The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's current shoulder pain and his military service. The Veteran needs a new VA examination to clarify his diagnosis(es) and provide an adequate medical nexus opinion.
The deciding factor: The medical opinion provided by the private rheumatologist is deemed inadequate as it does not account for the Veteran's lay statements regarding in-service onset of symptoms, nor does it specify when the heavy lifting and repetitive motion occurred during service or AGR tour.
- Claimed conditions
- shoulder pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 17, 2012
- Citation
- 1217715
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 1217715.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's eligibility for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) is being remanded due to a lack of adequate explanation in the VA opinion regarding whether the Veteran requires personal care services based on the criteria listed in 38 U.S.C. § 1720G(a)(2)(C) and 38 C.F.R. § 71.20(a)(3).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected GERD is remanded due to the inadequacy of the January 2019 VA examination, which did not evaluate all symptoms and provide an adequate assessment.
- Dismissed
The appeal as to the claims of service connection for shoulder pain and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is dismissed, and an effective date prior to April 18, 2024, for the award of service connection for a lumbar spine disorder, to include degenerative arthritis and scoliosis, is denied.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a Level 2 stipend under the VA's Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers due to his inability to self-sustain in the community.
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