The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection grants under the PACT Act, as the earliest available date is August 10, 2022.
The deciding factor: The Blue Water Navy Act does not apply to these claims due to the lack of a previous denial based on in-service exposure to herbicide agents and the fact that the Veteran's original claim for diabetes mellitus, type II was denied by reason of the claim not establishing service connection on a presumptive basis.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, type II, right lower extremity sciatic diabetic neuropathy, left lower extremity sciatic diabetic neuropathy, right lower extremity femoral diabetic neuropathy, left lower extremity femoral diabetic neuropathy, chronic kidney disease, stage 2, hypertension
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25034817
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of October 21, 2021, for the grant of service connection for hypertension.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
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