Citation Nr: 21042189 Decision Date: 07/12/21 Archive Date: 07/12/21 DOCKET NO. 17-03 756 DATE: July 12, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for lumbar strain prior to February 17, 2017, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter (excluding a period of temporary total rating from November 30, 2018 to January 31, 2019) is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from September 2005 to July 2015. This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2015 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). During the pendency of the appeal, a subsequent May 2017 rating decision granted an increased 20 percent rating for lumbar strain effective February 17, 2017. A February 2019 rating decision assigned a temporary 100 percent rating from November 30, 2018 to January 31, 2019 based on surgical treatment necessitating convalescence. The Veteran has not indicated that he is satisfied with his rating and has continued to appeal his rating (excluding the period of temporary total evaluation). See AB v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 36, 38 (1993). Entitlement to an increased rating for lumbar strain The record reflects that the Veteran underwent an endoscopic discectomy due to his service-connected back disability in November 2018. As the Veteran has not been provided a VA examination since his surgery, the Board finds that the Veteran should be provided an opportunity to report for a new VA examination to ascertain the current severity and manifestations of his service-connected lumbar strain. Also, the record reflects that the Veteran has been receiving pain treatment and a back brace for his back disability, as well as primary care treatment though VA's Choice Program. Remand is necessary to obtain records of orthopedic and primary care treatment through VA's Choice Program. 38 C.F.R. § 3.159. VA treatment records from March 2019 note that a February 2019 MRI from Tri-State Memorial Hospital was scanned and could be accessed through the Vista Imaging System. The Board does not have access to the Vista Imaging System; therefore, remand is necessary to associate the record with the claims file. The matters are REMANDED for the following actions: 1. Ask the Veteran to complete a VA Form 21-4142 for all private providers who have treated him for his lumbar strain at any time during the appeal period, including for all VA Choice-authorized orthopedic and primary care treatment. Make two requests for the authorized records from each identified provider unless it is clear after the first request that a second request would be futile. 2. Obtain and associate with the claims file the February 2019 MRI from Tri-State Memorial Hospital located in the Vista Imaging System 3. Obtain the Veteran's VA treatment records for the period from March 2021 to the present. 4. Schedule the Veteran for an examination by an appropriate clinician to determine the current severity of his service-connected lumbar strain. The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran's disability under the rating criteria. In so doing, the examiner must test the Veteran's active motion, passive motion, and pain with weight-bearing and without weight-bearing. The examiner must attempt to elicit information regarding the severity, frequency, and duration of any flare-ups, and the degree of functional loss during flare-ups. If it is not possible to provide a specific measurement based on direct observation, the examiner should provide an estimate, if at all possible, of the additional impairment due to flare-ups based on the other evidence of record and the Veteran's statements. If it is not possible to provide a specific measurement without speculation, the examiner must state whether the need to speculate is due to a deficiency in the state of general medical knowledge (no one could respond given medical science and the known facts), a deficiency in the record (additional facts are required), or the examiner (does not have the knowledge or training). Jennifer White Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Bonnie Yoon, 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.