The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for lower back, left knee, and right knee disorders due to inadequate examination reports and failure to address VA duty-to-assist obligations.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the October 2015 VA examinations were not adequate and did not consider the Veteran's competent report of symptom onset during service. The duty to assist was also not satisfied regarding private treatment records related to the claimed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- lower back disorder, left knee disorder, right knee disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 11, 2022
- Citation
- 22008000
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 22008000.
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 remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and providing proper notice regarding secondary service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for lumbosacral strain, asthma, melasma and hydradenitis, hypertension, an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression, anxiety, and stress), left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, left knee disorder, a left foot disorder, and IBS have been granted. The remaining issues are remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to errors in obtaining relevant medical records and authorization for private treatment providers. The issues include heart disorder, OSA, sinusitis, lumbar spine disorder, and right knee disorder all related to Agent Orange exposure.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error, and will need an opinion regarding whether the Veteran's right knee disorder is related to his parachute jumps during service.
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