The Veteran's appeal for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for residuals of a September 1996 VA spinal surgery was denied because the evidence did not show additional disability resulting from carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or similar instance of fault on the part of VA.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's lay contentions were discounted by the February 2024 VA examiner who found no additional disability related to the spinal surgery and that complications claimed by the Veteran were reasonably foreseeable.
- Claimed conditions
- Left neck, Left shoulder, Left upper extremity, Left upper chest, Left lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 15, 2024
- Citation
- 24012156
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 24012156.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for low back strain, left shoulder, and supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) based on evidence showing a causal relationship to in-service events or injuries.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for increased disability ratings for service-connected right and left lower extremity conditions have been dismissed due to the Veteran's death. The Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate these claims as they are moot.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received with respect to all the service connection claims on appeal. The claims are being remanded for further development, including obtaining VA examinations and medical opinions to determine the nature and etiology of the claimed conditions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted revision of the December 2018 rating decision that reduced the disability rating for lumbar spine from 20 percent to 10 percent, effective December 4, 2018, based on clear and unmistakable error (CUE). The March 2015 rating decision that assigned a 10 percent rating for left shoulder disability was denied as it did not meet the criteria for CUE.
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