The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition, including degenerative disc disease, has been reopened. The Board finds new and material evidence to support the reopening of the claim but remands it for further development as an additional VA examination is needed.
The deciding factor: New evidence was submitted that relates to an unestablished fact (the relationship between the Veteran's back condition and his service), raising a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. However, the Board finds insufficient competent medical evidence on file to make a decision without further development.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease, back condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2024
- Citation
- 24000479
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 715 · Granted: 43% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 24000479.
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 back condition, including degenerative disc disease and scoliosis, due to lack of current disability evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examinations related to the Veteran's lower back condition and surgical scars are inadequate, necessitating a remand for further evaluation.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea has been dismissed due to the withdrawal of his request.,Service connection for a back condition is denied as there is no evidence that the condition began during service or is related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection of a low back disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, finding inadequate medical opinions due to failure to consider all relevant evidence.
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