The Board has denied increased ratings for the Veteran's right shoulder and left ankle disabilities, but has granted a higher rating of 40% for the right shoulder disability from April 1, 2019. The case is REMANDED to consider the Veteran's TDIU claim.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence did not show ankylosis or other impairment of the humerus in the right shoulder and left ankle, which prevented higher ratings from being granted.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Shoulder, Left Ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 2, 2019
- Citation
- 19190590
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,677 · 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 19190590.
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 Board denied the Veteran's claim for an extension of a temporary total evaluation based on convalescence for left ankle surgery beyond July 1, 2019, as there were no severe postoperative residuals after this date.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeal for service connection of a right shoulder disability. Service connection is granted for OSA, left ankle, lumbar spine, and right hip disabilities. The claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder and coronary artery disease are remanded.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for the Veteran's claimed right knee, left knee, right hip, left hip, right shoulder, and left shoulder conditions as there is no persuasive evidence that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for an increased rating for his right shoulder disability and TDIU are being remanded due to inadequate pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors in the October 2020 VA examination, which did not adequately address functional loss during flare-ups. The AOJ is also required to obtain a retrospective medical opinion regarding the severity of the Veteran's service-connected right shoulder disability from May 13, 2020 and request employment information for TDIU consideration.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
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.