The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral knee and hip disabilities are reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence. However, the claims remain in remand status as further medical examination is needed to determine if his current disabilities were caused or aggravated by his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations provided do not adequately address whether the Veteran's bilateral knee and hip disabilities are caused or aggravated by his service-connected lumbar spine disability, necessitating additional evaluation.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Knee DJD (Degenerative Joint Disease), Left Knee DJD, Right Hip DJD, Left Hip DJD
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19196871
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 19196871.
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 several of the Veteran's claims, including those for PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, right and left shoulder DJD, and bilateral knee DJD. The ALS claim is also remanded as it was reopened on new evidence.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial increased ratings for his left knee and left shoulder disabilities were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support higher ratings at any point during the appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for a right knee disability, as secondary to a service-connected left knee disability due to inadequate medical opinions and need for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issue of an increased rating for right knee DJD from October 11, 2018 due to lack of relevant medical records. The remaining issues have been addressed and are denied.
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