The Board has remanded the claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities because it is inextricably intertwined with the issue of reopening service connection for a low back disability, which was previously remanded. The TDIU claim will be reconsidered after the low back disability claim has been adjudicated.
The deciding factor: The TDIU claim cannot be decided without first resolving the issue of whether the Veteran's low back disability should be reopened and service-connected.
- Claimed conditions
- unspecified
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 23, 2020
- Citation
- 20074732
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 20074732.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities was denied as she is not service connected for any disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU rating is granted from February 1, 2010, as this was the date he stopped working due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Granted
The Board has reinstated the Veteran's entitlement to a Total Disability Rating Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) due to disagreement over the weight of evidence indicating that his service-connected disabilities do render him unable to maintain gainful employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to an error in failing to obtain a VA opinion regarding the functional impact of any side effects from medication used to treat service-connected disabilities, which may affect the Veteran's ability to work.
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