The Board has determined that the VA medical opinion is inadequate for decision making purposes and remanded the case for an adequate medical opinion. The cervical spine disability issue remains under review.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion was found to be inadequate due to lack of consideration of the Veteran's prior medical history, lay statements, and relevant clinical findings.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical spine (neck) disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 12, 2021
- Citation
- 21042107
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 21042107.
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 Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine disability with left upper extremity radiculopathy, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service injury or chronic condition. The Board concluded that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for direct service connection.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine (neck) disability due to insufficient evidence showing a current disability related to service.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for GERD, sleep apnea, and a cervical spine disability. The claim for a migraine headache disability was remanded for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection and initial rating due to the need for additional VA examinations.
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