The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates have been denied as the earliest date of entitlement is the day following his discharge from active duty.,The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for tinnitus has been denied as there is no legal basis to assign a higher rating.
The deciding factor: There was no indication that the Veteran initiated claims prior to April 2014, and VA benefits were not authorized as a matter of law until after his discharge from active duty on December 17, 2014. The effective date for the grant of service connection is therefore set at the day following his discharge.
- Claimed conditions
- obstructive sleep apnea with asthma, undifferentiated and rheumatoid arthritis of the bilateral wrists, hands, knees, and feet, with gout, left foot hallux valgus, right foot hallux valgus, right foot hammer toe, left shoulder impingement syndrome, left ear hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 28, 2018
- Citation
- 18153120
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 18153120.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of left ear hearing loss due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, as an addendum opinion is necessary to address evidence of in-service hearing loss and convert audiometric testing results from ASA to ISO-ANSI standards.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 and service connection for a left shoulder condition, as there was no evidence to support that his current disability was caused by VA treatment or related to his active military service.
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