The Board remands the claims for service connection for a back disability, left ear hearing loss, and special monthly compensation due to the need for regular aid and attendance of another person or being housebound because there has been insufficient verification of the Appellant's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA), and the June 2022 VA examinations are inadequate.
The deciding factor: The record does not reflect substantial compliance with the Board's prior remand instructions, specifically regarding verification of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA periods, and the June 2022 VA examination reports were found to be inadequate due to a failure to consider lay evidence of continuity of symptomatology.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disability, Left ear hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2023
- Citation
- 23000776
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial rating of 20 percent for right lower extremity (RLE) radiculopathy but remanded the back disability claim for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent rating for the Veteran's left knee strain, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and service connection for a right ankle disorder. Other claims were denied or remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including an acquired psychiatric disability, headaches, a back disability, heart disability, and residuals of a stroke, as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's active service or caused by his service-connected left ear disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Board denied the claims for an initial compensable rating for left ear sensorineural hearing loss, service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability, and a left eye disorder. However, it granted service connection for a back disability and radiculopathy of both lower extremities as secondary to the back disability.
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