The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been presented to reopen the veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for residuals of a low back injury, including degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine. The claim is well-grounded as there is current disability of the low back.
The deciding factor: New and material evidence (statements from fellow serviceman and treating chiropractor) has been presented linking the veteran's current low back disorder to an inservice motor vehicle accident and injury, which must be considered in order to fairly decide the merits of the claim.
- Claimed conditions
- post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep apnea, headaches, residuals of jet fuel exposure and chemical exposure (pulmonary disorder), degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 18, 2000
- Citation
- 0004873
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0004873.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a direct service connection opinion and an adequate secondary service connection aggravation opinion.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including sinusitis, elbows condition, cervical condition, erectile dysfunction, kidney condition, sleep apnea, wrists condition, asthma, shoulders condition, ankles condition, eye condition (bilateral dry macular degeneration), peripheral vascular disease (heart condition), and rhinitis.
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