Scars decisions — 2026

The Veteran's claim for service connection of basal cell carcinoma scars was granted, and the effective date is set at August 23, 2021.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected right knee scar does not meet the criteria for a compensable disability rating under Diagnostic Code 7802. The VA examinations did not adequately address functional loss due to pain, resulting in insufficient evidence for a decision on the increased initial disability rating for degenerative disc disease.

The Veteran's right knee scars are rated at a 20 percent effective September 28, 2021. The Board found that the evidence was in relative equipoise as to whether the Veteran's right knee scars were painful by date of his September 2021 supplemental claim.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and initial ratings for his service-connected disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence.

The Veteran's appeal for TDIU was denied as the evidence did not show that he was unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has granted service connection for a left ankle scar secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left ankle sprain status post tendon repair. The increased rating claim is remanded due to an inadequate VA examination.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as the July 2020 rating decision implicitly addressed the issue of unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, but did not explicitly grant a TDIU.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected conditions contributed to his death from COVID-19. The VA will obtain a new opinion on this issue.