Citation Nr: 23013294 Decision Date: 03/04/23 Archive Date: 03/04/23 DOCKET NO. 18-31 592 DATE: March 4, 2023 REMANDED Entitlement to a rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy in excess of 10 percent prior to January 2, 2019, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter is remanded. Entitlement to a rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy in excess of 10 percent prior to January 2, 2019, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter is remanded. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from April 1986 to January 1994. This matter came before the Board of Veterans Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2016 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veteran's Law Judge during a February 2020 hearing. The transcript of the hearing is of record. April 2020 and January 2022 Board decisions remanded the issues on appeal for further development. An August 2022 decision denied service connection for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and remanded the issues on appeal for further development. A January 2023 rating decision granted service connection for right shoulder impingement syndrome. As this constituted a complete grant of the benefit sought on appeal for that issue, it is not before the Board. 1. Entitlement to a rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy in excess of 10 percent prior to January 2, 2019, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter 2. Entitlement to a rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy in excess of 10 percent prior to January 2, 2019, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter 3. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine The Board's review indicates that the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) has not yet completed its development regarding the issues on appeal. The August 2022 remand directives noted that there may be outstanding private treatment records, including from an outside neurosurgeon, Dr. Cyr. The remand directives asked the AOJ to contact the Veteran to complete an authorization for her private providers that treat her back (including Dr. Cyr) and then request records from any identified providers. On remand, the AOJ requested the required authorization in September 2022 and October 2022. A Supplemental Statement of the Case ( SSOC ) was then issued on January 18, 2023. The SSOC stated that the Veteran would have 30 days to respond before her appeal would be sent back to the Board. The record shows that on February 6, 2023, 19 days after issuance of the SSOC, the Veteran provided the AOJ the requested authorization, listing both Dr. Cyr and North Central Baptist Hospital as providers. She therefore provided that authorization within 30 days of notification of the SSOC and before the case was returned to the Board. However, the record then shows that the AOJ returned the case to the Board on February 19, 2023. Three days later, on February 22, 2020, the record shows that the AOJ requested medical records from North Central Baptist Hospital (three days after returning the case to the Board). The record does not yet contain a request for records from Dr. Cyr. While the Veteran did not respond to the initial requests for authorization, the record shows that she did provide the requested authorization within the 30 day period the SSOC told her she would have before the case was returned to the Board. However, despite receiving the authorization during the stated window, the AOJ did not begin to request the identified records until after returning the case to the Board. The record shows that the requested development is now in progress. A decision on these issues must therefore be deferred as the development requested in the August 2022 remand is currently incomplete. As the record does not show that the AOJ has yet requested records from Dr. Cyr, that request should be made upon remand. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Request any outstanding private records from the Veteran's private neurosurgeon Dr. Cyr and from North Central Baptist Hospital. Make two requests for the authorized records from Dr. Cyr and one additional request from North Central Baptist hospital if needed to obtain the outstanding records unless it is clear after the first request that a second request would be futile. 2. If upon completion of the above action the appeal remains denied, the case should be returned to the Board after compliance with appellate procedures. E. I. VELEZ Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board A. Arnold, 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.