The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for a low back disability, finding that the earliest cognizable date was April 20, 2005.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence of an unadjudicated formal or informal claim prior to April 20, 2005, which could serve as a basis for the award of service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 6, 2015
- Citation
- 1533513
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 1533513.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found new and relevant evidence for the Veteran's claims of service connection for back and right knee disabilities. The claim for a back disability is granted, while the claim for a right knee disability is remanded due to insufficient rationale in supporting opinions.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted a 20 percent rating for degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine from April 13, 2015 to January 7, 2019.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates of March 21, 2024 for service connection to the Veteran for degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine; irritable bowel syndrome (IBS); and radiculopathy, left lower, sciatic.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for further development, including obtaining a more comprehensive VA examination to assess the severity of the Veteran's degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine.
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