The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for further development due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the relationship between his service-connected bilateral foot disabilities and his claimed back and leg disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner’s opinion lacked an adequate explanation or rationale with respect to the potential nexus between current back disability and the Veteran’s service-connected bilateral foot disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine (back disability), Left leg disability, Right leg disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19130565
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability other than PTSD, to include major depressive disorder (MDD), and fibromyalgia as secondary to MDD. Service connection was denied for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and various musculoskeletal disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for PTSD and sleep disturbance, and remanded the claims for a right wrist disability, right shoulder disability, left shoulder disability, right leg disability, left leg disability, and bilateral foot disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for GERD, a low back disability, and a right leg disability due to inadequate medical opinions.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a cervical spine disability, left leg disability, low back disability, depression, and left arm numbness and tingling. The Veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.