The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including obtaining updated VA treatment records, private medical records, tax returns, and a VA examination. The issues of TDIU and whether the Veteran is incarcerated are also being addressed.
The deciding factor: The decision was not about service connection but rather about determining if the Veteran's service-connected conditions prevent him from engaging in sedentary employment due to his back condition and right lower extremity radiculopathy, which were not considered in previous decisions. The Board found that these issues needed further development.
- Claimed conditions
- Right lower extremity radiculopathy, Back condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 19, 2019
- Citation
- 19163995
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,038 · Granted: 30% (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 19163995.
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 Veteran's right lower extremity radiculopathy was evaluated at a 20 percent rating, and the Board found that it did not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the claims for psychiatric disability and sleep apnea.,Service connection was granted for right lower extremity radiculopathy and left lower extremity radiculopathy secondary to a service-connected back disability, but denied for right wrist disability.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for degenerative disc disease prior to August 1, 2025 was denied as the evidence did not show unfavorable ankylosis of the thoracolumbar spine.,The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy prior to March 10, 2025 were denied as there is no neurological impairment associated with these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for service connection of his back condition due to inadequate medical opinion and failure to consider all relevant evidence.
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