The Board granted a 20 percent rating for bilateral diabetic retinopathy and cataracts prior to April 26, 2018. A 40 percent rating was granted thereafter. The Veteran also received separate ratings for scars secondary to his eye condition. Other issues were remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's visual acuity had deteriorated from 20/50 bilaterally prior to April 26, 2018 to 20/70 in the right eye and 20/50 in the left eye thereafter. The average concentric contraction of his visual field also decreased.
- Claimed conditions
- Diabetic Retinopathy, Cataracts
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- January 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19106843
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,861 · 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 19106843.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
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Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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