The Veteran's cervical spine disability is denied as it was not incurred during active duty, did not manifest to a compensable degree within one year of separation, and is not otherwise related to military service.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence that the Veteran’s degenerative disc disease manifested to a compensable degree within a year of service or that his current cervical spine disorders are due to his prior military service or an injury therein.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 19, 2019
- Citation
- 19186234
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,030 · Granted: 17% (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 19186234.
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 decided to remand the case due to a failure to obtain a medical opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's cervical disability. The claim will be reconsidered with this information.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Appellant's request for attorney fees based on past-due benefits awarded in July 2024, as the May 2024 VA Form 21-526EZ submitted by the Appellant constituted an initial claim and not a supplemental one. The July 2024 Rating Decision was the initial decision on these issues.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's appeals for an earlier effective date and a higher rating for his psychiatric and cervical disabilities, as the evidence did not support an earlier effective date or a higher disability rating.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a cervical disability as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected Polymyalgia rheumatica, finding that the Veteran's auto-immune disease caused or aggravated his current neck condition.
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