The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection were denied as no new evidence was submitted within the applicable appeal periods, and the earliest date of receipt of a claim is considered the effective date.
The deciding factor: No new and material evidence was submitted to reopen the claims prior to their finality, and the earliest date of receipt of the August 29, 2011 claim is used as the effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Pes Planus with Degenerative Joint Disease, Degenerative Changes of the Feet
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 24, 2016
- Citation
- 1633471
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 1633471.
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
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral foot and knee conditions, make it impossible for him to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. He is also rendered helpless by his disabilities requiring regular in-home assistance.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for degenerative changes of the feet and a disability of the thoracolumbar spine, finding that there was no evidence to support these claims.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's bilateral pes planus with degenerative joint disease has been rated at 30 percent since February 23, 2009.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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