The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU were denied as his service-connected conditions did not render him unemployable prior to December 15, 2016.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not show that the Veteran was unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation due to his service-connected disabilities prior to December 15, 2016.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine, Psychiatric disorder, Diabetes mellitus, Residuals of a shrapnel fragment wound (SFW) right thumb, Scar of the left thigh, Tinnitus, Cervical strain, Peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, Peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity, Radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, Bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 80%
- Decision date
- October 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19181983
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,162 · Granted: 21% (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 19181983.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied extraschedular ratings for the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine and lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities, as well as a total disability rating based on individual unemployability prior to February 3, 2011.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a low back disorder was reopened, and his claims for increased ratings of bilateral knee instability were granted. His hearing loss claim was denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a higher rating for PTSD and dismissed his appeals regarding increased ratings for tinnitus and a right hand disability due to lack of timely filing of Notice of Disagreement.
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