The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are remanded due to the need for additional examinations to comply with VA examination requirements.
The deciding factor: The current examinations do not fully satisfy the requirements of Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016), Sharp v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 26 (2017), and 38 C.F.R. § 4.59.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disease of the Lumbar Spine, Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the Cervical Spine with Radiculopathy of the Right Upper Extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19127078
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,810 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19127078.
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 PTSD and Degenerative Disease of the Lumbar Spine have been granted initial ratings, but no higher. The Veteran is not entitled to increased ratings for these conditions.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD prior to April 2018, increased ratings for intervertebral disc syndrome with degenerative disease of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy of both lower extremities, and TDIU prior to April 2018 are all denied.
- Denied
The Board found no evidence of a right leg disability or low back disability to include degenerative joint disease as incurred in service, and thus denied the Veteran's claims.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current degenerative disease of the lumbar spine is related to an in-service injury, and thus service connection is granted.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.