The Board denied the Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for additional disability due to back surgery, finding that no additional disability resulted from the surgeries and thus not meeting the criteria for compensation.
The deciding factor: The VA physician opined it is less likely than not that the Veteran's back pain and radiculopathy symptoms were caused by carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment or similar instance of fault on VA's part or failure to exercise the degree of care expected from a reasonable health care provider.
- Claimed conditions
- lower back
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 29, 2021
- Citation
- 21071040
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 21071040.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for bilateral knees and lower back was denied due to a late filing of the Board Appeal request, which is not considered timely given the one-year deadline from the date of the rating decision. The VA has determined that good cause was not shown to extend the time limit.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
New evidence has been received to reconsider the service connection claims for various disabilities, including right arm, head, left knee, left shoulder, lower back, neck, and right foot. The Board is remanding these cases for further review.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The veteran's appeal was dismissed due to the untimely filing of the Board Appeal request.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to failure to follow relevant claims processing rules.
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