Citation Nr: 21067035 Decision Date: 11/03/21 Archive Date: 11/03/21 DOCKET NO. 20-17 394 DATE: November 3, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 20 percent for a back disability is remanded. Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for a neck disability, prior to June 3, 2021, is remanded. Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 20 percent for a neck disability, from June 3, 2021, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Air Force from August 1969 to September 1993. In February 2021, the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development and notification. The remand directives included instructions for the Regional Office (RO) to respond, in writing, to the Veteran's January 2018 and October 2020 correspondence and provide clarification of a January 8, 2018 notification letter informing the Veteran that additional evidence was needed from him. While the RO sent the Veteran a general post-remand notice letter in February 2021 requesting that he "identify by name, address and date of treatment or examination any relevant medical records" related to his neck and back claims, the Veteran has not been provided a letter that specifically acknowledges or responds, in writing, to January 2018 and October 2020 correspondence and has not been provided clarification of the January 8, 2018 notification letter. On remand, the Veteran must be provided specific correspondence that speaks directly and explicitly to his January 2018 and October 2020 inquiries and must be provided clarification of the aforementioned notice letter. The Veteran last underwent VA examinations in June 2021 to assess the nature and severity of his back and neck disabilities. The Board finds that although VA examinations do not necessarily expire or go stale due to the mere passage of time, adequate examinations must be sufficiently detailed for the Board's evaluation of the claimed disability to be a fully informed decision. Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303 (2007). Here, while the last VA examinations were quite recent, since that time, the VA have received communications from the Veteran's representative and treating physician, that he had since been hospitalized due to his back disability, and that surgery was eminent. As there is evidence of worsening since the last VA examinations, the Veteran must be afforded new examinations to determine the current severity of his neck and back disabilities. While the Veteran provided records of his recent hospitalization in August 2021, it is unclear whether additional records exists or whether he has since undergone surgery. As such development relate directly to current nature of the Veteran's claimed conditions, the Board must find that remand is required, to at least acquire any update treatment records pertinent to more recent treatment and/or surgery for the claimed disorders. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Respond in writing to, and with explicit acknowledgement and discussion of, the Veteran's January 2018 and October 2020 correspondence and provide explicit clarification of the January 8, 2018 notification letter. 2. Obtain updated VA and private treatment records to explicitly include those record from his most recent hospitalization and surgery not already of record. If back surgery was required, obtain the proper authorization from the Veteran to obtain such surgical records, and post-surgical treatment records. 3. Following completion of all notice and records development, schedule the Veteran for examinations to determine the current severity of his neck and back disabilities. The examiner must test the Veteran's active motion, passive motion, and pain with weight-bearing and without weight-bearing. The examiner must also attempt to elicit information regarding the severity, frequency, and duration of any flare-ups, and the degree of functional loss during flare-ups. The evidentiary record, including a copy of this remand, must be made available to and reviewed by the examiner. All information necessary to rate the disabilities must be included in the examination reports. DELYVONNE M. WHITEHEAD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Ziheng Zhu, 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.