Citation Nr: 18140809 Decision Date: 10/05/18 Archive Date: 10/05/18 DOCKET NO. 15-18 733A DATE: October 5, 2018 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for disability of the left leg, to include the knee and ankle, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for disability of right leg, including as secondary to left leg disability is remanded. Eligibility for financial assistance in the purchase of an automobile or other conveyance and/or automobile adaptive equipment is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Air Force from April 1969 to October 1975. In May 2016, the Veteran provided testimony at a Board hearing held at the Central Office in Washington, DC, before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ). A transcript of the hearing is of record. In September 2016, the Board found that new and material evidence had been received sufficient to reopen the issue of entitlement to service connection for a left leg disability, and remanded the issue for further development and adjudication. In July 2017, the Board issued a decision denying the Veteran’s claims for entitlement to service connection for a left leg and right leg disability and eligibility for financial assistance in the purchase of an automobile and/or automobile adaptive equipment. The Veteran appealed the Board’s denial to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (the Court); and in an April 2018 Order, the Court remanded the appeals back to the Board for development consistent with the parties’ Joint Motion for Remand (Joint Motion). The case has since been returned to the Board for further appellate review. 1. Entitlement to service connection for a disability of the left leg, to include the knee and ankle, is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection for a right leg disability, including as secondary to left leg disability is remanded. In the April 2018 Joint Motion, both parties agreed that remand was needed for VA to make necessary efforts to obtain the Veteran’s Social Security Administration (SSA) disability records pertaining to her left and right leg disabilities. The Joint Motion highlighted that the Veteran indicated on her April 2004 application for service connection benefits that she was receiving SSA disability benefits, and an October 2013 VA medical record also noted that she receives monthly disability income from SSA. Compliance with remand directives is not optional or discretionary, and the Board errs as a matter of law when it fails to ensure remand compliance. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). On remand, all necessary action should be taken to request a copy of any application, decision, and relevant medical records from SSA pertaining to the Veteran’s award of Social Security Disability benefits. As the Board is remanding these matters for further development, action should also be taken to ensure the Veteran’s updated VA treatment records are associated with the claims file. 3. Eligibility for financial assistance in the purchase of an automobile or other conveyance and/or automobile adaptive equipment is remanded. Because a decision on the remanded issues of entitlement to service connection for left and right leg disabilities could significantly impact a decision on the issue of eligibility for financial assistance in the purchase of an automobile or other conveyance and/or automobile adaptive equipment, the issues are inextricably intertwined. A remand of this claim is therefore also warranted. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain the Veteran’s VA treatment records for the period from February 2017 to the Present. 2. Contact SSA and request a copy of the application, decision, and all relevant records (including all medical records) upon which a determination finding the Veteran disabled was based. All requests and responses, positive and negative, should be associated with the Veteran’s VA claims file. If the records cannot be located, a formal finding of unavailability must be associated with the claims file, and the appellant should be notified. 3. After completing the above and associating all responsive records with the claims file, conduct any further development deemed necessary then readjudicate the issues of entitlement to service connection for a left leg (including knee and ankle) disability and a right leg disability (including as secondary to a left leg disability) and eligibility for financial assistance in the purchase of an automobile and/or automobile adaptive equipment in light of the expanded record. If the benefits sought remain denied, the Veteran and her representative must be furnished a Supplemental Statement of the Case and be given an opportunity to respond before the claims file is returned to the Board for further appellate consideration, if in order. ANTHONY C. SCIRÉ, JR Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD A. Solomon, Counsel