The Veteran's petition to reopen the claim for service connection for a right thumb injury is granted. The claims of service connection for back injuries are remanded due to outstanding VA treatment records and need for further examination.
The deciding factor: New evidence submitted by the Veteran raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating his claims, but additional medical records and an examination are needed to determine if the current disabilities are related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Thumb Injury, Back Injury
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 6, 2020
- Citation
- 20031759
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 20031759.
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
An effective date of September 7, 2018 is granted for service connection of PTSD.,A higher initial rating for hiatal hernia prior to May 2, 2017 is denied.,TDIU from September 7, 2018 is granted.
- Denied
The appeal for an increased rating for PTSD was denied, and the claims for service connection were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's back injury is related to service. The VA needs to provide an addendum opinion addressing the Veteran's in-service low back pain and strain.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's attorney has withdrawn all appeals related to the issues listed on the title page. As a result, the appeal is dismissed.
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