The Board has remanded the claims for further development due to a failure to obtain records from the Social Security Administration (SSA). The Veteran's correct SSA number was not used in the initial request, and the AOJ is instructed to make another request using the correct number.
The deciding factor: The VA failed to use the correct Social Security Administration (SSA) number when requesting medical records, leading to a failure to obtain relevant information for the claims.
- Claimed conditions
- painful scars of the left knee, posterior trunk, status-post arthroplasty and spinal cord stimulator
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2023
- Citation
- 23022774
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 23022774.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's entitlement to an evaluation in excess of 10 percent for hypothyroidism is being remanded. The restoration of a 10 percent evaluation for painful scars of the left knee from January 26, 2020 through January 26, 2021 is granted.
- Denied
The Board denied the use of the bilateral factor to calculate the Veteran's rating for service-connected painful scars of the left and right knees. The Veteran is already receiving a higher rating than warranted under the diagnostic code.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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