The Board denied the Veteran's petitions to reopen her claims for service connection for a back disability and depression. The evidence submitted since the prior final decision was not new or material, as it did not relate to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claims.
The deciding factor: The submitted evidence did not provide any new information that could reasonably substantiate the Veteran's claims of service connection for her back disability and depression.
- Claimed conditions
- disc desiccation changes at L3-L4 and L5-S1 (a back disability), degenerative joint disease changes at the posterior articular facet joints at levels L4-L5 and L5-S1, depression
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 17, 2018
- Citation
- 18118885
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 18118885.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to September 27, 2017. From September 27, 2017, the rating for depression increased to 70 percent.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals were dismissed due to the death of the appellant. The issues related to service connection for various conditions and disability ratings.
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