The Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for service connection of left hand and thumb laceration was denied. The appeal to increase the right forearm rating was also denied as untimely.
The deciding factor: The appeals were not timely filed, as the Veteran did not file a timely Notice of Disagreement (NOD) on the right forearm rating decision within one year from its issuance.
- Claimed conditions
- left hand and thumb laceration, right forearm laceration
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 27, 2018
- Citation
- 18153301
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 18153301.
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 right forearm laceration, for which he sought immediate care from a private facility, was considered a valid medical emergency. The Board found that the nearest VA Medical Center in Boise, Idaho, was not feasibly available and an attempt to use it beforehand would not have been reasonable by a prudent layperson. Therefore, the Veteran is entitled to payment or reimbursement for unauthorized medical expenses incurred at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center on July 7, 2018.
- 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.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
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