The Veteran's urticaria was granted service connection. The initial rating for his lumbar spine disability, rated at 20 percent prior to May 18, 2015, and in excess of 40 percent thereafter, is denied.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not find any current evidence of a skin disorder (urticaria) or shoulder disorder. The lumbar spine disability was rated based on the degree of forward flexion and range of motion, with no findings of ankylosis or incapacitating episodes.
- Claimed conditions
- urticaria, bilateral shoulder disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- March 30, 2016
- Citation
- 1612720
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 1612720.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeal of a proposed reduction in the Veteran's rating for urticaria because it was not an adjudicative decision that can be appealed to the Board.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hip disorders due to a lack of current diagnoses in the medical records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for various conditions including an acquired psychiatric disorder, chronic pain and fatigue, psoriatic arthritis, bilateral shoulder disorder, and low back disorder due to a failure to provide notice of the right to a hearing.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for TDIU was granted effective February 22, 2024. The effective date of December 21, 2021, is due to the continuous pursuit of her claims.
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