The Board remands the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and earlier effective date for individual unemployability due to an inadequate medical opinion regarding flareups.
The deciding factor: The addendum opinion provided by the VA examiner was found inadequate as it did not adequately address the range of motion during active, passive, weight-bearing, and non-weight-bearing conditions, nor did it provide a clear explanation for the figures given after the examination.
- Claimed conditions
- Lumbar strain, Left knee patellofemoral pain syndrome with arthralgia (flexion), Left knee limitation of extension, patella femoral pain syndrome, Left hip lateral greater trochanteric bursitis and degenerative joint disease with limitation of extension, Right hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of extension, Compensable rating for left hip lateral greater trochanteric bursitis and degenerative joint disease with limitation of flexion prior to June 3, 2021, Compensable rating for right hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of flexion prior to June 3, 2021, Rating in excess of 10 percent for right hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of flexion effective from June 3, 2021, Compensable rating for left hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of flexion effective from June 3, 2021, Compensable rating for left hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of abduction effective July 5, 2019, Compensable rating for right hip greater trochanteric bursitis with limitation of abduction effective July 5, 2019
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2024
- Citation
- 24001489
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 denied ratings in excess of the assigned percentages for the veteran's left knee and back disabilities, but granted a 20 percent rating for left knee limitation of flexion from August 4, 2014 to September 24, 2024, and a 30 percent rating for a back disability from August 16, 2019.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of October 1, 1973, for the award of service connection for a lumbar spine disability but remanded the issue of entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent prior to April 4, 2022, and in excess of 40 percent thereafter.
- Granted
The veteran was granted a total rating based on individual unemployability due to a service-connected disability (TDIU) from April 28, 2017, and basic eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) as well as special monthly compensation (SMC) based on housebound criteria were established from the same date.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to January 7, 2021, as his service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to obtain and secure substantially gainful employment during that period.
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