The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for thoracic spine degenerative disc disease is denied as there is no evidence of unadjudicated formal or informal claims between June 2012 and May 2016.
The deciding factor: There was no actual argument regarding theories of entitlement to an earlier effective date other than the most recent allegation of CUE, which are addressed above.
- Claimed conditions
- thoracic spine degenerative disc disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 18, 2022
- Citation
- 22009742
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 22009742.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's psoriasis has been granted a 60 percent rating. The evaluations for his left foot and right foot degenerative joint disease with calcaneal spur, as well as his thoracic spine degenerative disc disease, are being remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's thoracic spine degenerative disc disease and degenerative joint disease are granted as service connected. The claims for right shoulder, left shoulder, right elbow, and left elbow disabilities are remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board denied earlier effective dates for several conditions but granted an effective date of June 28, 2021 for radiculopathy in the right upper extremity.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, depression, anxiety, thoracic spine degenerative disc disease, and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity with sciatic nerve impairment, rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment from July 26, 2017.
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