The Board granted a 70 percent initial rating for PTSD and a total disability rating based on individual unemployability from January 1, 2012. The appeal was denied for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for COPD with emphysema.
The deciding factor: The decision was based on the Veteran's occupational and social impairment due to PTSD, which resulted in deficiencies in most areas but not total occupational and social impairment.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) with emphysema
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- December 10, 2025
- Citation
- A25106768
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,990 · Granted: 35% (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 A25106768.
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 decided to remand the case due to inadequate evaluation of COPD with emphysema, requiring an additional VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for a compensable rating for COPD with emphysema and service connection for ED, including as secondary to other trauma and stressor related disorder, due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Granted
The Board found that the Veteran's currently diagnosed COPD with emphysema is related to his period of active military service, and granted service connection for this disability.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
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