The Board remands the claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to January 20, 2021, as it is inextricably intertwined with other claims.
The deciding factor: Remand necessary due to unresolved issues regarding higher initial rating for back disability and reinstatement of service connection for psychiatric disorder.
- Claimed conditions
- intervertebral disc syndrome with spinal stenosis, major depressive disorder with generalized anxiety disorder
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 22, 2025
- Citation
- 25007012
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 882 · Granted: 35% (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 25007012.
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 is granted an effective date of August 12, 2011 for his entitlement to Total Disability Rating Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA). The decision is based on the Veteran's service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following substantially gainful employment since August 12, 2011.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for intervertebral disc syndrome with spinal stenosis and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, sciatic nerve are being remanded due to outstanding medical records and inadequate prior VA examinations.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for thoracolumbar degenerative arthritis and intervertebral disc syndrome with spinal stenosis, finding that his current lumbar spine disability is related to in-service low back pain.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbosacral strain, left lower extremity radiculopathy, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and major depressive disorder with generalized anxiety disorder (MDD with GAD) are being remanded due to a duty to assist error. The effective date for MDD with GAD is currently set at March 21, 2024, but the Board finds that an earlier effective date may be warranted if service connection can be established on a different basis.
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