The Veteran meets the schedular requirement for a TDIU due to service-connected disabilities, and his service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
The deciding factor: The severity of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, mainly his bilateral knees and lumbar spine, renders him incapable of obtaining and retaining substantially gainful employment given his level of education, training, and work experience.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, Right knee total knee arthroplasty, Radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, Recurrent left aural tinnitus, Degenerative joint disease of the left knee, Left knee meniscectomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- September 23, 2023
- Citation
- 23052866
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 23052866.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied extraschedular ratings for the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine and lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities, as well as a total disability rating based on individual unemployability prior to February 3, 2011.
- Granted
The Veteran's right and left knee braces caused wear and tear to his clothing in the year of 2021, leading to a decision granting annual clothing allowances for both knee braces.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for his lumbar spine and right hip disabilities due to a duty to assist error. The effective date for DEA benefits is granted as May 1, 2014.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date and higher initial rating for his back disability is denied. The effective date remains March 29, 2021, as the earliest date of claim. An initial rating in excess of 20 percent for the back disability from March 29, 2021, is also denied.
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