The Board has remanded the issues of service connection and whether new and material evidence was obtained to reopen claims for various conditions. The Veteran's character of discharge is also being remanded.
The deciding factor: The decision involves reopening previously denied claims due to new evidence suggesting a mental health condition at the time of discharge, which could potentially affect the determination of insanity under VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, drug and alcohol abuse, right hip arthritis with avascular necrosis, low back disorder, left knee disorder, acquired psychiatric disorder (paranoid personality disorder)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19103379
Veterans Law Judge
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 19103379.
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 Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and providing proper notice regarding secondary service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for a VA examination and medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's low back disorder and bilateral hip disorder are related to his service-connected Crohn's disease.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for low back disorder, skin disorder, tongue condition, right chest costochondritis, and right hand shaking due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for lumbosacral strain, asthma, melasma and hydradenitis, hypertension, an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression, anxiety, and stress), left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, left knee disorder, a left foot disorder, and IBS have been granted. The remaining issues are remanded.
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