The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for right and left shoulder degenerative joint disease, as well as the claim for paranoid schizophrenia. The Veteran's request to reopen his claims is also remanded. Additionally, a new VA examination is needed for the right hand residuals of laceration.
The deciding factor: The Board found that adjudicating the issues related to service connection and reopening claims would be inextricably intertwined with the issue of whether clear and unmistakable error (CUE) was committed in prior rating decisions. Therefore, all these matters are remanded for further action.
- Claimed conditions
- right shoulder degenerative joint disease, left shoulder degenerative joint disease, paranoid schizophrenia
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19163565
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,549 · Granted: 26% (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 19163565.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Dismissed
The appeal to sever service connection for right shoulder degenerative joint disease is dismissed.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for left shoulder degenerative joint disease with glenohumeral joint instability was denied as his disability did not more nearly approximate limitation of motion to 25 degrees from the side.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities are severe enough to require the aid and attendance of another, effective April 3, 2020. The appeal for SMC based on housebound status is dismissed as moot due to the award of SMC under section 1114(l).
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