The Board has reopened the claim for service connection of a cervical spine disorder and granted it. The Veteran's current diagnosis is best characterized as cervical disc disease, which the Board finds to be at least as likely as not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The September 2019 private examiner found that the Veteran’s cervical disc disease was more likely than not due to an in-service injury during a fall. The December 2020 VA examiner supported this finding, noting the Veteran had a history of neck pain and right arm pain complaints during service.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical disc disease
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 8, 2021
- Citation
- 21013099
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 21013099.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's combined service-connected disabilities prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation, and therefore grants his claim for total disability based on individual unemployability.
- Granted
The Board has granted increased ratings for cervical spine disability, left and right upper extremity radiculopathy effective May 19, 2011. The Veteran's service-connected conditions have been rated based on their direct effects rather than any presumption or secondary connection.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and effective dates have been denied. The Board found that the criteria for higher ratings were not met, except for a March 29, 2013 effective date for service connection of right lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for cervical disc disease, degenerative joint disease of the right shoulder, and radiculopathy of the right upper extremity due to inadequate VA examinations. The issues are inextricably intertwined as the rating assigned for one condition may affect another.
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