The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have rendered him in need of regular aid and attendance, warranting SMC based on the need for aid and attendance.
The deciding factor: The Veteran requires assistance with activities of daily living due to his service-connected back, neck, and bilateral lower extremity disabilities which limit his mobility and ability to perform self-care tasks.
- Claimed conditions
- pseudofolliculitis, degenerative arthritis lumbar spine with IVDS with scoliosis and lumbar muscle spasm, cervical spine arthralgia with IVDS, migraines, left leg radiculopathy, right knee degenerative arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, right leg radiculopathy, left arm radiculopathy, instability of left knee, instability and subluxation of right knee, right ankle strain with achilles tendinopathy, left ankle strain with achilles tendinopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- March 15, 2023
- Citation
- 23015745
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 23015745.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for migraines was reopened due to new evidence. Service connection is granted for painful scars, but the rating assigned remains at 10 percent. The claims for fibromyalgia and bilateral shoulder disability are denied.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right knee disability, left knee arthritis, and bilateral knee instability. The decision is based on the Veteran's competent and credible lay evidence regarding the onset of symptoms in service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for service connection for left knee degenerative arthritis is dismissed. The claims for service connection for psychiatric disability, bilateral hearing loss, and other conditions are granted.
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