The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient reasoning and development regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented substantially gainful employment prior to July 5, 2012. The VA needs to obtain a retrospective opinion on the combined effect of his service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Board did not provide adequate statement of reasons and bases that addressed all relevant evidence regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented substantially gainful employment prior to July 5, 2012.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Shoulder Disability, Headache
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 1, 2019
- Citation
- 19124306
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 439 · Granted: 19% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
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 19124306.
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 found new and relevant evidence to readjudicate the claim for service connection for a headache disability. The case is being remanded for further review.
- Remanded (sent back)
The claims for service connection for right and left shoulder disabilities are remanded. The claim for sleep disorder (claimed as sleep apnea) remains denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right and left shoulder disabilities, finding insufficient evidence to establish an in-service event or injury related to his shoulders. The Veteran's current shoulder conditions are not linked to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected headache disability is remanded due to the lack of a proper VA examination, which may have influenced the initial decision.
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