The Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes alone does not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, thus his claim for TDIU is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran was employed full-time until retirement and has a combined rating of 100% due to service-connected disabilities. The evidence shows that the Veteran's employment was maintained despite accommodations made by his employer due to his service-connected disability, rather than because of any protection or sheltered environment.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- July 22, 2019
- Citation
- 19156572
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 19156572.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for a rating in excess of 20 percent for his left knee disability is dismissed.,Service connection has been granted for lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes and bilateral hip acetabular tears, which are found to be proximately due to his service-connected left knee disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy due to insufficient evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes, as the evidence did not support a higher disability rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for higher initial disability ratings for various conditions are being remanded due to the need to obtain outstanding treatment records from TRICARE.
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