Citation Nr: 21004854 Decision Date: 01/28/21 Archive Date: 01/28/21 DOCKET NO. 19-18 690A DATE: January 28, 2021 REMANDED Service connection for a back condition is remanded. Service connection for a neck condition is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from August 1984 to June 1987. These matters are before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2015 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ). Service connection for neck and back conditions is remanded. In an April 2019 rating decision, the Veteran was granted service connection for PTSD based on a beating or assault he experienced in 1986 while on active duty service. No physician or VA examiner has opined on whether the Veteran’s current neck and back symptoms are at least as likely as not related to the 1986 in-service assault. Additionally, the April 2019 VA examiner indicated the onset of the Veteran’s back condition was during service but then provided a negative causal link (nexus) opinion regarding service connection for the claimed back conditions. Therefore, a remand is required for new VA examinations of the Veteran for his neck and back conditions. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Please note that, by law, ALL remanded claims must be processed expeditiously. 2. The AOJ should arrange for a VA examination (or telehealth interview, review of the record, etc., if an in-person examination is not feasible) of the Veteran to determine the nature and likely cause of any lumbar spine (claimed as back) disability. The examiner should review the claim file (including this remand) and note that the review was conducted. Based on review of the record and examination of the Veteran, the examiner should provide an opinion with detailed rationale that responds to the following: (a.) Please identify, by diagnosis, all lumbar spine disabilities present during the appeal period (from December 2011). (b.) For each lumbar spine disability diagnosed, is it at least as likely as not (50% or greater probability) that such disability was either incurred in or otherwise related to the Veteran’s military service? Please explain why. (c.) The examiner is specifically requested to consider the 1986 beating that the Veteran experienced during service. (See June 2015 statement in support of claim) The examiner is reminded that, by law, despite lack of a formal diagnosis, symptoms may count as a disability for VA compensation purposes if they cause functional impairment. The examiner is also reminded that continuity or persistence of symptoms since the in-service injury, event, or disease may be sufficient to establish a causal link to military service. A detailed explanation (rationale) is required for all opinions provided. (By law, the Board is not permitted to rely on any conclusion that is not supported by a thorough explanation. Providing an opinion or conclusion without a thorough explanation will delay processing of the claim and may also result in a clarification being requested.) 3. The AOJ should arrange for a VA examination (or telehealth interview, review of the record, etc., if an in-person examination is not feasible) of the Veteran to determine the nature and likely cause of any neck disability. The examiner should review the claim file (including this remand) and note such review was conducted. Based on review of the record and examination of the Veteran, the examiner should provide an opinion with detailed rationale that responds to the following: (a.) Please identify, by diagnosis, all neck disabilities present during the appeal period (from December 2011). (b.) For each neck disability diagnosed, is it at least as likely as not (50% or greater probability) that such disability was either incurred in or otherwise related to the Veteran’s military service? Please explain why. (c.) The examiner is specifically requested to consider the 1986 beating that the Veteran experienced during service. The examiner is reminded that, by law, despite lack of a formal diagnosis, symptoms may count as a disability for VA compensation purposes if they cause functional impairment. The examiner is also reminded that continuity or persistence of symptoms since the in-service injury, event, or disease may be sufficient to establish a causal link to military service. A detailed explanation (rationale) is required for all opinions provided. (By law, the Board is not permitted to rely on any conclusion that is not supported by a thorough explanation. Providing an opinion or conclusion without a thorough explanation will delay processing of the claim and may also result in a clarification being requested.) VICTORIA MOSHIASHWILI Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Williams, Associate Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.