The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his left ankle and left knee disabilities due to inadequate VA examination reports. The Veteran will need new examinations to determine the current severity of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The previous VA examinations did not comply with the requirements set forth in Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016), and Sharp v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 26 (2017).
- Claimed conditions
- chronic left ankle sprain, chronic left knee strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19186231
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,249 · Granted: 37% (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 19186231.
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 determined that the Veteran is in need of personal care services for a minimum of six continuous months due to his inability to perform multiple activities of daily living and a need for supervision based on symptoms or residuals of neurological impairment. The decision also requires an evaluation of whether participation in the PCAFC program would be in the best interest of the Veteran.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including lumbar intervertebral disc syndrome and left lower extremity radiculopathy, result in a loss of use of both lower extremities. The Board finds that the statutory and regulatory criteria for specially adapted housing are met, thus granting the benefit.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for chronic left ankle sprain, finding that the evidence is at least evenly balanced as to whether the current condition is related to a left ankle injury sustained during active duty.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection have been denied as the AOJ found that the evidence was not new and relevant to adjudicate these claims.
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