The Veteran's annual clothing allowance based on static qualifying disability is restored due to the continued use of a prescribed hinged knee brace and topical ointments that cause damage to his clothing.
The deciding factor: The Veteran continues to require a hinged knee brace and other medications for his service-connected conditions, which causes damage to his outer garments.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee osteoarthritis with patellofemoral pain syndrome, central disc herniation at L5-S1, right rotator cuff injury, left ankle inversion injury residuals, fracture of the right fifth metacarpal residuals, right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome with iliotibial band instability degenerative arthritis and meniscal tear, bilateral plantar calluses, left lower extremity radiculopathy, left hip osteoarthritis with impairment and panful motion, right knee limitation of extension, left lateral chest scar, right thumb wart removal residual scar, gastroesophageal reflux disease erectile dysfunction, left hip osteoarthritis with limitation of extension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19187623
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · Granted: 23% (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 19187623.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and denied the claims for right knee disability, erectile dysfunction, GERD, sleep apnea, and hypertension. The decision is remanded for further action on these issues.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates for the grant of service connection for middle and index trigger finger/stenosing tenosynovitis of the right hand, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy. The earliest effective date is June 30, 2012, for the right hand condition and April 22, 2016, for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have left lower extremity radiculopathy or any related symptoms causing impairment in earning capacity during the appeal period, and therefore service connection for this condition is denied.
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