The appeal for higher disability ratings for the Veteran's left and right hip disorders, including entitlement to higher ratings for left and right hip extension and thigh impairment, was dismissed due to a concurrent election of review options which is prohibited by claims processing rules.
The deciding factor: The appeal does not comply with claims processing rules as the Veteran attempted a concurrent election when submitting an August 2022 VA Form 20-0996 (higher-level review request), which is prohibited. Therefore, the appeal of the October 2022 rating decision was dismissed.
- Claimed conditions
- left hip strain, right hip strain, left hip limitation of extension, right hip limitation of extension, left hip thigh impairment, right hip thigh impairment
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 27, 2025
- Citation
- A25092707
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 195 · Granted: 41% (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 A25092707.
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A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot.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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for lumbosacral strain, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, and left hip strain as secondary to lumbosacral strain have been granted. The claim for left hip strain is remanded due to insufficient evidence on whether it was caused or aggravated by the service-connected lumbosacral strain.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several claims for further action, including effective date determinations and service connection determinations. The Veteran's service records from Portsmouth Naval Hospital are requested to be obtained.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including coronary artery disease, PTSD, and multiple orthopedic conditions, prevent him from securing or following substantially gainful employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and initial compensable ratings for his bilateral hip/thigh and right ankle conditions require additional medical examination to determine their current severity.
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