The Board remands the claims for service connection for various foot and hand disorders due to a failure to ensure that VA complied with its duty to assist the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The remand is necessary because of inadequate medical nexus opinions and insufficient efforts to obtain private treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- hallux valgus, right foot, hallux valgus, left foot, left (dominant) hand disorder, status post-Heberden node excision at middle finger (DIP), right hand disorder, status post-Heberden node excision at middle finger (DIP), pes planus, right foot, pes planus, left foot
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 1, 2025
- Citation
- 25008692
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 increased ratings for the Veteran's back, right ring finger, and left foot hallux valgus disabilities but granted an initial 30 percent rating for pes planus from August 17, 2021, a 50 percent rating for pes planus from December 15, 2023, and a separate 10 percent rating for bilateral plantar fasciitis from August 17, 2021.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a left foot disability to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error, specifically regarding an inadequate October 2024 VA examination.
- Dismissed
The Board denied the veteran's appeals for service connection due to untimely filings.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for pes planus, bilateral degenerative changes of the feet, bilateral hammertoe deformity, bilateral foot ulcers, and onychomycosis as there was no evidence to support an increase in severity during active service.
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