The Board denied the claim for an effective date prior to March 26, 1993, for the award of SMC at the (r)(1) rate.
The deciding factor: There was no loss of use of the right foot prior to March 26, 1993, and there is insufficient evidence showing that the veteran's service-connected disabilities required regular aid and attendance prior to this date.
- Claimed conditions
- Loss of use of the left foot, Bowel dysfunction secondary to cauda equina syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 3, 2009
- Citation
- 0903734
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
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Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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