The Board has remanded the claim of entitlement to a Total Disability Rating Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) prior to September 29, 2016 due to inextricably intertwined issues including an increased rating for service-connected lumbar degenerative changes and a rating in excess of 20 percent for service-connected residuals of rotator cuff tear of the left shoulder.
The deciding factor: The TDIU claim is remanded as it is inextricably intertwined with other pending claims that require additional evidentiary development.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar degenerative changes, residuals of rotator cuff tear of left shoulder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20004417
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,810 · Granted: 23% (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 20004417.
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 Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for depression, right knee disability, left knee disability, and lumbar degenerative changes as there was no new and material evidence submitted to reopen these claims.
- Denied
The Veteran's residuals of status post lumbar laminectomy prior to August 16, 2017 were rated at 10 percent and the Board found that a higher rating was not warranted based on the evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back injury and left shoulder disability has been granted. The VA is remanding the claims for increased ratings for his elbow, wrist, and knee disabilities, as well as the TDIU issue.
- Denied
The Veteran's lumbar degenerative changes and right lower extremity radiculopathy have been rated, but the current ratings are denied as they do not reflect the severity of his conditions.
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