The Board has remanded several cases for further evaluation due to the need for additional examinations and consideration of functional loss.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not include range of motion studies in both active motion and passive motion, and in weight-bearing and non-weight-bearing. The Veteran's disability severity may have changed since his last examination.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar strain with degenerative disc disease, thoracic strain, right elbow epicondylitis with decreased right-hand grip, degenerative joint disease, left knee, degenerative joint disease, right knee, duodenal ulcer, pseudofolliculitis barbae
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 13, 2020
- Citation
- 20002559
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,861 · Granted: 27% (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 20002559.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities require regular aid and attendance, resulting in the grant of special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance. The issue of entitlement to special monthly compensation at the housebound rate is moot.
- Denied
The Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for pseudofolliculitis barbae is denied as there is no legal authority to assign an earlier effective date, and the RO has already assigned the earliest possible effective date for the award of service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected pseudofolliculitis barbae is rated at a 10 percent disability rating, the minimum allowed under VA regulations. The condition involves less than 20% of exposed areas but does not meet criteria for higher ratings.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for lumbar strain with degenerative disc disease and bilateral hearing loss has been dismissed as the Veteran requested a withdrawal of his appeal.
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