The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for COPD, multiple joint disabilities, and other service connection issues due to inadequate etiology opinions provided by VA examiners. The claims are being returned for further development.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the previous VA examination opinions were insufficient as they did not fully consider the Veteran’s lay statements regarding the onset of his symptoms and did not provide a clear understanding of whether the diagnosed conditions could be attributed to service or other factors.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD, Left Knee Disability, Right Knee Disability, Left Ankle Disability, Right Ankle Disability, Left Foot Disability, Right Foot Disability, Left Hip Disability, Right Hip Disability, Left Hand Disability, Right Hand Disability, Left Elbow Disability, Right Elbow Disability, Left Shoulder Disability, Right Shoulder Disability, Lumbar Spine Disability, Cervical Spine Disability
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 29, 2020
- Citation
- 20043620
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 20043620.
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 Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities are rated at 10% each, and the Board finds that higher ratings are not warranted based on the evidence of record.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities are not related to his active service, and thus denied both claims for service connection.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right knee disability, finding that there is no evidence to support an etiological relationship between his current condition and his military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's left knee disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board finds no evidence of clear and unmistakable error in assigning an effective date of June 19, 2002.
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