The Board has determined that the Veteran's timely Notice of Disagreement (NOD) regarding his service-connected decreased function of the left hand was received within one year of the July 2017 rating decision. The remaining issues, including increased ratings for burns and scars of the left hand and forearm, anxiety disorder, and a TDIU claim, are remanded due to procedural errors.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's timely NOD regarding his service-connected decreased function of the left hand was received within one year of the July 2017 rating decision. The remaining issues require further development as they were not addressed in the previous rating decisions and have potential procedural defects.
- Claimed conditions
- Decreased function of the left hand, Burns and scars of the left hand and forearm, Anxiety disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19161948
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,035 · Granted: 30% (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 19161948.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and depressive disorder. The evidence is at least in balance regarding whether his current conditions are related to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected anxiety disorder, lumbar strain with degenerative arthritis, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy contributed to his death from congestive heart failure. The claim for DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is denied as the Veteran did not meet the criteria of having a combined rating of at least one year immediately preceding death.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for a psychiatric disability to include PTSD and an anxiety disorder, other than the service-connected insomnia disorder. The claims for recurrent right shoulder disability, recurrent left shoulder disability, and obstructive sleep apnea are remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as PTSD, anxiety disorder, and nightmare disorder was denied. The Veteran also appealed for TDIU based on his service-connected PTSD. Both appeals were granted.
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