnitus?
The proposed changes would overhaul how two of the most common service-connected disabilities are evaluated, sleep apnea and tinnitus.
Proposed Sleep Apnea Disability Changes
For sleep apnea, the current system allows veterans who require a CPAP machine to receive a fixed disability rating (often at 50 percent).
Under the proposed change, ratings would instead depend on how well treatment manages symptoms, meaning veterans whose condition is controlled could receive lower ratings and smaller payments.
"It would treat effective treatment as proof that a disability no longer deserves compensation, potentially eliminating standalone tinnitus benefits and sharply reducing sleep-apnea ratings for veterans who use a CPAP machine," Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.
"The concern is that while the underlying Richard Star Act has overwhelming bipartisan support, major veterans organizations argue Congress should not pay for one group's benefits by reducing another group's compensation."
Proposed Tinnitus Disability Changes
Similarly, for tinnitus, which currently has a 10 percent disability rating from the VA, the changes would mean it would instead be treated as a symptom of another condition, and compensation for some veterans could be ultimately eliminated.
These changes are partly being considered as a way to offset the cost of expanding other veterans' benefits, including the long-debated Major Richard Star Act, which would allow some combat veterans to receive both retirement pay and disability compensation.
"Lawmakers have a responsibility to the constituents who elected them, and that’s driving much of the opposition," Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek. "While concerns exist on both sides of the aisle, the loudest pushback has largely come from Democrats and independents, who argue the changes could weaken veterans’ benefits and access to care."
Who Would Be Impacted and How Many
Lawmakers opposing the rule say the impact could be widespread, with more than 1 million veterans potentially seeing reduced benefits under the proposal, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Tinnitus alone affects a large share of veterans, with about 3.6 million currently receiving benefits, the senators said in their letter.
However, the reach could be even broader depending on how rules are applied for future claims and reassessments.
"The concern is that the bill pays for those new benefits by reallocating existing VA funding, with some estimates putting the reductions at roughly $57 billion over 10 years," Thompson said. "Add in staffing cuts and increased automation, and many worry it could lead to more claim denials, longer wait times, and less access to care as the system moves further toward privatization."
Why Lawmakers Are Opposing It
Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, led 46 other Democratic senators in signing the letter opposing the changes.
"We are equally opposed to the Take Care of America's Veterans Act because it codifies the same harmful reductions in benefits for veterans with tinnitus and sleep apnea benefits. By writing these cuts into statute, the legislation would permanently implement the very policies that veterans, medical experts, and veterans service organizations have overwhelmingly opposed," the senators wrote.
"Whether implemented through regulation or enacted by Congress, these cuts would strip disabled veterans of earned compensation and health care benefits – they should be rejected outright."
They also criticized the broader funding approach, arguing that expanding benefits for one group of veterans should not come at the expense of another.
Full List of Senators Signing the Letter
The letter was signed by the following senators:
- Richard Blumenthal
- John Fetterman
- Charles E. Schumer
- Patty Murray
- Bernard Sanders
- Mazie K. Hirono
- Jack Reed
- Andy Kim
- Michael F. Bennet
- Sheldon Whitehouse
- Ron Wyden
- Ruben Gallego
- Adam B. Schiff
- Jacky Rosen
- Gary C. Peters
- Angus S. King, Jr.
- Ben Ray Luján
- Tammy Duckworth
- Martin Heinrich
- Catherine Cortez Masto
- Alex Padilla
- Elizabeth Warren
- Tammy Baldwin
- Edward J. Markey
- Elissa Slotkin
- Chris Van Hollen
- Tina Smith
- Peter Welch
- Lisa Blunt Rochester
- Brian Schatz
- Kirsten Gillibrand
- Angela D. Alsobrooks
- Jeffrey A. Merkley
- Cory A. Booker
- Tim Kaine
- Margaret Wood Hassan
- Amy Klobuchar
- Christopher A. Coons
- Richard J. Durbin
- Mark Kelly
- Jeanne Shaheen
- Maria Cantwell
- Mark R. Warner
- Christopher S. Murphy
- Jon Ossoff
- John Hickenlooper
Veterans Groups Call Proposal “Wrong”
Veterans organizations have strongly criticized the proposal, arguing it shifts costs onto service members:
The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) group called the proposal "wrong" and warned it could cut benefits for up to 1.5 million veterans.
"While we appreciate all good faith efforts to develop and enact a package of positive veterans legislation, we reject the premise that the only way to fulfill the promises made to the men and women who served in the past is by cutting benefits for veterans in the future," National Commander Coleman Nee wrote for the organization.
Supports Say It’s a Necessary Trade-off
Supporters of the broader legislative package argue the reforms are part of a necessary trade-off to expand benefits elsewhere.
The package would specifically fund the Major Richard Star Act, allowing many injured veterans to receive full benefits.
"The Take Care of America's Veterans Act provides comprehensive reforms to improve health care and benefits for millions of veterans, their families and survivors,” Senator Jerry Moran, who introduced the bill, said in a statement.
"The Major Richard Star Act was first introduced in 2020 and despite now having 79 cosponsors, Congress has failed to pass this legislation in both Democrat and Republican majorities. After weeks of conversations with my colleagues, veteran service organizations, and stakeholders, we now have a path forward to pass this legislation along with numerous other reforms for veterans and their families.
They also argue that the updated disability compensation would more accurately go by functional impairment and treatment outcomes rather than diagnosis alone.
What Happens Next
With mounting opposition from lawmakers and veterans groups, the future of the policy remains uncertain.
"We have seen this play out before: one party will not budge on a benefit cut, the other party cannot vote for the total package if the cut is not removed, nothing happens, and each party blames the other," Drew Powers, the founder of Illinois-based Powers Financial Group, told Newsweek. "Meanwhile, our veterans pay the price."
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Jason Lemon and Gray R. Thomas
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This story was originally published June 26, 2026 at 11:38 AM.