The Veteran's combined disability rating is less than the required 70 percent for pension eligibility, and his disabilities do not render him unemployable.
The deciding factor: The Veteran has a total combined disability rating of 40 percent, which does not meet the requirement of at least one disability rated at 40 percent or more with additional non-service-connected disabilities to bring the combined disability rating to 70 percent or more for pension eligibility. His disabilities do not render him unemployable.
- Claimed conditions
- Low Back Strain, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease/Emphysema, Grade I Systolic Dysfunction, Hypertension, Hepatitis, Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy, Tinea Pedis (Bilateral)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- April 15, 2014
- Citation
- 1416725
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 1416725.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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