Citation Nr: 18149739 Decision Date: 11/13/18 Archive Date: 11/13/18 DOCKET NO. 15-40 494 DATE: November 13, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to an effective date of February 1, 1995, for the grant of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, is granted. FINDING OF FACT Resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran, the claim received on February 7, 1995 for service connection for a herniated disc contemplated all symptoms of that herniated disc, including radiculopathy of the left lower extremity. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for assignment of an effective date of February 1, 1995 (but no earlier) for the grant of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 5107, 5110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from March 1979 through January 31, 1995. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a December 2014 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). 1. Entitlement to an effective date earlier than October 25, 2013 for the grant of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity The Veteran believes that he should be awarded an effective date of February 1, 1995, for the grant of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity because he intended for his February 1995 claim for service connection for herniated disc to include radiculopathy. He asserts that he did not separately claim service connection for radiculopathy because he did not know what radiculopathy was, and believed that it was simply part of his herniated disc disability. The Board finds that, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran, an effective date of February 1, 1995 for service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is warranted. The statutory and regulatory guidelines for the determination of an effective date of an award of disability compensation are set forth in 38 U.S.C. § 5110 and 38 C.F.R. § 3.400. The effective date of an evaluation and an award of compensation based on an original claim, a claim reopened after a final disallowance, or a claim for increase will be the date the claim was received or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.400. The date of entitlement for an award of service connection will be the day following separation from active service or the date entitlement arose if the claim is received within one year after separation from service. Otherwise, the effective date will be the date of receipt of the claim, or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. 38 C.F.R. § 3.400(b)(2)(i). The applicable statutory and regulatory provisions require that VA look to all communications from the veteran which may be interpreted as applications or claims-formal and informal-for benefits. VA is required to identify and act on informal claims for benefits. See 38 U.S.C. § 511(b)(2); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.1(p), 3.155(a); see also Servello v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 196, 198-200 (1992). In this case, the Board agrees that the Veteran’s claim for service connection for herniated disc, received on February 7, 1995 should be construed as including service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, as a residual of the herniated disc. VA does not expect a claimant to be competent to diagnose his condition, and an inquiry should not be limited to the specific diagnosis alleged by the claimant, but should include all diagnoses which may reasonably be encompassed by several factors including: the claimant’s description of the claim; the symptoms the claimant describes; and the information the claimant submits or that the Secretary obtains in support of the claim. Clemons v. Shinseki, 23 Vet. App. 1 (2009). In this case, the evidence obtained in support of the February 1995 claim clearly indicates that radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is associated with the Veteran’s low back disability. The Veteran’s service treatment records (STRs) contain a finding of herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) with radiculopathy in June 1994, left paracentral HNP with neurologic decrement of the left lower extremity in August 1994, and L5-S1 HNP and left sided radiculopathy in January 1995. Indeed, the March 1995 rating decision which granted service connection for herniated nucleus pulposus of the lumbar spine, effective February 1, 1995, specifically noted that there were radicular symptoms on the left, which indicates that VA was aware that radiculopathy was associated with the Veteran’s low back disability when adjudicating the February 1995 claim. The Board finds that the Veteran should not be penalized for not understanding that radiculopathy is a separate disability for VA rating purposes and not filing separate a separate claim for service connection for radiculopathy associated with herniated nucleus pulposus of the lumbar spine, in addition to the claim for service connection for the herniated nucleus pulposus of the lumbar spine. The claim for service connection for a herniated disc of the lumbar spine appropriately contemplated both the herniated nucleus pulposus and the associated radiculopathy of the left lower extremity. As the February 1995 claim was received within one year of the Veteran’s separation from active duty, the date entitlement arose was February 1, 1995, the day following separation from service. Entitlement to an effective date of February 1, 1995, and no earlier, is granted. U. R. POWELL Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD A. Budd, Counsel