The Board has determined that the veteran's combined rating of 80% for service-connected disabilities is not sufficient to warrant a total disability evaluation based on individual unemployability.
The deciding factor: VA physicians have concluded that the veteran is employable given her overall disability picture and the fact that her combined rating does not meet the criteria for TDIU under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a).
- Claimed conditions
- Depressive disorders, Anxiety disorders, Asthma due to oil smoke exposure, Undiagnosed illness manifested by headaches, Lumbosacral strain and degenerative disc disease of the lower thoracic spine (low back pain), Bursitis of the left hip with degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 23, 2004
- Citation
- 0431093
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 0431093.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal of the issue of service connection for 9400 mental disorders, anxiety disorders, and generalized anxiety disorder was dismissed due to concurrent appeals. The claim is considered a supplemental claim for an already adjudicated issue.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of major depressive disorder, recurrent and moderate, with anxious distress and alcohol use disorder in sustained remission, as the evidence did not indicate that a prior claim was received before November 30, 2020.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric condition to include PTSD, depressive disorders, and insomnia disorder due to missing service personnel records and the need for a VA examination.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's major depressive disorder with anxious distress and alcohol use disorder is currently rated at 70 percent, but the Board found that his symptoms did not more closely approximate total occupational and social impairment required for a 100% rating.
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