The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date prior to August 21, 2009 for the award of service connection for his degenerative disease of the lumbar spine is denied. The March 2006 rating decision was final as it was mailed to the Veteran's address of record and there was no pending claim prior to August 21, 2009.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not submit a Notice of Disagreement (NOD) in response to the March 2006 rating decision, which is required for equitable tolling of the time period. The effective date cannot be earlier than August 21, 2009 as that was when VA received his request to reopen his claim.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disease of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2022
- Citation
- 22003098
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 22003098.
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: Granted
The Veteran's initial 10 percent rating for migraines is granted, while a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is denied. Service connection is granted for pes planus, but not for degenerative disease of the lumbar spine, bilateral knee pain, hypertension, GERD, or sleep apnea and generalized anxiety disorder.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for an evaluation higher than 10 percent for cervical degenerative joint disease prior to March 5, 2019 and entitlement to a total disability based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disability (TDIU).
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's service-connected cervical spine condition and his current degenerative disease of the lumbar spine.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim of increased rating for a left knee disability is denied as he withdrew his appeal without good cause. The Board also remanded the issue of TDIU due to service-connected disabilities.
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