The Board has decided to remand the case due to an inadequate VA opinion regarding the Veteran's back condition. The examiner needs to provide a new opinion addressing whether the Veteran's in-service chronic back pain was early manifestations of his current back disability and if it can be determined that the symptoms he complained about during service were early manifestations of his current back disability.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not adequately consider the Veteran’s lay statements regarding the history and continuity of symptomatology, including his ongoing reports of back pain since his separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- history of recurrent herniated lumbar disc, L4/5, with residuals of right foot drop and muscle atrophy (back condition)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19193381
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,820 · Granted: 26% (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 19193381.
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
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