Citation Nr: 21011664 Decision Date: 03/02/21 Archive Date: 03/02/21 DOCKET NO. 17-13 988 DATE: March 2, 2021 ORDER A total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to April 4, 2014 is granted. FINDING OF FACT Prior to April 4, 2014, the Veteran's service-connected coronary artery disease alone precluded him from obtaining or maintaining a substantially gainful occupation. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for a TDIU are met prior to April 4, 2014. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.321, 3.340, 3.341, 4.16, 4.19. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from December 1965 to September 1968. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an October 2013 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Chicago, Illinois. The Board issued a decision in September 2019 denying the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability prior to April 4, 2014. The Veteran appealed this denial to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court), and the parties filed a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR) in October 2020. Thereafter, in October 2020, the Court issued an Order granting the JMPR and remanding the matters for action consistent with the terms of the JMPR. Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to April 4, 2014 VA will grant a TDIU when the evidence shows that a Veteran is precluded, by reason of service-connected disabilities, from obtaining and maintaining any form of gainful employment consistent with his education and occupational experience. See 38 U.S.C. § 1155; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.340, 3.341, 4.16. TDIU benefits are granted only when it is established that the service-connected disabilities are so severe, standing alone, as to prevent the retaining of gainful employment. If there is only one such disability, it must be rated at least 60 percent disabling to qualify for TDIU benefits; if there are two or more such disabilities, there shall be at least one disability ratable at 40 percent or more, and sufficient additional disability to bring the combined rating to 70 percent or more. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). For the purpose of one 60 percent disability, or one 40 percent disability in combination, the following will be considered as one disability: (1) disabilities of one or both upper or lower or one or both lower extremities, including the bilateral factor if applicable; (2) disabilities resulting from a common etiology or a single accident; (3) disabilities affecting a single body system, e.g., orthopedic, digestive, respiratory, cardiovascular-renal, neuropsychiatric; (4) multiple injuries incurred in action; or, (5) multiple disabilities incurred as a prisoner of war. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16 (a). In determining whether an appellant is entitled to a total disability rating based upon individual unemployability, neither the appellant's nonservice-connected disabilities nor advancing age may be considered. 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.341 (a), 4.19. Factors to be considered are the Veteran's education, employment history, and vocational attainment. See Ferraro v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 326, 332 (1991). At the outset, the Board notes that the Veteran met the schedular requirements for a TDIU prior to April 4, 2014. Service connection had been established for coronary artery disease, status post coronary artery bypass graft surgery (rated as 60 percent disabling); and painful/tender post-operative scarring, status-post coronary artery bypass graft (rated as noncompensable). The Veteran’s service-connected disabilities affect a single body system. Thus, they are considered as one disability and the Veteran met the threshold schedule requirement for an award of TDIU benefits under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). After reviewing the evidence of record and resolving all doubt in the Veteran's favor, the Board finds that the Veteran was unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation by reason of his service-connected coronary artery disease prior to April 4, 2014. See Gilbert, 1 Vet. App. 54. See also 38 U.S.C. § 5107. In this regard, the record reflects that the Veteran earned a high school diploma with no additional education or training. Since service, the Veteran reported primary employment working in car wash maintenance and as a truck driver. He retired in September 2011 because of his health. Regarding his ability to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment, on examination, a July 2013 VA examiner documented dyspnea at >3-5 METs, a level found to be consistent with activities such as light yard work (weeding), mowing law (power mower), and brisk walking (4 mph). The examiner opined that the Veteran’s ischemic heart disease impacted his ability to work, and as an example stated that the Veteran would not be able to drive the type of vehicle he had been driving or pull hoses. The examiner further determined that the Veteran would not be able to perform any heavy lifting. There is no further probative evidence relating to the Veteran’s ability to obtain or maintain substantially gainful employment prior to April 4, 2014. The Board finds the July 2013 VA examiner’s evaluation of the functional impact of the Veteran's service-connected coronary artery disease to be highly probative as it was based on a review of the claims file and relevant facts, and the examiner provided a detailed rationale. See Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. 295, 302-04 (2008) (holding that it is the factually accurate, fully articulated, sound reasoning for the conclusion that contributes to the probative value of a medical opinion). Based on the foregoing and resolving all doubt in the Veteran's favor, the Board finds that the Veteran was unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation by reason of his service-connected coronary artery disease prior to April 4, 2014. See Gilbert, 1 Vet. App. 54. See also 38 U.S.C. § 5107. In making this finding, the Board has considered the Veteran's level of education and his primary employment history working in car wash maintenance and as a truck driver, and determined that this history, combined with his physical inability to maintain employment in the fields in which he previously held employment, support the grant of a TDIU. S.C. Krembs Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board J. Smith-Jennings, Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.