The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for left elbow and cervical spine disabilities due to insufficient rationale in the previous VA examination reports. The Veteran is required to provide a new medical opinion that addresses his lay statements regarding in-service injuries and symptoms.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not adequately address the Veteran’s lay testimony regarding in-service motor vehicle accidents and their impact on his current disability, as well as the 1979 service record showing loss of lordotic curve of the cervical spine.
- Claimed conditions
- left elbow epicondylitis, cervical spine degenerative disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 8, 2020
- Citation
- 20038855
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 20038855.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
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 left and right elbow epicondylitis, finding that the conditions were incurred during active service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's left elbow condition, finding that his current disability is more likely than not caused by an in-service injury during his National Guard service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for cervical spine degenerative disease, cervical strain, left upper extremity radiculopathy, right upper extremity radiculopathy, and migraine and occipital headaches. Service connection was denied for bilateral pes planus, papillary thyroid carcinoma, status post partial left thyroidectomy, and left foot hallux valgus.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for initial compensable disability ratings and service connection for various conditions, including supraventricular arrhythmia and Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, erectile dysfunction, left groin scar, bilateral hearing loss, chronic fatigue syndrome, left elbow epicondylitis, and multiple concussions.
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