The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities prior to June 14, 2011, finding that his service-connected conditions did not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed that while the Veteran's service-connected back disability with associated bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy and right knee disability resulted in an inability to perform physical labor such as construction work, he still possessed skills for non-physical occupations like being a pastor at a church.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease, Degenerative disc disease, Radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, Radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, Right knee strain with arthritis, status-post right lateral meniscectomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2020
- Citation
- 20067287
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include a mood disorder and alcohol abuse disorder, secondary to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities. The other claims for increased ratings were denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for higher staged ratings and initial ratings in excess of 10 percent, 20 percent, and 10 percent for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, right lower extremity, and residual painful surgical scar, posterior trunk respectively, to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Denied
The appeal for an increased rating for left hip, the claims for entitlement to an earlier effective date and an increased rating for right knee strain, and the appeal for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for left shoulder strain were dismissed. The claim for a 40 percent rating from June 24, 2021 for degenerative disc disease was granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a lumbar spine disability as secondary to a cervical spine disability due to an inadequate medical opinion.
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