The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right and left hip disabilities, finding that there was no in-service injury or disease related to these conditions. The current diagnoses of degenerative arthritis were not shown within one year following service discharge.,The Board also denied the claim for ischemic heart disease due to herbicide exposure, as there is no current diagnosis of this condition.
The deciding factor: There was insufficient evidence linking any hip or heart disability to service, including a lack of in-service injury and current diagnoses not related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Hip Degenerative Arthritis, Left Hip Degenerative Arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19142631
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and an earlier effective date for total disability based on individual unemployability, finding that the evidence did not support higher ratings or an earlier effective date.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for erectile dysfunction and earlier effective dates for the awards of service connection for left hip degenerative arthritis, right hip degenerative arthritis, and tinnitus. It also granted a TDIU from September 24, 2021, and basic eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) from that date.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's application to reopen the claim of service connection for a right hip disorder was granted. Service connection for this condition is denied, as there is no evidence that it was incurred in or aggravated by military service. The rating for chipped bone in the right foot remains at noncompensable. A higher rating for low back strain is also denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's initial higher rating for Headache Syndrome prior to August 12, 2015 was denied. A 50% disability rating is granted from that date onwards. The claims of entitlement to initial compensable ratings for Right Hip Degenerative Arthritis and Left Hip Degenerative Arthritis are remanded. The claim of entitlement to an increased rating for Lumbosacral Intervertebral Disc Syndrome is also remanded.
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