The Board has found that the RO's adjudication of the claims without obtaining VA examinations is a pre-decisional duty to assist error and requires remanding for further action, including scheduling VA examinations.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the absence of VA examinations rendered it unable to determine if the Veteran's disabilities are as claimed due to lack of contemporaneous examination evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee disorder, right knee disorder, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, back disability, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), respiratory disorder, hypertension, psoriasis, macular degeneration
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 24, 2024
- Citation
- A24040782
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 A24040782.
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 Veteran's right shoulder disability and migraines/chronic headaches are remanded for additional development due to insufficient opinions on the etiology of her conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and providing proper notice regarding secondary service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
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