The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to inadequate VA examinations used for rating purposes. The Board requires a retrospective medical opinion on the severity of his cervical spine disability from June 21, 1993, to March 18, 2021.
The deciding factor: The AOJ relied on inadequate VA examinations for evaluating the Veteran's cervical spine disability and must obtain a retrospective medical opinion to adequately consider functional loss due to pain, weakness, excess fatigability, incoordination, and flare-ups.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine degenerative disc disease with arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 17, 2026
- Citation
- A26014376
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 A26014376.
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 claim for increased ratings and service connection for bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy prior to March 18, 2021 is being remanded due to the need to consider the effects of medication used by the Veteran.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU and DEA eligibility are granted effective May 5, 2021.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to insufficient VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several claims related to the Veteran's knee and cervical spine disabilities, including effective date determinations and initial disability ratings. The TDIU claim was also remanded for due process development.
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