The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining employment records and scheduling VA examinations to assess the severity of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Board found that further assistance was needed in obtaining employment records from the United States Postal Service and scheduled the Veteran for a VA examination to evaluate his right knee and lumbar spine disabilities during an active stage due to cold weather.
- Claimed conditions
- right knee degenerative joint disease, status post total knee replacement, lumbar spine degenerative disc disease, L4-5 and L5-S1, right thumb laceration
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 24, 2012
- Citation
- 1232935
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 1232935.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a right thumb scar status post laceration and readjudicated the claims of entitlement to service connection for various disorders, finding new and relevant evidence in some cases.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including sleep apnea and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, are found to be of such severity that they preclude his ability to maintain substantially gainful employment. The TDIU rating is granted. However, the issue of a higher rating for the back disability remains pending.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for right knee and left shoulder disabilities, as they are related to his service-connected bilateral pes planus. Additional development is needed to ensure that due process is followed and there is a complete record upon which to decide these claims.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unemployable, as he has been self-employed for over thirty years and missed an average of 4-6 days a month due to his conditions. The evidence does not show marked interference with employment.
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