Citation Nr: 18140283 Decision Date: 10/02/18 Archive Date: 10/02/18 DOCKET NO. 15-43 939 DATE: October 2, 2018 REMANDED Entitlement to a rating in excess of 40 percent for degenerative disc disease, lumbar spine, is remanded. Entitlement to special monthly compensation (SMC) in excess of that assigned at the level intermediate to 38 U.S.C. §§ 1114(l) and 1114(m) is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from June 1982 to August 1982, May 1983 to March 1986, and February 1987 to February 1990. Additional Development with Respect to All Remaining Claims The record reflects that the Veteran is in receipt of disability benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA). The evidence of record does not show that VA has ever attempted to obtain the Veteran’s records from the SSA. These records may be highly relevant to the Veteran’s claims. Therefore, VA must attempt to obtain these records. 1. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 40 percent for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine is remanded. The Veteran was most recently afforded a VA examination with respect to this disability in April 2014. Treatment records in the claims file reflect that the Veteran underwent back surgery in October 2014. See October 29, 2014 surgical note. This surgery changes the nature of the disability and a new examination should thus be afforded to the Veteran. 2. Entitlement to SMC in excess of that assigned at the level intermediate to 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l) and 38 U.S.C. § 1114(m) is remanded. Finally, the Board notes that as the issue of entitlement to SMC in excess of that assigned at the level intermediate to 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l) and 38 U.S.C. § 1114(m) is inextricably intertwined with the remanded claim, it too must be remanded. Where a claim is inextricably intertwined with another claim, the claims must be adjudicated together. Harris v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 180 (1991). Therefore, further consideration of entitlement to SMC in excess of that assigned at the level intermediate to 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l) and 38 U.S.C. § 1114(m) must be deferred. The matters are REMANDED for the following actions: 1. Attempt to obtain a copy of any SSA decision awarding or denying disability benefits for the Veteran, copies of all medical records upon which any such SSA disability benefit award was based, and a copy of any medical records associated with any subsequent disability determinations by the SSA for the Veteran. All requests for records and their responses should be clearly delineated in the claims folder. The AOJ should notify the Veteran in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(e) if the SSA records are unavailable. 2. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination to determine the nature and severity of his service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine. The Veteran’s claims file should be provided to the examiner. The examiner must obtain a detailed clinical history from the Veteran and must note all pertinent pathology found on examination in the report of the evaluation. Any testing deemed necessary should be performed. The examiner must provide a full description of each disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran’s degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine under the rating criteria. The examiner must also discuss the functional effects of each identified disability. Rationale for all requested opinions shall be provided. If the examiner cannot provide an opinion without resorting to mere speculation, he or she shall provide a complete explanation stating why this is so. In so doing, the examiner shall explain whether the inability to provide a more definitive opinion is the result of a need for additional information or that he or she has exhausted the limits of current medical knowledge in providing an answer to that particular question(s). CAROLINE B. FLEMING Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD A.M. Clark, Counsel