The Board has determined that an effective date prior to March 24, 2014, for the award of service connection for diabetes mellitus is denied. The Veteran's claim for a compensable evaluation for his skin disabilities (claimed as lumps and lymph nodes throughout the body and lipomas) is remanded due to insufficient evidence in the record.
The deciding factor: The effective date for the award of service connection for diabetes mellitus falls outside the parameters of the Nehmer regulations, as there was no prior formal or informal claim received by VA before March 24, 2014. The Veteran's skin disabilities are currently rated under different diagnostic codes and require further evaluation to determine appropriate ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, lumps and lymph nodes throughout the body, lipomas
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 6, 2019
- Citation
- 19143856
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,549 · Granted: 26% (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 19143856.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection on the merits are being remanded due to new evidence and development needs. The maximum disability rating for tinnitus has already been assigned.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, ischemic heart disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease, left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, and hypertension as the evidence did not establish an in-service event or exposure to herbicide agents.
- Granted
The Veteran's Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular Aid and Attendance is granted as of April 25, 2024.,For diabetes mellitus, a rating in excess of 20 percent is denied.
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