The Board has granted earlier effective dates for service connection of right and left knee disabilities, as well as right and left ankle disabilities. The Veteran's claims were continuously pursued from July 9, 2019, and the effective dates are based on these pursuit dates.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims were continuously pursued since July 9, 2019, which is when he indicated his intent to file a claim. The Board found that this date should be considered as the effective date for service connection of right and left knee disabilities and right and left ankle disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Knee Strain with Joint Osteoarthritis, Left Knee Strain with Joint Osteoarthritis, Right Ankle Lateral Collateral Ligament Sprain, Left Ankle Lateral Collateral Ligament Sprain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2024
- Citation
- A24073254
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 931 · Granted: 42% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A24073254.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for specially adapted housing (SAH) or special home adaptation (SHA) grant due to his respiratory disability, which is presumed by the PACT Act. The Board found that the Veteran does not have a permanent and total disability resulting in anatomical loss of use of both hands, burns, or residuals of an inhalational injury.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The right ankle sprain and right knee strain are rated at 10 percent each, with no higher rating granted due to lack of evidence supporting more severe limitations.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted SMC based on the need for aid and attendance at the 38 U.S.C. � 1114(n 1/2) rate, but no higher, prior to January 25, 2019 and from March 1, 2019, due to his service-connected depressive disorder alone causing him to be in need of regular aid and attendance.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD, left foot fracture, and left ankle sprain have been granted increased ratings. Service connection has also been established for cervical strain and secondary service connection for plantar fasciitis.
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