The Board remands the claims for service connection for lumbar and cervical spine disabilities to correct duty to assist errors that occurred prior to the September 2022 supplemental claim decision on appeal.
The deciding factor: Remand is necessary due to inadequate medical opinions and unaddressed theories of entitlement, specifically regarding causation and aggravation by the service-connected bilateral knee disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) with Intervertebral Disc Syndrome (IVDS), Cervical Strain
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 6, 2024
- Citation
- A24072178
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 earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, cervical strain, lumbar strain, and associated bilateral radicular disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for several conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome and cervical strain, and assigned a 30 percent rating for IBS. The claim was denied for right knee scars and other knee-related issues.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for sinusitis pursuant to the PACT Act and granted a 70 percent rating for PTSD, while denying service connection for bilateral hearing loss, cervical strain, right ulnar nerve disability, right wrist disability, dermatitis, RLS, CFS, and a higher rating for an abdominal disorder.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 70 percent disability rating for adjustment disorder with anxiety and remanded other issues for further development.
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