The Veteran's appeal for TDIU and increased evaluation for thoracic spine disability was denied. The Board found that the Veteran is not unemployable solely due to his service-connected disabilities, as he has a combined evaluation of 60 percent from March 28, 2018, which is recognized in and of itself as occupational impairment. For the initial evaluation for thoracic spine disability prior to October 13, 2015, and thereafter, the evidence did not support an increase above 20 percent.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation. The VA medical opinions indicated that his specific disabilities do not preclude sedentary work as defined by the Board. There is no conflicting report, and the evidence does not show any specific disability that would prevent employment.
- Claimed conditions
- Thoracic spine disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19179043
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, dismissed the claim for a thoracic spine disability, and granted service connection for right knee strain, left knee strain and meniscal tear, left hip strain as secondary to a service-connected thoracolumbar lumbar spine disorder, and a generalized anxiety disorder and other specified depressive disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for lumbar and thoracic spine disabilities due to a lack of adequate medical evidence linking these conditions to service or a service-connected disability.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome and a thoracic spine disability, as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected cervical spine disability. The claims for an initial compensable rating for allergic rhinitis and for service connection for sinusitis were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a cervical spine disability and a thoracic spine disability as the evidence did not support a finding that these disabilities were related to the Veteran's active military service.
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