The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation prior to March 31, 2009.
The deciding factor: VA records show the Veteran left his employment as a welder due to pain but was found in no apparent distress during examinations prior to March 31, 2009.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive sleep apnea, Right knee strain, Cervical spine strain, Right foot strain, Left foot strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- January 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19106121
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,036 · Granted: 27% (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 19106121.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right knee disability, finding that there was no nexus between his current condition and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim of service connection for a neck disorder, as it is insufficiently addressed in the previous decision. The case will be sent back for an addendum opinion.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for cervical spine strain, right wrist sprain, right knee strain, left knee strain, and right ankle strain. The disabilities are all deemed to have begun during the Veteran's active duty.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
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