PREC 11-99    Effect of Former Manual Provisions Concerning Authority to Pay Compensation for Retinitis Pigmentosa    Citation:  Vet. Aff. Op. Gen. Couns. Prec. 11-99,  VAOPGCPREC 11-99, 1999 

a. To the extent that provisions in the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) (formerly Department of Veterans Benefits) Adjudication Procedures Manual M21-1 extant in 1964 purported to constitute an absolute bar to service connection for retinitis pigmentosa, were such provisions a valid exercise of regulatory authority?

b. To the extent that provisions in VBA Manual M21-1 extant in 1964 created a valid limitation on the grant of service connection for retinitis pigmentosa, did such a limitation bar service connection for the in-service aggravation of preexisting retinitis pigmentosa?

c. If there was no previous bar to the award of service connection for retinitis pigmentosa, what statutory and regulatory provisions are for consideration in determining the effective date for the award of service connection for retinitis pigmentosa in the case giving rise to this opinion request?

d. If the award of service connection for retinitis pigmentosa was barred at the time of a claimant’s application for benefits, does the application of 38 U.S.C. § 5110(g) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.114(a) permit assignment of an effective date based on the effective date of Op. G.C. 1-85 (reissued as

VAOPGCPREC 82-90); Op. G.C. 8-88 (reissued as VAOPGCPREC 67-90) or a 1986 revision to VBA Manual M21-1?

a. The provisions in paragraph 50.05 of chapter 50 of the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) (formerly Department of Veterans Benefits) Adjudication Procedures Manual M21-1 extant in 1964 did not purport to bar service connection for the in-service aggravation of preexisting retinitis pigmentosa.

b. The effective date of the award of compensation for retinitis pigmentosa in the case giving rise to the opinion request is governed by the generally-applicable provisions of 38 U.S.C. § 5110(a), unless the Board determines, based on its review of the record, that another provision in chapter 51 of title 38, United States Code, is applicable to that effective-date determination.

c. Because the statutes and regulations existing at the time of the veteran’s claim for benefits permitted an award of service connection for in-service aggravation of retinitis pigmentosa, subsequent Department of Veterans Affairs General Counsel opinions and changes to VBA Manual M21-1 cannot be considered "liberalizing" changes which created the right to such benefits. Accordingly, the effective dates of those documents do not govern the effective date of the veteran’s award under 38 U.S.C. § 5110(g) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.114(a).