The Board denied an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for prostate cancer and SMC based on housebound criteria, but remanded claims for a compensable rating for residual scars status post prostatectomy and special monthly compensation (SMC) based on aid and attendance.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support an earlier effective date as the Veteran's claim was received on March 10, 2017, and he met the criteria for SMC at the housebound rate from that date. A remand was necessary to reassess the severity of his residual scars status post prostatectomy and his need for aid and attendance.
- Claimed conditions
- Prostate cancer status post radical prostatectomy, Residual scars status post prostatectomy, Peripheral neuropathy, right lower extremity, Type 2 diabetes mellitus with erectile dysfunction, Peripheral neuropathy, left upper extremity, Peripheral neuropathy, right upper extremity, Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2024
- Citation
- 24001120
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 Board granted service connection for PTSD, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor and finding that his PTSD is related to an in-service military sexual trauma (MST) during a period of ACDUTRA.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of previously denied claims for service connection for PTSD and COPD, while remanding other issues including entitlement to service connection for an eye disorder, hypertension, tinnitus, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, TDIU, and an initial rating for PTSD.
- Denied
The appeal for service connection for PTSD was dismissed, and the claims for a compensable rating for the lower back scar, service connection for COPD, and peripheral artery disease were denied.
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