The Veteran's service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and left upper extremity radiculopathy are currently rated at 20 percent each. The Board has found that additional development is needed due to issues related to effective dates.
The deciding factor: Effective date determinations require review of prior claims, which were not addressed in this decision.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, Left upper extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- November 22, 2019
- Citation
- A19003082
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 A19003082.
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 rendered him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment, thus granting a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death while it was pending.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an initial compensable rating for a residual scar from cervical fusion on the basis of disfigurement and granted an initial 10 percent rating based on pain. The Board also denied initial ratings in excess of 20 percent for intervertebral disc syndrome of the cervical spine with spinal fusion and stenosis, as well as right and left upper extremity radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and scheduling VA examinations to assess the severity of the Veteran's disabilities from May 7, 2013, to August 5, 2019.
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