The Board has determined that additional evidence was submitted and should be considered in the first instance. The Veteran's increased rating claims for lumbar spine, cervical spine, and right upper extremity radiculopathy disabilities are being remanded to allow for consideration of this new evidence.
The deciding factor: Additional evidence was added to the record since the last SSOC, which should be reviewed by the AOJ in the first instance.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) of the lumbar spine, Cervical spine degenerative disc disease with torticollis, Right upper extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 13, 2024
- Citation
- 24032922
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,156 · Granted: 29% (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 24032922.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and the Board has granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for earlier effective dates on all issues related to his service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's right upper extremity radiculopathy is granted a 40 percent rating, and the left upper extremity radiculopathy is granted a 30 percent rating. The cervical spine degenerative arthritis does not meet the criteria for a higher than 20 percent rating.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates of November 14, 2016 for the service connection of right upper extremity radiculopathy and left lower extremity radiculopathy as secondary to service-connected neck condition and lumbosacral strain, respectively.
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