The Board denied the appellant's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of retinitis pigmentosa, finding that the effective date should be October 21, 1996, one year prior to the receipt of his reopened claim. The decision is based on VA regulations and precedents regarding the effective dates for service connection.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the appellant's original denial in October 1963 was final due to lack of appeal, and thus the effective date should be the date of receipt of his reopened claim, which was October 21, 1997.
- Claimed conditions
- retinitis pigmentosa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- May 31, 2001
- Citation
- 0115137
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0115137.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the motion to revise a 1968 rating decision denying service connection for retinitis pigmentosa due to the Veteran's death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining Social Security Administration records and providing an addendum opinion regarding the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus type II and hypertension.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and retinitis pigmentosa, finding no evidence of a nexus to active service.
- Granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date of January 3, 2001, for service connection for retinitis pigmentosa based on the re-evaluation of previously unassociated service treatment records.
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