The Board has remanded the cases due to insufficient VA medical opinions regarding the Veteran's bilateral foot disability and low back disability. The claims are inextricably intertwined, so both must be addressed together.
The deciding factor: The January 2020 VA examiner did not accept as true that the Veteran experienced foot problems of such severity during service or address the significance of the July 1946 separation examination which documented flat feet at discharge. The Board instructed a new VA medical opinion to comply with these requirements.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral flat feet, low back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20053988
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 20053988.
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 found that remand is needed for the Veteran's claims due to duty to assist errors, including clarification of periods of service and obtaining relevant records. The Veteran will be afforded new medical examinations for each claimed disability.
- 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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims of right shoulder disability and low back disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability was granted with an effective date of January 9, 2018. The Board accepted her November 21, 2019 VA Form 20-0996 as a valid opt-in of the April 2019 SOC into the modernized review system.
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