Citation Nr: 1305385	
Decision Date: 02/14/13    Archive Date: 02/21/13

DOCKET NO.  09-41 746	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Chicago, Illinois


THE ISSUES

1.  Entitlement to service connection for glaucoma.

2.  Entitlement to service connection for head injuries.

3.  Entitlement to service connection for a left hip disorder, claimed as secondary to service-connected knee disabilities.

4.  Entitlement to service connection for depression, claimed as secondary to service-connected knee disabilities.

5.  Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for chondromalacia patella of the right knee.

6.  Entitlement to a compensable disability rating for bilateral pes planus.

7.  Entitlement to a compensable disability rating for appendicitis, status post appendectomy.


REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by:	Paralyzed Veterans of America, Inc.


WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL

Appellant


ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

Rebecca Feinberg, Counsel


INTRODUCTION

The Veteran served from July 1977 to August 1997.

This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from rating decisions of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Chicago, Illinois.

In June 2007, the Veteran testified at a local hearing before a decision review officer at the RO.  A transcript of the hearing is associated with the claims file.

The Veteran perfected appeals of a number of other issues, which were subsequently withdrawn in a December 2011 written statement.

The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC.  VA will notify the appellant if further action is required.


REMAND

During the course of the appeal, the Veteran has requested a hearing before the Board at the local RO.  He specified in December 2011 and April 2012 that he wanted a videoconference hearing.  In a February 2013 written statement, the Veteran's representative clarified that the Veteran still wished to appear for this hearing.  He has not yet been scheduled for this hearing.

Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:

The Veteran should be scheduled for a videoconference hearing before the Board.

The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded.  Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999).

This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment.  The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner.  See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2012).



_________________________________________________
H. N. SCHWARTZ
Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals

Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.  This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal.  38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2012).