The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to the veteran's incarceration and unavailability of certain medical records. The RO is instructed to obtain any available treatment records from correctional facilities, arrange for a VA examination if possible, and consider all submitted evidence.
The deciding factor: The veteran is incarcerated and unable to undergo a VA examination under regular conditions, necessitating additional development through obtaining his medical records and arranging an evaluation within the prison facility.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative arthritis, multiple joints, hiatal hernia with esophageal reflux
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2006
- Citation
- 0601922
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0601922.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) based on his service-connected disabilities, which include gouty arthritis, hiatal hernia with esophageal reflux, lumbar spine degenerative changes, and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy. The effective date will be determined by the AOJ.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for hiatal hernia with esophageal reflux is being remanded due to the need for a more comprehensive VA examination and opinion.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for TDIU due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his conditions did not preclude him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating in excess of 30 percent for hiatal hernia with esophageal reflux is denied. The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence does not support a higher disability rating. The Veteran's skin disability claim is remanded due to inadequate medical opinion.
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