Visual Acuity 20/70 Bilateral — VA Disability Rating (DC 6066)

Diagnostic Code 6066 · 38 CFR §4.79

What Is It?

Corrected visual acuity of 20/70 in both eyes is evaluated at 30 percent, and the code that produces it is DC 6066. This page previously carried DC 6065, which does not fit: in the current 38 CFR 4.79, DC 6065 is "Vision in one eye 5/200 (1.5/60)," and every row under it presupposes that one eye has fallen to 5/200. A veteran measuring 20/70 in both eyes is nowhere near that entry condition. The bilateral 20/70 pairing sits inside DC 6066, "Visual acuity in one eye 10/200 (3/60) or better," in the sub-block headed "Vision in one eye 20/70 (6/21)," where the row for 20/70 in the other eye is 30 percent. Worth seeing how steeply that sub-block falls away: 20/70 with 20/70 is 30 percent, 20/70 with 20/50 is 20, and 20/70 with 20/40 is 10. A single line on the eye chart in the better eye is worth ten points, which is why the measurement of the better eye deserves as much attention as the worse one.

Rating Criteria

Evidence Needed

A current ophthalmology or optometry examination measuring best-corrected distance visual acuity in each eye separately. 38 CFR 4.76(b)(1) directs that central visual acuity be evaluated on corrected distance vision with central fixation, even where a central scotoma is present — so the number that counts is the corrected one, and an uncorrected reading will not be used unless the >3-diopter provision in that paragraph applies. Include the diagnosis of the underlying eye disease and its nexus evidence, because the acuity code is only the measuring instrument: service connection is established for the condition causing the loss. If a visual field defect coexists, get Goldmann kinetic or automated perimetry as 38 CFR 4.77(a) requires, since field loss is rated separately under DC 6080 and may produce more.

C&P Exam Tips

Ask that each eye be measured and recorded separately, with best correction, and that the report state the Snellen values rather than a summary description. If your correction cannot be tolerated or does not improve the acuity because of the underlying disease, have the examiner explain why in the report. Raise any field loss, diplopia or photophobia separately — DC 6080 covers field defects, DC 6090 covers diplopia, and each has its own criteria. Report functional difficulty for the record, but understand that the acuity table reads numbers: this row is fixed by the measurement, not by the impact.

How to File

File for the underlying eye condition and let the acuity table do the arithmetic — VA selects the applicable visual-acuity code from the examination results, so you do not need to name DC 6066 yourself. What is worth doing is checking the decision: if it cites a code from the pre-2008 acuity block, or cites DC 6063 or 6065 for a bilateral acuity pairing with no anatomical loss and no 5/200 eye, the code is wrong even where the percentage happens to be right. Where a field defect also exists, claim it: 38 CFR 4.79 DC 6080 provides alternatives that can be evaluated as an acuity equivalent, and the higher result applies.

Common Mistakes

Assuming a bilateral acuity pairing belongs under DC 6063 or DC 6065. Both of those codes have an entry condition — DC 6063 requires anatomical loss of one eye and DC 6065 requires vision of 5/200 in one eye — and a veteran with 20/70 in both eyes meets neither, so the pairing sits in DC 6066. Submitting uncorrected acuity, which 38 CFR 4.76(b)(1) does not use for this purpose. Overlooking visual field loss, which is rated under DC 6080 and can exceed the acuity result. And treating a modest acuity percentage as the end of the claim when the underlying disease may itself be evaluable under the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye on incapacitating episodes — 60 percent at seven or more treatment visits in 12 months, 40 at five or six, 20 at three or four, 10 at one or two — whichever is higher.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the VA rating for 20/70 vision in both eyes?

Thirty percent, under DC 6066. In the sub-block for vision of 20/70 in one eye, the row for 20/70 in the other eye is 30 percent. If the better eye measures 20/50 the figure is 20 percent, and at 20/40 it is 10 percent.

Why is this DC 6066 and not DC 6065?

Because DC 6065 is "Vision in one eye 5/200 (1.5/60)" and all of its rows require that one eye has fallen to 5/200. With both eyes at 20/70 the applicable code is DC 6066, "Visual acuity in one eye 10/200 (3/60) or better."

How much does the better eye matter?

A great deal. Within the 20/70 sub-block the evaluation drops from 30 to 20 to 10 percent as the other eye improves from 20/70 to 20/50 to 20/40. The examination should measure and record each eye separately and with best correction.

Is the rating based on corrected vision?

Yes. 38 CFR 4.76(b)(1) directs evaluation on corrected distance vision with central fixation, even where a central scotoma is present, with a narrow exception permitting the poorer eye to be evaluated uncorrected where the lens difference exceeds three diopters and the combined result is better.

Can a visual field defect raise this?

It can. DC 6080 rates field defects in their own right and also provides alternatives evaluating each affected eye at a stated acuity equivalent — loss of the temporal half at 20/70, loss of the nasal half at 20/50, concentric contraction to 31 to 45 degrees at 20/70, and so on. 38 CFR 4.77(a) requires Goldmann kinetic or qualifying automated perimetry to establish it.

Does the underlying eye disease get rated too?

It is an alternative rather than an addition. The General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye evaluates on either visual impairment or incapacitating episodes — 60 percent at seven or more treatment visits in the past 12 months, 40 at five or six, 20 at three or four, 10 at one or two — whichever results in the higher evaluation.