The Board remands the claim for a back disability to obtain an addendum opinion from an examiner regarding its etiology, including whether it is related to service or secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left ankle disability.
The deciding factor: A remand is necessary due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, as the February 2022 VA examiner did not address certain medical records and provide an opinion on direct service connection or aggravation by the service-connected left ankle disability.
- Claimed conditions
- back disability
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2024
- Citation
- A24072794
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 Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for a back disability due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding VA's failure to provide the Veteran with a VA examination prior to the rating decision.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for right ankle, left ankle, back disability, and other conditions as there is no evidence of a current disability related to the Veteran's military service.
- Denied
The Veteran was awarded service connection for allergic rhinitis based on the PACT Act, but an earlier effective date prior to August 10, 2022, is not warranted.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a back disability, effective immediately. The Board also granted a 10 percent rating for left knee tendonitis with patellofemoral pain syndrome and degenerative joint disease based on limitation of flexion from October 4, 2024, to the present, and a 50 percent rating for the same condition from February 5, 2025, to the present.
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