The Board remands the claims for service connection and increased ratings due to inadequate VA examinations.
The deciding factor: The September 2023 VA examinations were found to be inadequate as they did not properly consider the lay and medical evidence of record, leading to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Claimed conditions
- right foot disorder, left foot disorder, systemic pain, vertigo, right hip disorder, left hip disorder, right shoulder disorder, left shoulder disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 3, 2024
- Citation
- A24063315
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for vertigo and a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to insufficient evidence linking his current condition to active service or any incident of service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including a head injury, headache disorder, erectile dysfunction, left earache disorder, chronic fatigue, right shoulder disorder, irritable bowel syndrome, right foot disorder, GERD, and left shoulder disorder, as the evidence did not support current diagnoses of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection, higher ratings, and earlier effective dates, as well as dismissed his claim for a TDIU.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a restoration of the separate 10 percent rating for vertigo, an earlier effective date for service connection for vertigo and migraines, and a 30 percent rating for hypothyroidism with heart murmur. The decision also denied an earlier effective date for hypertension and remanded claims for obesity, obstructive sleep apnea, and individual unemployability.
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