The Veteran's claim for SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance has been granted. The issue of an effective date prior to January 13, 2015, for the assignment of a combined rating of 100 percent is remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran requires assistance due to his service-connected disabilities in maintaining balance, attending to personal hygiene needs, and changing dressings on his right big toe. These conditions necessitate regular aid and attendance.
- Claimed conditions
- status-post below knee amputation of the left lower extremity, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities, diabetes mellitus, type II with erectile dysfunction, diabetic peripheral vascular disease of the bilateral lower extremities, status-post open wound and diabetic foot ulcer with scar right big toe
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19125782
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,676 · Granted: 24% (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 19125782.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment prior to May 23, 2024.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for myasthenia gravis as secondary to peripheral neuropathy and earlier effective dates for diabetes mellitus type II, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities. The claims for initial ratings were denied or remanded.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed motions to revise on the basis of clear and unmistakable error (CUE) a July 2021 decision regarding earlier effective dates for service connection for various diabetic conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an earlier effective date than November 7, 2014, for the grant of service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II with erectile dysfunction and diabetic peripheral neuropathy in each lower extremity based on clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in a September 2009 rating decision.
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