The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for migraines was granted effective February 2, 2017. The claim for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) eligibility was also granted effective November 28, 2018.
The deciding factor: Both claims were granted based on the evidence showing the Veteran's service-connected disabilities met the criteria for a total disability rating of at least 100% under VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- migraines, tension headaches, left shoulder degenerative arthritis, diabetes mellitus, right shoulder condition, bilateral plantar fasciitis, hypertension, gastroesophageal reflux disease, pseudofolliculitis barbae, acne vulgaris, degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, diabetic neuropathy with neuritis left upper extremity, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the right upper extremity, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity, cervical spine degenerative arthritis, right foot hallux valgus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- November 12, 2019
- Citation
- A19002685
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19002685.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for migraines was reopened due to new evidence. Service connection is granted for painful scars, but the rating assigned remains at 10 percent. The claims for fibromyalgia and bilateral shoulder disability are denied.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining clarification from the August 2017 VA examiner regarding which symptoms are related to his service-connected left trapezius strain and whether any non-service-connected conditions represent a progression of that disability.
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