The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hand disabilities are being remanded for further evaluation due to the lack of recent VA treatment records and a need for an updated examination.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on the absence of recent medical evidence and the need for a current examination to assess the severity of the service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- right index finger, little finger, left hand
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 26, 2019
- Citation
- 19189325
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 19189325.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran requested to withdraw her appeal regarding the earlier effective date for service connection for rheumatoid arthritis affecting various fingers and wrists. The Board dismissed the appeals as per the Veteran's request.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the claims for service connection and increased ratings, as new evidence has been received since previous denials.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for entitlement to increased ratings for service-connected right index and middle fingers due to unresolved CUE claims regarding which finger was properly granted service connection. The AOJ must adjudicate these CUE claims in a formal rating decision, provide notice of the decision and the Veteran's appellate rights, and then consider the increased rating claims again.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various joint disabilities, including rheumatoid arthritis and its secondary effects on his knees. The claims are being returned to the RO for further development and readjudication.
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