The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection of degenerative changes lumbar spine, dysthymic disorder, and lymphedema, right leg were dismissed as the original claims had been finally adjudicated without reopening.,The effective dates assigned by the November 1999 rating decision (April 22, 1993) for service connection of degenerative changes lumbar spine, and the December 1997 rating decision (August 11, 1993) for dysthymic disorder and lymphedema, right leg, were final.
The deciding factor: The original claims had been finally adjudicated without reopening, making it impossible to establish an earlier effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative changes lumbar spine, Dysthymic disorder, Lymphedema, right leg
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 19, 2020
- Citation
- A20015732
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 998 · Granted: 40% (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 A20015732.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
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- Denied
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