The Board granted an initial increased rating of 40 percent for the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder but denied an earlier effective date for service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis status/post fasciotomy.
The deciding factor: The most competent and probative evidence showed that the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder was more nearly approximated by 15 degrees, warranting a 40 percent rating. However, there was no informal claim, formal claim, or written intent to file reasonably related to a claim for entitlement to service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis status/post fasciotomy prior to October 29, 2021.
- Claimed conditions
- Lumbar spine disorder, Bilateral plantar fasciitis status/post fasciotomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- February 21, 2025
- Citation
- A25016048
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,960 · 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 A25016048.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine disorder is rated at 20% since July 1, 2022. The lumbar spine disorder was initially granted a 20% rating from September 1, 2022 to October 19, 2022 and then denied any higher ratings thereafter.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for service connection of lumbar spine, right knee, left knee, and hypertension disorders. The Board dismissed the appeals as a result.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date prior to July 25, 2016 for the award of a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities. The Board found that there was no factually ascertainable increase in disability within one year prior to September 18, 2015, and thus did not warrant a TDIU.
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