The Board has determined that additional evidence is needed to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities, including his low back condition, neck condition, and shoulder condition. The claims are being remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided in the May 2017 VA examination were insufficient to support a grant of service connection at this time due to their conclusory nature and lack of consideration of all pertinent evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis, disc and joint disease of the thoracolumbar spine (low back condition), Degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, Left shoulder condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 26, 2023
- Citation
- 23040704
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 23040704.
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 Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for cervical spine condition and left shoulder condition due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, as VA failed to provide the Veteran with VA examinations and medical opinions to assess the nature and etiology of his conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine was granted with effective dates of May 13, 2019.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar and cervical spine are being remanded due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The AOJ is directed to obtain an addendum medical opinion that addresses the extent of flareups experienced by the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
Service connection for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and anxiety is granted. The Veteran's right lower extremity radiculopathy, right knee condition, and OSA are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
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