The Board has remanded the claim for service connection of a lumbar spine disorder due to new and material evidence. The claims for increased ratings for bilateral knee osteoarthritis are denied as they do not meet the criteria for higher ratings under applicable diagnostic codes.
The deciding factor: New evidence received since the final May 2009 rating decision raised a reasonable possibility of substantiating the Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for a low back disorder. The increased rating claims for bilateral knee osteoarthritis were denied as they do not meet the criteria for higher ratings under applicable diagnostic codes.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine disorder, left knee osteoarthritis, right knee osteoarthritis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 2, 2019
- Citation
- 19151682
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,242 · Granted: 27% (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 19151682.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim for major depression to encompass any mental health disability raised by the record and has remanded six issues for additional development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various hip and lower extremity disorders, including as secondary to a lumbar spine disorder. The case is being returned to the AOJ for further action.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to errors in obtaining relevant medical records and authorization for private treatment providers. The issues include heart disorder, OSA, sinusitis, lumbar spine disorder, and right knee disorder all related to Agent Orange exposure.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's request to readjudicate his claims for service connection for a lumbar spine disorder and obstructive sleep apnea, but denied his claim for right knee disorder. The Board also remanded the cases of left leg disorder and lumbar spine disorder.
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