The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an earlier effective date prior to February 24, 2020 for increased ratings of 20 percent for right and left lower extremity radiculopathy.
The deciding factor: There was no increase in disability that preceded the February 2020 claim by a year or less, such that there is no basis to find an earlier effective date was factually ascertainable between February 2019 to February 2020.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar radiculopathy, sciatica
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 28, 2020
- Citation
- A20016189
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,432 · Granted: 29% (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 A20016189.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, including degenerative arthritis and IVDS. The decision is based on the Veteran's in-service injury during active duty and his continuous symptoms since then.
- Granted
The Veteran's lumbar radiculopathy and diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity are rated at 20 percent effective November 6, 2024.
- Denied
The Board found the reduction in disability evaluation from 40% to 20% was improper and void ab initio due to inadequate examination for reduction.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for TDIU is being remanded due to a duty to assist error regarding her service-connected depression. She needs an examination to assess the impact of her depression on her ability to work.
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