The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for hepatitis C and lower back disability due to inadequate examinations and conflicting medical opinions. The Veteran is seeking service connection for these conditions, which are currently being reviewed.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations were found to be inadequate and there are conflicting medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Hepatitis C, Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) of the lumbosacral spine, Degenerative disc disease (DDD), Foraminal or lateral recess, Central stenosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 28, 2020
- Citation
- 20006861
Veterans Law Judge
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 20006861.
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 Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability and other disabilities have been granted, including a TDIU based on his inability to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied a compensable initial rating for Hepatitis C, finding that the Veteran's condition was asymptomatic and did not meet the criteria for any higher rating.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's Hepatitis C with cirrhosis is related to service, and therefore grants service connection for these conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's lumbar disorder, diagnosed as DDD and a lumbosacral strain, has been granted service connection. The Board found that the disability is related to his military service.
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