The Veteran is granted a rating of 40 percent for his lumbar or lumbosacral spine DJD and DDD, but the issue of entitlement to TDIU remains remanded due to lack of response from the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's disability precludes him from all but sedentary work due to back pain, which is consistent with his service-connected lumbar spine disability. The AOJ has not received a completed VA Form 21-8940 regarding TDIU.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar or lumbosacral spine degenerative joint disease (DJD) and degenerative disc disease (DDD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- November 20, 2020
- Citation
- 20074528
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,960 · Granted: 36% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20074528.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the remand directives were not substantially complied with and thus another remand is warranted for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's lumbar or lumbosacral spine disability.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
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