The Board has determined that the current VA examination and opinion are inadequate for adjudication purposes due to the lack of discussion regarding the Veteran's lay statements. The case is therefore being remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The examiner did not adequately address the Veteran's lay statements regarding his symptoms during and after service, which could affect the determination of whether his low back disability had its onset during active service or was caused by it.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 16, 2015
- Citation
- 1539615
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 1539615.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and an increased rating for his acquired psychiatric disorder. The Board found that there was no evidence linking the current disabilities to military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected low back disability alone does not prevent him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and bilateral hip disability, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased disability evaluation and effective dates are being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to address the severity of his low back disability, including whether he has experienced incapacitating episodes of IVDS.
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