The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for migraine headaches was denied, and service connection for surgical neck scars associated with cervical spine DDD was granted but only up to June 30, 2014. The Veteran’s claim for a higher rating for his stellate scar of the occipital area of the scalp is remanded.
The deciding factor: The highest schedular rating available (50%) has already been assigned for migraine headaches and service connection was granted but only up to June 30, 2014, for surgical neck scars associated with cervical spine DDD. The stellate scar of the occipital area of the scalp requires a new examination.
- Claimed conditions
- migraine headaches, surgical neck scars associated with degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the cervical spine, stellate scar of the occipital area of the scalp
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- September 17, 2019
- Citation
- 19171970
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 19171970.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases for additional development due to incomplete medical records and insufficient opinions regarding the relationship between service, including a stick injury in England, and current left eye disability (including amblyopia and cataracts) as well as migraine headaches.
- Granted
The Veteran's migraine headaches are productive of very frequent, completely prostrating and prolonged attacks capable of producing severe economic inadaptability. The Board has granted a 50 percent disability rating for the Veteran's service-connected migraine headaches.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected migraine headaches was granted with an effective date of February 28, 2023.
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