The Board has remanded the issues of entitlement to service connection for left shoulder, left wrist, right wrist, left hip, left ankle, and right ankle disabilities due to inadequate VA medical opinions in the March 2019 examination report.
The deciding factor: The March 2019 VA medical opinions applied an incorrect determination standard (less than likely) instead of the correct one (at least as likely as not).
- Claimed conditions
- Left Shoulder, Left Wrist, Right Wrist, Left Hip, Left Ankle, Right Ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 9, 2021
- Citation
- 21041566
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 21041566.
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 Board denied the Veteran's claim for an extension of a temporary total evaluation based on convalescence for left ankle surgery beyond July 1, 2019, as there were no severe postoperative residuals after this date.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and earlier effective dates in several of his claims, including those related to TBI, left shoulder, lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis, posttraumatic migraine headaches, and TDIU. The issues have been remanded for further examination and evaluation.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeal for service connection of a right shoulder disability. Service connection is granted for OSA, left ankle, lumbar spine, and right hip disabilities. The claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder and coronary artery disease are remanded.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for the Veteran's claimed right knee, left knee, right hip, left hip, right shoulder, and left shoulder conditions as there is no persuasive evidence that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.
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