The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for his service-connected migraine headaches, depressive disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and left knee limitation of flexion. The earliest effective date assigned was February 10, 2024, for migraine headaches.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the earliest effective date legally possible has been assigned for each condition, as there is no evidence of a worsening prior to February 10, 2024, for migraine headaches and February 21, 2024, for depressive disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and left knee limitation of flexion.
- Claimed conditions
- migraine headaches, depressive disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), left knee limitation of flexion
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 26, 2026
- Citation
- A26017820
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 A26017820.
What this means for you
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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 claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases for additional development due to incomplete medical records and insufficient opinions regarding the relationship between service, including a stick injury in England, and current left eye disability (including amblyopia and cataracts) as well as migraine headaches.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Granted
The Veteran's vascular headaches are granted effective August 22, 2011. A TDIU is granted effective February 11, 2015. SMC based on housebound criteria is denied prior to July 14, 2020.
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