Mefloquine Toxicity VA Disability Explained

You took mefloquine during your service because the military mandated it, hoping to prevent you from contracting malaria. But then you started experiencing symptoms associated with the drug. It’s time to learn about VA benefits for mefloquine toxicity.

While the VA doesn’t have a specific mefloquine VA disability rating, veterans may still be eligible for compensation. The fact many deployed veterans were required to take the drug  means they may be able to connect related health issues to their service for VA disability benefits.

What is mefloquine toxicity?

Mefloquine is an antimalarial drug. It has often been used by global travelers, Peace Corps members, and government employees going abroad. It was also used by service members deploying to countries where malaria is considered endemic. 

Individuals who take the medication typically start having symptoms within the first month of use. Common side effects include:

• Nauseau
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness
• Difficulty sleeping
• Nightmares

These symptoms are considered typical and expected to pass. But some symptoms are more extreme and long-lasting. “Mefloquine toxicity” refers to the drug’s potential to cause serious, long-term health issues, such as neurological and psychiatric damage.

Neurological effects of mefloquine include:

• Peripheral neuropathy
• Loss of balance
• Vertigo
• Tinnitus

Psychiatric effects of mefloquine can include:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Paranoia

In especially severe cases, the drug has also caused seizures and psychosis.

In this article, we will focus on how these long-term side effects of mefloquine can qualify certain veterans for VA disability benefits.

Veterans and mefloquine

It’s estimated tens of thousands of service members took mefloquine during the decades the Department of Defense (DOD) required it. 

It was regularly prescribed to service members for malaria prevention, especially during deployments to Afghanistan and other countries where the illness is considered endemic. 

The Pentagon made the drug the “last choice option” in 2009, before the FDA added a “black box warning” highlighting mefloquine’s potential to cause psychiatric and neurological issues in 2013.

Unfortunately, the DOD reportedly did a poor job documenting which service members were given the drug and which were not. This means some veterans are now dealing with significant symptoms without anything in writing to connect their issues back to mefloquine.

Mefloquine VA disability ratings

The VA doesn’t have a specific rating for mefloquine toxicity. However, you may still be entitled to VA disability benefits for the side effects of the medication, if you were required to take it during service.

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VA disability for mefloquine neurological side effects

The VA rates various types of neurological issues in the Schedule of Ratings that may be related to taking mefloquine. They include:

• Peripheral neuropathy. The VA rates peripheral neuropathy based on which nerves and parts of the body are affected. Section § 4.124a in the Schedule of Ratings outlines the scale for rating neurological conditions.
• Tinnitus. Ongoing tinnitus can receive a 10% VA disability rating under diagnostic code 6260.
• Vertigo. Vertigo is typically rated under diagnostic code 6204 or 6205, depending on the cause, with potential ratings ranging from 10% all the way up to 100%.
• Seizures. The VA rates seizures under the General Rating Formula for Major and Minor Epileptic Seizures at 10%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, or 100% depending on their frequency.

VA disability for mefloquine mental health side effects

The VA rates anxiety, depression, and other potential psychiatric effects of mefloquine toxicity under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders. 

The specific diagnostic code the VA uses depends on the disorder, but all mental health conditions have the same rating criteria. 

Mental health disorders can be rated at 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, or 100%, depending on the severity and frequency of the symptoms. 

Description	VA Rating	Monthly payment (vet only)
Total occupational and social impairment, due to such symptoms as: gross impairment in thought processes or communication; persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name.	100%	$3,938.58
Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood, due to such symptoms as: suicidal ideation; obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities; speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant; near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively; impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence); spatial disorientation; neglect of personal appearance and hygiene; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a worklike setting); inability to establish and maintain effective relationships.	70%	$1,808.45
Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as: flattened affect; circumstantial, circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech; panic attacks more than once a week; difficulty in understanding complex commands; impairment of short- and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks); impaired judgment; impaired abstract thinking; disturbances of motivation and mood; difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships.	50%	$1,132.90
Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine behavior, self-care, and conversation normal), due to such symptoms as: depressed mood, anxiety, suspiciousness, panic attacks (weekly or less often), chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss (such as forgetting names, directions, recent events).	30%	$552.47
Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant stress, or symptoms controlled by continuous medication.	10%	$180.42
A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication.	0%	None

You can read more about the VA’s mental health ratings here. 

You can be evaluated for these and other conditions and may be able to receive VA compensation. As with neurological or psychiatric side effects, the key is showing the VA that your condition is linked to the use of mefloquine during your military service.

How Woods & Woods can help

The VA-accredited attorneys at Woods & Woods have helped thousands of veterans nationwide get the disability benefits they deserve. Call us today for a free case evaluation. You won’t pay us a dime unless we win your case.

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