The Board has determined that the September 12, 2002 rating decision denying service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was based on clear and unmistakable error. As a result, the decision is revised to grant service connection for obstructive sleep apnea effective January 1, 2003.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the September 12, 2002 rating decision failed to properly apply the presumption of soundness and thus committed clear and unmistakable error in denying service connection on this basis. The evidence showed that the Veteran was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea during service and continued to have symptoms after separation.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- December 17, 2019
- Citation
- 19194341
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 19194341.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorders, lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, and bilateral radiculopathy and neuropathy of the lower extremities.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated those associated with a 50 percent rating.
- Partly granted
The appeal for entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was granted, while other appeals were dismissed as untimely and remanded for further action on essential tremors.
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