The Veteran's right ankle arthritis was increased from a 10 percent to a 20 percent rating in May 2015. The RO reduced the rating back down to 10 percent effective July 1, 2018, but this reduction is void ab initio due to failure to consider whether there has been an improvement in the Veteran's ability to function under ordinary conditions of life and work.
The deciding factor: The VA failed to follow proper procedures for reducing the rating as required by law and regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the right ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- June 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19144372
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (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 19144372.
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 Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, as well as remanded several claims for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for right and left knee conditions, thoracogenic scoliosis, and arthritis of the right ankle to obtain new medical opinions addressing pain and functional impairment.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all appeals regarding the Veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the right ankle, left ankle, left knee, and right knee.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including scheduling VA examinations for the Veteran's service-connected left total knee replacement and arthritis of the right ankle. The issues are inextricably intertwined with the SMC issue.
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