The Veteran's service-connected back disability is granted a 40 percent rating for the period from December 13, 2012, to April 11, 2016.,For the period from April 11, 2016, onward, the Veteran's service-connected back disability does not warrant a higher than 40 percent rating.,The Veteran is granted a 30 percent rating for his cervical spine disability throughout the appeal period.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations and medical opinions provided sufficient evidence to support the maximum schedular ratings available based on functional limitation of range of motion, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, Degenerative changes of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- June 8, 2020
- Citation
- 20039040
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 20039040.
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 Veteran's claim for increased ratings for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine was granted with effective dates of May 13, 2019.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine was diagnosed during service and has continued since then. The Board granted service connection for this condition based on continuity of symptomatology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to inadequate examinations and the need for a retrospective opinion regarding the severity of his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability, diagnosed as degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, is related to service and granted service connection for this condition.
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