The Veteran's hypertension was granted service connection as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine DDD and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.,The reduction of the rating for the Veteran’s service-connected lumbar spine disability from 40 percent to a 20 percent rating, effective April 1, 2016, was denied. The 40 percent evaluation is restored.
The deciding factor: The evidence established that the Veteran's hypertension was caused by and/or aggravated by his service-connected lumbar spine DDD and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.,There was no actual improvement in the Veteran’s lumbar spine disability at the time of the proposed rating decision, as evidenced by inadequate findings in a July 2015 VA examination.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension, degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- October 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19177911
Veterans Law Judge
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 19177911.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
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- Denied
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