The Board granted attorney fees for service connection of OSA and ED, and SMC based on loss of use of a creative organ, but denied fees for an increased rating for psychiatric disorder and other PN conditions.
The deciding factor: The March 2024 rating decision was not the initial decision on the claims for service connection for OSA and ED as they were previously denied in August 2018, making the appellant eligible to direct payment of fees. The November 2023 VA Form 21-526EZ was a new claim for an increased rating that had yet to be adjudicated by the AOJ.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Erectile Dysfunction (ED), Acquired Psychiatric Disorder, Bilateral Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy (PN), Bilateral Lower Extremity PN of the Sciatic Nerve, Bilateral Lower Extremity PN of the Femoral Nerve, Bilateral Lower Extremity PN of the External Cutaneous Nerve of the Thigh, Bilateral Lower Extremity PN of the Ilio-Iguinal Nerve, Bilateral Lower Extremity PN of the Obturator Nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 14, 2025
- Citation
- A25088451
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,429 · Granted: 29% (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 A25088451.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Denied
The claims for PTSD, an acquired psychiatric disorder, memory loss/memory problems, chronic fatigue, sleep difficulties/sleep disturbances, and sleep apnea have been denied. The claim for service connection for residuals of testicular denervation and varicosectomy has been granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for vertigo and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's hearing loss is not rated higher than 10 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the claims for service connection for OSA and insomnia must be remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions, as well as a failure to obtain TERA opinions on all relevant exposures.
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