The Veteran's back disability is currently rated at 20 percent, effective February 27, 2008. The Board found that the evidence supported a higher rating based on his daily low back pain and functional limitations.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner noted significant effects of the Veteran's back disability on his employment and daily activities, including decreased mobility and problems with tasks requiring lifting and carrying, which led to him quitting his police force position. The Veteran also reported increased frequency of 'debilitating days' due to pain, necessitating increased medication intake.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine disability (back disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- July 14, 2016
- Citation
- 1628149
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 1628149.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for back disability, finding that there was no evidence of a chronic condition in service or within one year after separation, and no evidence linking the current disability to an in-service injury.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's back disability did not begin during active service and is unrelated to any in-service injury. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection for his back disability.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 20 percent for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability and denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for his left lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, lumbar spine disability, hemorrhoids, and erectile dysfunction. The evidence did not meet the criteria to establish a current disability or link these conditions to active service.,Specifically, there was no documented in-service injury or disease related to these conditions, and post-service medical records showed that they were diagnosed many years after separation from service.
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