The Veteran was granted an initial 100 percent disability rating for his service-connected coronary artery disease s/p artery disease graft and heart valve replacement with valvular heart disease, effective February 27, 2012. The appeal for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus prior to December 4, 2013, was denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected coronary artery disease s/p artery disease graft and heart valve replacement with valvular heart disease met the criteria for a 100 percent disability rating due to his workload of 3 METs or less resulting in breathlessness and fatigue. The diabetes mellitus did not meet the criteria for an increased rating prior to December 4, 2013.
- Claimed conditions
- Coronary artery disease s/p artery disease graft and heart valve replacement with valvular heart disease, Diabetes mellitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- February 11, 2025
- Citation
- A25012264
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 878 · Granted: 36% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation A25012264.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of ambulance travel expenses incurred on June 17, 2025 due to an emergency heart attack. The ambulance service was provided by a volunteer organization and later intercepted by a higher-tier EMT company.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and thus denied his claim for service connection for cause of death.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not preclude him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment prior to September 28, 2021. From September 28, 2021 to May 22, 2022, the Veteran had a combined total disability rating of 100%, which rendered the issue moot as he was already receiving SMC based on his service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and diabetes mellitus, but granted TDIU for the period prior to January 26, 2024.,Prior to this decision, the Veteran withdrew his claim of service connection for diabetes mellitus.
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