The Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date and a higher initial rating for diabetes mellitus Type II was denied as the evidence did not support an earlier effective date or a higher disability rating.
The deciding factor: The Veteran first presented an informal claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus Type II on August 27, 2003, which is the correct date for the grant of service connection. Additionally, he was found to be non-insulin dependent and only required a restricted diet, not regulation of activities.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus Type II
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2009
- Citation
- 0908589
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,013 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0908589.
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: Granted
Service connection for diabetes mellitus Type II is granted. The Board also found that service connection should be granted for hypertension and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation as secondary to the Veteran's diabetes mellitus.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for higher ratings of tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, and right shoulder disability. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus Type II is granted as secondary to his service-connected musculoskeletal disabilities.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's diabetes mellitus Type II and hypertension are granted as service-connected due to presumptive exposure in Thailand, a location where herbicide agents were presumed to have been present.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient compliance with previous remands and additional development is needed, including research on potential exposure to herbicides and decontamination procedures. The claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus Type II will be reconsidered.
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