The Veteran's request to reopen a previously denied claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is denied.,Prior to December 5, 2019, the Veteran's lumbar spine DJD with DDD disability was not rated higher than 10 percent. The case is remanded for further examination and rating consideration.,The Veteran's entitlement to a TDIU is also remanded due to its inextricably intertwined nature with the increased rating claim.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not meet the criteria for reopening the previously denied psychiatric disorder claim, as no new and material evidence has been submitted.,The Veteran's lumbar spine DJD with DDD disability was rated at 10 percent prior to December 5, 2019. The case is remanded for further examination and rating consideration due to potential increase in severity.,The TDIU claim is also remanded as it is inextricably intertwined with the increased rating claim for lumbar spine DJD with DDD.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine degenerative joint disease (DJD) with degenerative disc disease (DDD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 20, 2023
- Citation
- 23039954
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 23039954.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine, sciatic radiculopathy, and femoral nerve radiculopathy disabilities have been remanded for further review.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and psychiatric disability, as well as assessing the current severity of his lumbar spine, lower extremity radiculopathy, back scars, and left ear perforated tympanic membrane.
- 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.
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