The Board has remanded the case due to noncompliance with prior remand instructions, specifically regarding obtaining a medical nexus opinion from a physician rather than a nurse practitioner.
The deciding factor: The AOJ did not comply with the previous remand directive of requesting a medical nexus review by a physician and instead conducted a routine C&P examination.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease (DDD), spondylosis, lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 8, 2020
- Citation
- 20065457
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 40 percent evaluation for sciatic nerve radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, a 30 percent evaluation for femoral nerve radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, and a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU), but denied an increased evaluation in excess of 40 percent for spinal stenosis and lumbar intervertebral disc syndrome.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for degenerative disc disease (DDD) was dismissed by the Veteran in written correspondence.
- Granted
The veteran was granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities from March 1, 2021, and an effective date of March 1, 2021, for eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35.
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