The Board has decided to remand the claims of service connection for right and left shoulder disabilities due to insufficient rationale in the medical opinions provided. The VA is required to obtain a new opinion from an appropriate clinician regarding whether these disabilities are related to service, specifically pushups during active duty.
The deciding factor: The previous medical opinions did not provide sufficient rationale on whether the Veteran's shoulder disabilities are causally related to his period of active service, particularly due to pushups in service.
- Claimed conditions
- right shoulder disability, left shoulder disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 26, 2021
- Citation
- A21017334
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 A21017334.
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 Veteran's right shoulder disability and migraines/chronic headaches are remanded for additional development due to insufficient opinions on the etiology of her conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for residuals of gallbladder removal and remanded the other claims due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right shoulder, right shin, and left shin disabilities manifested by pain causing impairment in earning capacity. The decision is based on the Veteran's testimony regarding his symptoms during service.
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