The Board has determined that a remand is necessary for further evidentiary development due to the Veteran's complaints of worsening back pain and decreased range of motion. A VA examination is required, and SSA records must be obtained.
The deciding factor: The Veteran reported worsening symptoms since his last VA examination in 2011, including increased pain levels and reduced mobility. The Board found that a new examination was necessary to assess the current severity of his service-connected low back condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back condition with degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 20, 2015
- Citation
- 1521555
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 1521555.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his right and left knee conditions, bilateral pes planus, hypertension with chest pain, low back condition, tinnitus, radiculopathy, patellar subluxation, painful motion in knees and feet, and hearing loss, precluded him from obtaining or retaining substantially gainful employment beginning July 1, 2014.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unemployable, as he has a master’s degree in educational administration and work experience as an Army instructor/teacher. The Board finds that the evidence is insufficient to show his physical impairments prevent him from performing sedentary work.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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