The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for cervical spine, lumbar spine, and left knee disabilities due to outstanding VA treatment records that have not been associated with the claims file. The Veteran is required to provide names and addresses of any relevant medical providers and updated VA treatment records are needed.
The deciding factor: The Board found a duty to assist error occurred prior to the March 2019 rating decision on appeal for cervical spine, lumbar spine, and left knee disabilities due to outstanding VA treatment records that have not been associated with the claims file. The Veteran is required to provide names and addresses of any relevant medical providers and updated VA treatment records are needed.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine disability, lumbar spine disability, left knee disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 31, 2019
- Citation
- A19003936
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 A19003936.
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 service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disabilities to the AOJ for further development and consideration of evidence not previously considered.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
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