The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional medical records from private providers and VA facilities. The specific conditions at issue are L5-S1 spondylosis and traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine, which have been rated based on their severity prior to October 27, 2020, and since that date.
The deciding factor: The decision is remanded due to the need for additional medical records from private providers and VA facilities.
- Claimed conditions
- L5-S1 spondylosis, traumatic arthritis lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 16, 2021
- Citation
- 21014958
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 21014958.
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 higher rating for his low back disability was denied, as the evidence did not show that it met the criteria for a rating in excess of 20 percent. The claim for TDIU was also denied due to lack of evidence showing he could not work due to service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeals regarding increased ratings for osteoarthritis of the right thumb and traumatic arthritis lumbar spine are being remanded to obtain additional medical records.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment consistent with his education and occupational experience.
- Denied
The Veteran's low back disability was not rated higher than 10 percent prior to March 7, 2016 and not rated higher than 40 percent after that date.
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