The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from securing or following substantially gainful employment prior to June 5, 2024.
The deciding factor: The Veteran maintained steady employment as a school bus aide without special accommodations and was capable of performing the essential functions required by his job.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis, residuals, non-small cell lung cancer, right lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve, left lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 80%
- Decision date
- March 6, 2026
- Citation
- A26020478
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 A26020478.
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.
- Dismissed
Your initial evaluations for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve have been granted, but your appeal is dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed all issues on appeal as the May 2024 rating decision was a purely ministerial implementation of the April 2024 Board decision.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions were granted effective from July 1, 2020.
- Denied
The Board found the evidence persuasive against finding that the Veteran's lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis is proximately due to, the result of, or aggravated by his service-connected duodenal ulcer, pancreatitis, and cervical spondylosis with IVDS, degenerative disc disease, and stenosis. Therefore, the claim for service connection was denied.
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