The Board has remanded the issues of increased ratings for left and right ankle disabilities due to procedural errors in reducing their ratings from 20% to 10%. The Veteran's service-connected ankle disabilities are rated under Code 5271, which provides for a 10% rating for moderate limitation of motion.
The deciding factor: The reduction was based on the August 2010 VA examination report that demonstrated sustained improvement warranting the reductions in ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Knee Disability, Right Ankle Injury, Left Ankle Injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 4, 2015
- Citation
- 1505199
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 1505199.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities are rated at 10% each, and the Board finds that higher ratings are not warranted based on the evidence of record.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities are not related to his active service, and thus denied both claims for service connection.
- Denied
The Veteran's left knee disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board finds no evidence of clear and unmistakable error in assigning an effective date of June 19, 2002.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his low back, left knee, and right knee disabilities due to inadequate VA examinations. The AOJ is instructed to obtain private treatment records from Mays & Schnapp Pain Management and schedule the Veteran for additional medical examinations.
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