The Veteran's claim for special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular aid and attendance or at the housebound rate is remanded due to incomplete medical records. The VA needs to obtain updated VA treatment records, SSA disability application records, and arrange for a VA aid and attendance examination.
The deciding factor: Incomplete medical records prevent a determination of whether the Veteran requires aid and attendance or if she is housebound due to her service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Service not specified
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19125103
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,757 · Granted: 23% (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 19125103.
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 Veteran's claim for special monthly compensation (SMC) based on aid and attendance is remanded due to a duty-to-assist error. A VA examination is needed to determine if the Veteran meets the requirements for SMC.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claim for a VA medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's service-connected disabilities preclude him from participating in substantially gainful employment. The case will be readjudicated after considering all additional evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities result in the need for regular aid and attendance of another person due to his inability to dress, bathe, prepare meals, manage medications, and perform daily activities without assistance.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher disability rating is denied as the law does not allow payment of VA disability compensation at a rate greater than 10 percent while he is incarcerated for more than 60 days due to a felony conviction.
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