The Veteran's original claim for service connection for a right knee condition was denied in June 1987, and the decision became final. The Veteran did not file a notice of disagreement or submit new and material evidence within one year. He requested to reopen his claim on September 3, 2008, which led to the grant of service connection for a right knee condition effective from that date. The Board denied an earlier effective date as it was the first date VA received written communication from the Veteran seeking to reopen his previously denied claim.
The deciding factor: The June 1987 rating decision denying the original claim became final, and no new evidence was submitted within one year. The September 3, 2008 request to reopen the claim led to the grant of service connection for a right knee condition effective from that date. An earlier effective date is not warranted as it would be the first date VA received written communication seeking to reopen the previously denied claim.
- Claimed conditions
- right knee condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19182171
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 appeals for service connection were dismissed due to untimely filing of the Board Appeal requests.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right and left knee conditions, denied a rating in excess of 40 percent for right lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy, and denied special monthly compensation based on loss of use of a lower extremity.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for left and right knee conditions as new evidence has been received that is relevant to these claims.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for back, left wrist, left and right knee, and left and right shoulder conditions due to missing personnel records and an inadequate VA medical opinion.
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