The Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for peripheral neuropathy of the right foot was denied, and there is no legal entitlement to an effective date prior to August 15, 2002 for the grant of service connection for bilateral pes planus.
The deciding factor: The neuropathy was found to be mild in severity with no evidence of marked interference with employment or frequent hospitalization. The November 1992 RO decision denying service connection for bilateral pes planus was not clearly and unmistakably erroneous, and the effective date remained August 15, 2002.
- Claimed conditions
- Peripheral neuropathy of the right foot, Bilateral pes planus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- March 4, 2009
- Citation
- 0908005
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 granted earlier effective dates of November 5, 2021, for the grants of service connection and eligibility for DEA benefits.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include alcohol use disorder, unspecified depressive disorder with anxious distress, and PTSD was granted. Other claims for various conditions were denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an adequate VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any right foot disability, including consideration of bilateral pes planus.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) as it was not factually ascertainable that he was unable to obtain or maintain substantially gainful employment prior to April 28, 2016.
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