The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to issues related to thoracolumbar spine, cervical spine, sleep apnea syndrome, and bilateral foot disability. The Veteran's active duty was from February 1976 to February 1979, outside of wartime service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not have qualifying wartime service for nonservice-connected pension benefits, and the claims are remanded due to issues related to thoracolumbar spine, cervical spine, sleep apnea syndrome, and bilateral foot disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Thoracolumbar spine disability, Cervical spine disability, Bilateral foot disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 2, 2019
- Citation
- 19123896
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 low back disability, cervical spine disability, and right leg nerve disability as the evidence did not support a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active service.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection for right ear hearing loss and a compensable evaluation for left ear hearing loss were dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeals at a December 2024 Board hearing. The remaining claims are being remanded for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a separate 50 percent initial rating for insomnia as secondary to tinnitus, and denied an increased rating for tinnitus. The Board also granted service connection for headache disability, low back disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, cervical spine disability, and right upper extremity radiculopathy.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death while it was pending.
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