The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral ankle and knee disabilities, both as secondary to service-connected flat feet. The Veteran's claims were previously denied by the Board in July 2020 but were vacated by the Court due to an inadequate December 2019 VA examination.
The deciding factor: The Court found that the Board erred when denying the claims of entitlement to service connection for both bilateral ankle and bilateral knee disabilities by relying, in part, on an inadequate December 2019 VA examination.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Ankle Disability, Bilateral Knee Disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2023
- Citation
- 23020989
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 23020989.
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 determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and bilateral knee disability must be remanded due to duty-to-assist errors. The Veteran's reported stressors need to be verified, and a VA examination is required to address the etiology of his bilateral knee condition.
- Dismissed
The appeal for the right hip condition is dismissed as it has been withdrawn. The claims of low back disability, bilateral knee disability, BLE radiculopathy, and left shoulder condition are denied due to lack of new and relevant evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for right shoulder, lumbar spine, bilateral knee, and bilateral ankle disabilities due to a lack of credible evidence linking these conditions to service or any presumptive exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for tinnitus, bilateral hip, knee, and ankle disabilities due to a lack of evidence supporting an in-service injury or continuity of symptomatology. The claim for a psychiatric disorder was also denied as the Veteran's statements were found not credible.
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