The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to inadequate examination and conflicting opinions regarding the nature of the Veteran's right foot disability and bilateral pes planus.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion is contradictory, failing to clearly establish whether the disabilities are congenital defects or diseases that may be connected to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right foot disability, Right foot pain (claimed as right foot plantar fasciitis), Bilateral pes planus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 7, 2023
- Citation
- 23007977
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 23007977.
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 Veteran's right and left foot disabilities are currently rated at 10 percent each, but the Board found that they do not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher rating under any applicable diagnostic codes.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral pes planus is not service-connected due to a duty-to-assist error, and remands the case for further examination and opinion.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for SMC(o) was denied as he could not receive multiple awards of SMC(l). The right shoulder bicipital tendonitis rating was denied, and the TDIU claim was granted.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral pes planus preexisted service and was aggravated by service, warranting a grant of service connection.
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