The Veteran's lumbar spine osteoarthritis with IVDS is currently rated at 40 percent, and the Board has found that a higher rating is not warranted based on incapacitating episodes. The Veteran's right hip disability is currently rated at 10 percent for limitation of extension prior to November 5, 2018, and remanded for further evaluation.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support a finding of unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes that would warrant a higher rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine or the Formula for Rating IVDS Based on Incapacitating Episodes.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine osteoarthritis with intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2024
- Citation
- 24001055
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 845 · Granted: 39% (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 24001055.
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 appeal is remanded for additional VA examinations to assess the severity of his service-connected lumbar spine, right hip, and right knee disabilities. The claims will be readjudicated after these examinations.
- Denied
The Veteran's diabetes mellitus and lumbar spine osteoarthritis with IVDS have been rated at the maximum available rating of 20 percent each. The Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted for either condition.
- 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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