The Veteran's degenerative joint and disc disease of the cervical spine, claimed as chronic neck pain, is denied because there is no evidence that it began during service or is related to an in-service injury.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran’s degenerative joint and disc disease of the cervical spine is less likely than not incurred in or caused by an in-service injury, including being struck by lightning.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint and disc disease of the cervical spine, chronic neck pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 20, 2019
- Citation
- 19164614
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 899 · Granted: 45% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19164614.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for sinusitis and remanded the Veteran's claims for chronic lower back pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, neck pain, and GERD.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied an earlier effective date for service connection of chronic neck pain and cervical strain, finding that the Veteran did not file a claim for these conditions until June 28, 2013.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board denied a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss and remanded claims for service connection for headaches, chronic neck pain, mental health disorder, and temporomandibular joint disorder.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for chronic neck pain, sinusitis, right knee condition, left knee condition, and back condition due to inadequate medical opinions.
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