The Board has remanded the claims for increased ratings for bilateral lower extremities cold injuries due to a duty to assist error. The Veteran is also denied an effective date prior to August 8, 2017 for service connection.
The deciding factor: There was a failure to consider loss of use of either foot in the most recent examination report and the claim must be remanded for a more contemporaneous examination.
- Claimed conditions
- left foot cold injury residuals, right foot cold injury residuals
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2019
- Citation
- A19002344
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for left foot cold injury residuals was dismissed due to the untimely filing of the Board Appeal request.
- Partly granted
The Board granted restoration of the 30 percent evaluation for left foot cold injury residuals effective March 1, 2023, and service connection for a left ankle/foot disorder, diagnosed as left foot ganglion cyst.
- Dismissed
The appeal for an earlier effective date for left foot cold injury residuals and peripheral neuropathy was dismissed due to the concurrent election of review requests.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board vacated its previous decision and will re-adjudicate the appeals. The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied based on the evidence available at the time of the May 2019 rating decision.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.