"SYSTEMIC THERAPY" DEFINED

Warren v. McDonald, docket no. 13-3161 (May 10, 2016)

HELD: "Systemic therapy" includes both oral and parenteral medication. 

SUMMARY: The Court in this case considered the term "systemic therapy," as used in 38 C.F.R. § 4.118, and found that “the types of systemic treatment that are contemplated under Diagnostic Code 7806 are not limited to ‘corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive drugs.’ Compensation is available for all systemic therapies that are like or similar to corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive drugs.” The Court found further support for this holding in the M21-1MR, VA’s adjudication manual, which defines “systemic therapy” as “any oral or parenteral medication prescribed by a medical professional to treat the underlying skin disorder.”

FULL DECISION

Johnson: "SYSTEMIC THERAPY" INCLUDES TOPICAL CORTICOSTEROIDS

Johnson v. McDonald, 27 Vet.App. 497 (Mar. 1, 2016), overruled, Johnson v. Shulkin, 862 F.3d 1351 (Fed. Cir. 2017)

HELD: “[T]he plain wording of Diagnostic Code 7806 is that systemic therapy includes the use of corticosteroids without any limitation to such use being oral or parenteral as opposed to topical.”

SUMMARY: 38 C.F.R. § 4.118, DC 7806, VA’s diagnostic code for rating dermatitis or eczema, provides for compensable ratings based on the use of “systemic therapy such as corticosteroids.” The regulation does not distinguish between topical and oral corticosteroids. Therefore, the Court held that the plain language of DC 7806 includes both oral and topical corticosteroids. 

FULL DECISION