The Veteran's right ankle disability, which was not considered a service-connected condition by the Marine Corps, led to his discharge. However, VA determined it was service-connected and impaired his entry level training. As he served 30 days or more after September 10, 2001 due to this condition, he is eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill educational assistance.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's right ankle disability was found to be a service-connected condition by VA and impaired his entry level training, meeting the eligibility criteria for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19125979
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,836 · Granted: 31% (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 19125979.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received with respect to all the service connection claims on appeal. The claims are being remanded for further development, including obtaining VA examinations and medical opinions to determine the nature and etiology of the claimed conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for acquired psychiatric disability, cervical spine, lumbar spine disability (including IVDS), right ankle, and right knee based on the evidence of record.
- Granted
The Veteran's emergency medical care at Hampshire Memorial Hospital on October 17, 2022 is eligible for payment under VA regulations due to the favorable findings in a previous authorization. The Veteran's other health insurance (Medicare A) did not fully cover the costs.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various joint disorders, including left elbow, right elbow, left hip arthritis, right hip arthritis, left knee, right knee, left ankle, right ankle, left wrist, and right wrist disorders. The issues are related to whether these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service.
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