The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for shell fragment wounds of the left leg, thigh, and lung have been denied. The VA has determined that a disability rating greater than 20 percent is not warranted for any of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The objective evidence does not support a higher disability rating for any of the Veteran's service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- shell fragment wound of left leg, osteoarthritis of left knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- January 25, 2021
- Citation
- 21003997
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 21003997.
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
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and SMC for his service-connected left ankle and knee disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional VA treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding whether his joint pain is due to an undiagnosed illness or environmental exposure during service and whether he has a medically unexplained multisymptom illness (MUCMI).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's application to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for osteoarthritis of cervical neck is denied. The Board has also remanded the issues of service connection for left knee pain with arthritis and right knee pain with arthritis.
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