The Veteran's Crohn's disease rating was reduced from 60% to 0%, effective March 1, 2018. The Board has restored the 60% rating for Crohn's disease as it is determined that there was actual improvement in the disability level and an improvement in the ability to function under ordinary conditions of life and work.
The deciding factor: The June 2016 VA contract examination did not consider contemporaneous lay and medical evidence, which rendered the reduction decision void ab initio.
- Claimed conditions
- Crohn’s disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 28, 2020
- Citation
- A20016165
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A20016165.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for Crohn’s disease, finding that his current disability is related to his active service and/or secondary to his service-connected PTSD. The decision also grants service connection for gastrointestinal disorder, including irritable bowel syndrome.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for Crohn’s disease has been reopened. The case is remanded to obtain an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of her Crohn’s disease and whether it was aggravated by her service-connected autoimmune thyroiditis.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to the need for further medical development and opinion regarding the relationship between his conditions and military service.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted an initial rating of 60 percent for the Veteran's Crohn’s disease with GERD, finding that his symptoms would more nearly approximate severe with numerous attacks a year and malnutrition during remissions.
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