The VA determined that the veteran's service-connected degenerative disc disease at L5-S1 and facet arthropathy at L4-L5 does not warrant a rating higher than 20 percent, as his disability picture is not shown to be more severe than moderate intervertebral disc syndrome or functional loss.
The deciding factor: The VA found that the veteran's service-connected low back disability did not meet the criteria for an increased rating beyond 20 percent due to lack of evidence showing more than moderate impairment, including no findings of incapacitating episodes lasting four weeks or more during a 12-month period.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease at L5-S1 and facet arthropathy at L4-L5
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- November 24, 2006
- Citation
- 0636472
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,599 · Granted: 37% (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 0636472.
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What you can do next
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