The Veteran's appeal of the May 2024 rating decision regarding service connection for hammertoes of the bilateral feet and varicose veins of the bilateral lower extremities has been dismissed due to a procedural defect in concurrent election.
The deciding factor: The Veteran filed a supplemental claim while his initial Board appeal was still pending, which constituted a procedural defect under VA rules.
- Claimed conditions
- hammertoes of the left foot, hammertoes of the right foot, varicose veins of the left lower extremity, varicose veins of the right lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 15, 2024
- Citation
- A24046892
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 A24046892.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for service connection of varicose veins of the right lower extremity due to a duty-to-assist error in pre-decisional duty-to-assist. The case will be returned to the AOJ for further review.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for an effective date of February 14, 2022, for the 70 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an effective date of March 27, 2022, for service connection for sciatic radiculopathy of the right lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an effective date of March 27, 2022, for service connection for sciatic radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of August 16, 2023, for the 10 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected varicose veins of the right lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of August 16, 2023, for the 10 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected varicose veins of the left lower extremity is granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to a higher disability rating for varicose veins of both lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the effects of medication.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for varicose veins of the right lower extremity as the evidence did not show intermittent edema or aching and fatigue in the leg after prolonged standing or walking, with symptoms relieved by elevation of extremity or compression hosiery.
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