The Veteran's back condition is due to the natural aging process, not VA care or participation in a VA education or rehabilitation program. The Board finds that he is not entitled to compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for the residuals of a back injury.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's back condition was caused by VA care or participation in a VA education or rehabilitation program, and his subjective reports of pain do not establish an objectively measurable worsening after participation in the CWT/TWE program.
- Claimed conditions
- Back injury, Degenerative joint diseases of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19110196
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · Granted: 23% (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 19110196.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's ambulance expenses incurred on September 26, 2024 for medical treatment of a back injury are granted as the condition constituted an emergency and travel by ambulance was medically required. The Board found that the Veteran is unable to defray the cost.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection of back, left knee, and right knee injuries due to a lack of VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues for further development, including obtaining additional evidence and an adequate medical opinion regarding the Veteran's character of discharge and service connection claims.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, claimed as depression and a right knee condition. The claims for left knee condition, back injury, hypertension, headaches, sleep apnea, and surgical complications of pregnancy were remanded.
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