The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for a rating increase and service connection due to new evidence of worsening left knee condition and the need for additional medical opinions regarding his autoimmune disorder.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on the need for updated assessments and additional medical opinions to address the current functional limitations and etiology of the Veteran's conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee arthroplasty, autoimmune disorder (rheumatoid arthritis or Sjogren’s syndrome)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19193845
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 19193845.
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 remanded the claims for a higher rating for left knee and shoulder disabilities due to insufficient examination findings, and TDIU is also remanded as there is insufficient information on the Veteran's last working date.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral knee braces used to treat his service-connected conditions caused damage to his clothing during Calendar Year 2021, warranting a clothing allowance.
- Denied
The Board denied a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee osteoarthritis and prior to June 25, 2018, for left knee arthroplasty.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for stable angina, right knee arthroplasty, and left knee arthroplasty due to the need for additional development of medical evidence.
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