The Board has granted a temporary total disability rating for convalescence following back surgeries from April 17, 2014 to July 3, 2014. The issues of whether reductions in the ratings for left shoulder disability and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity were proper are remanded due to new relevant VA examination reports.
The deciding factor: The AOJ has not considered post-reduction evidence from recent VA examinations when determining if the reduction was appropriate.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, left shoulder disability, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 13, 2020
- Citation
- 20065945
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 715 · Granted: 43% (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 20065945.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for residuals of gallbladder removal and remanded the other claims due to insufficient evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that remand is needed for the Veteran's claims due to duty to assist errors, including clarification of periods of service and obtaining relevant records. The Veteran will be afforded new medical examinations for each claimed disability.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for service connection were dismissed due to a procedural defect in filing the claims on the correct form.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, anxiety disorder, back disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, and right knee disability. The claim for service connection for residuals of a concussion is remanded.
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