The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including major depressive disorder, bilateral knee and back conditions, radiculopathies, and erectile dysfunction, render him incapable of securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected musculoskeletal, neurological, and psychiatric disorders prevent him from performing jobs that require manual labor, as well as sedentary employment due to his education level and lack of experience in such fields.
- Claimed conditions
- Major depressive disorder, Left knee degenerative joint disease, Right knee degenerative joint disease, Left knee instability, Right knee instability, Erectile dysfunction, Back disability, Left lower extremity radiculopathy, Right lower extremity radiculopathy, Left lower extremity femoral nerve impairment
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- March 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19115838
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (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 19115838.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder does not render him in need of regular aid and attendance or confined to his home, thus SMC based on housebound status and/or need for regular aid and attendance is denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a back disability, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between his current condition and active duty service.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) at the (o) rate and SMC at the (r)(2) rate, effective January 19, 2025. The decision finds that the Veteran's service-connected conditions warrant these awards due to his need for aid and attendance.
- Granted
The Board has granted effective dates of July 10, 2024 for service connection for PTSD, lumbar strain, and left lower extremity radiculopathy.
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