Citation Nr: 18141465
Decision Date: 10/10/18	Archive Date: 10/10/18

DOCKET NO. 16-35 419A
DATE:	October 10, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for cervical strain is remanded.
Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran served on active duty from February 1998 to December 2011. 
These matters come before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2012 rating decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office.  In a July 2016 substantive appeal, the Veteran limited the issues on appeal to those listed on the title page.  
Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for cervical strain and an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine are remanded.
Although the Board regrets the additional delay, a remand is necessary to ensure that due process is followed and that there is a complete record upon which to decide the Veteran’s claim so that he is afforded every possible consideration.  38 U.S.C. § 5103A (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (2017). 
The record indicates that the Veteran’s most recent VA examination for his cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities were almost seven years ago in December 2011.  
Additionally, the record indicates that the Veteran’s cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities have worsened since his last VA examination in December 2011.  On June 29, 2016, the Veteran contacted the Jacksonville VA clinic to schedule an appointment “as soon as possible,” as his neck and back pain was becoming worse.  He reported that his pain had continued to be a chronic issue, and his muscle relaxer (Etodolac) was not providing relief.  A few days later, on July 5, 2016, the Veteran reported on his Form 9 that his “neck and back condition” were worse. 
The Board finds that the December 2011 VA examinations are too remote to constitute contemporaneous examinations.  See Green v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 121, 124 (1991) (VA has a duty to provide the veteran with a thorough and contemporaneous medical examination); see also Caffrey v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 377, 381 (1994) (an examination too remote for rating purposes cannot be considered “contemporaneous”).   As the record indicates that his disabilities have worsened since his last examination, a contemporaneous examination is required to ascertain the current severity of the Veteran’s service-connected cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities.  See Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400, 408 (1997) (requiring a new examination where the claimant asserts that a disability has increased in severity since the time of the last VA examination). 
Accordingly, a remand is required for a contemporaneous examination that demonstrates the current severity of his cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities. 
The matters are REMANDED for the following action:
1. Obtain all updated VA and private medical records, and associate them with the claims file to the extent possbile. 
2.  Afford the Veteran a VA examination to evaluate the current severity of his cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities using the most recent DBQ form.  The claims folder, including a copy of this remand, should be made available to the examiner for review prior to the examination.  The examiner should acknowledge such review in the examination report.
Any medically indicated tests should be conducted.  

 
G. A. WASIK
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	Department of Veterans Affairs