The veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a total rating due to service-connected disabilities was denied as the effective date of March 27, 2001 is correct because the depression was first claimed on that date.
The deciding factor: The effective date of March 27, 2001 is correct as it is the date the veteran first applied for service connection for a depressive disorder and received a 50% rating for this condition.
- Claimed conditions
- a right heel spur, actinic keratosis of the hands and forearms, bilateral pes planus, duodenal ulcer, headaches, hypertension, postoperative residuals of cancer of the esophagus, shortening of the left lower extremity, status post repair of a deviated nasal septum
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 80%
- Decision date
- June 9, 2003
- Citation
- 0312221
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 541 · Granted: 32% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0312221.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete development of records and will provide a supplemental statement of the case if necessary.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
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