BVA decisions by condition
Vision impairment blindness: BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2018 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a vision impairment blindness issue in 646 decisions. It granted the vision impairment blindness issue in 5.4% of them, below the 19.9% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 39.9%, and remanded it in 53.7%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 11.9% were granted.
Decisions
646
2018–2026
Granted
5.4%
All conditions: 19.9%
Granted on the merits
11.9%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
53.7%
Denied: 39.9%
Vision impairment blindness outcomes by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 57 | 3.5% | 42.1% | 50.9% |
| 2019 | 93 | 2.2% | 37.6% | 57.0% |
| 2020 | 84 | 2.4% | 38.1% | 59.5% |
| 2021 | 73 | 5.5% | 38.4% | 54.8% |
| 2022 | 90 | 6.7% | 32.2% | 61.1% |
| 2023 | 103 | 3.9% | 39.8% | 56.3% |
| 2024 | 59 | 8.5% | 42.4% | 49.2% |
| 2025 | 65 | 7.7% | 53.8% | 40.0% |
Evidence in granted and denied vision impairment blindness decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the vision impairment blindness issue on the merits when the decision mentioned it, compared with decisions that did not. These are associations, not causes, and evidence is recorded per decision, not per issue.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claimed as secondary | 198 | 33.3% | 5.7% | +27.6 pts |
| Positive nexus opinion | 82 | 32.7% | 7.8% | +24.9 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 163 | 27.2% | 6.1% | +21.0 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 62 | 25.7% | 10.1% | +15.6 pts |
| Lay statement | 498 | 10.5% | 18.2% | −7.7 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 68.6% of the decisions that granted vision impairment blindness.
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 40.0% of grants and 11.2% of denials.
Negative evidence in the record
An unfavorable exam or a negative nexus opinion often sits in the same record as favorable evidence, and the Board weighs them against each other. So these rows show how often vision impairment blindness was still granted when the record contained the negative item, not that the item helped.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative nexus opinion | 325 | 9.6% | 14.6% | −5.0 pts |
| Unfavorable VA exam | 453 | 9.3% | 19.5% | −10.2 pts |
Why the Board granted or denied vision impairment blindness
Most common reasons in grants
- Caused by the service-connected disability6
- Criteria for service connection met2
- Current diagnosis established2
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis31
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim23
- Service records negative or silent20
- Criteria for service connection not met15
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis12
- Current diagnosis established7
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service7
- No nexus to service established5
Numbers are decisions that gave the reason. Reasons are short phrases extracted by AI from each decision; common wordings of the same reason are grouped. Benefit of the doubt is reported above.
Recent vision impairment blindness decisions
Granted
Evidence in equipoise; Benefit of the doubt applied; Visual disturbances as symptom of MS
Secondary service connection warranted per Morgan and Bailey v. Wilkie; Impairment attributable to service-connected left trigeminal neuralgia; Noted by November 2024 VA examiner
Onset in service
Denied
No complaints, symptoms, or treatment for vision issues in service; No evidence of vision condition until 2020; No current disability demonstrated; Duty to assist not triggered
Evidence persuasively weighs against current disability; Lack of documentation in service treatment records and subsequent medical records; Private medical opinion did not address vision disability
Refractive error is a developmental defect not eligible for service connection.; No eligible current disability other than refractive error.; Veteran's lay reports of vision loss not supported by medical documentation.
Rules that apply to vision impairment blindness claims
- 38 CFR 3.303
Principles of service connection
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.310
Secondary service connection and aggravation
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.102
Reasonable doubt (benefit of the doubt)
Read it in VA Law Explorer
Research your vision impairment blindness case
Narrow by year, judge, evidence or secondary condition, read the decisions, and export a research memo.
How these numbers are calculated
- Rates count decisions in which the Board decided a vision impairment blindness issue, by the outcome of that issue. Other issues in the same decision can have different outcomes.
- “Granted on the merits” leaves out remands and dismissals. “All conditions” is the grant share across every condition issue in the data.
- The data comes from CaseScribe's AI extraction of public BVA decisions (2018–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.