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Denied

The Veteran's claims for effective dates earlier than May 21, 2012 for left great toe neuropathy and left lower extremity sciatica have been denied as the effective date is based on the date of receipt of the claim.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for cervical spine DDD, degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, right lower extremity sciatica, and a lumbar scar received August 31, 2011 have been denied as there are no earlier unaddressed filings or communications that would warrant an earlier effective date.

The deciding factor: The effective dates for these claims are based on the date of receipt of the Veteran's initial claim, which is not earlier than the dates granted.

Claimed conditions
Left Great Toe Neuropathy, Cervical Spine Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD), Degenerative Arthritis of the Lumbar Spine, Right Lower Extremity Sciatica, Lumbar Scar
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
January 5, 2023
Citation
23000767

Veterans Law Judge

DONNIE R. HACHEY

Decisions by this judge: 2,249 · Granted: 37% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)

Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.

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 23000767.

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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