The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbosacral strain with arthritis is remanded due to the need for additional examination and assessment regarding flare-ups.,The Veteran’s claim for SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance of another person is also remanded as it was inferred from his statements.
The deciding factor: Additional medical evidence is needed to assess the impact of flare-ups on the Veteran's lumbosacral strain with arthritis.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the cervical spine, lumbosacral strain with arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19168056
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 19168056.
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 Board has granted service connection for PTSD, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, unspecified psychosis, arthritis of the lumbar spine, degenerative disc disease, multilevel spinal stenosis, and arthritis of the cervical spine and degenerative disc disease. The diagnoses are linked to in-service physical assaults.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and dismissed all other appeals related to various joint conditions.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine disability including arthritis of the cervical spine, and herniated nucleus pulposus of cervical spine secondary to his service-connected lumbosacral strain with intervertebral disc syndrome.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for lumbosacral strain with arthritis was granted, receiving an initial disability rating of 40 percent. The other service connection claims were denied.
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