Citation Nr: 18149254 Decision Date: 11/09/18 Archive Date: 11/08/18 DOCKET NO. 16-43 705 DATE: November 9, 2018 ORDER The application to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for left leg shin splints is granted. The application to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for right leg shin splints is granted. REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a back disability is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for a left leg disability is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for a right leg disability is remanded. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. In a March 1996 rating decision, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction denied the claim of entitlement to service connection for left leg shin splints. The Veteran did not express a desire for appellate review or submit new and material evidence within one year. 2. In a March 1996 rating decision, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction denied the claim of entitlement to service connection for right leg shin splints. The Veteran did not express a desire for appellate review or submit new and material evidence within one year. 3. The evidence received since the March 1996 rating decision was not previously submitted to agency decision makers and relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claims for service connection for left leg shin splints and right leg shin splints. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The March 1996 rating decision that denied entitlement to service connection for left leg shin splints and right leg shin splints is final. 38 U.S.C. § 7105 (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1103 (2017). 2. New and material evidence has been received to reopen the claims for service connection left leg shin splints and right leg shin splints. 38 U.S.C. § 5108 (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.156 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty from July 1976 to November 1979. Applications to Reopen 1. The applications to reopen the claims of entitlement to service connection for left leg shin splints and right leg shin splints are granted The two claims associated with the Veteran’s leg were denied in a March 1996 rating decision, in part due to a lack of current disabilities. The Veteran did not provide new and material evidence or express disagreement within one year of the decision, so the decision became final. See 38 U.S.C. § 7105(b)(2); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.156(b), 20.201. However, since then, VA has received new and material evidence. In her substantive appeal to the Board, the Veteran contended she has current bilateral leg disabilities, but hasn’t gone to a doctor because of her belief that it cannot be fixed. She contends she can no longer run, wear dress shoes, sit or stand for long periods or pick up her grandbabies. She also believes she can’t work due to her leg and back disabilities. Additionally, a review of the Veteran’s VA medical records reveals complaints of left leg pain in April 2015 and a throbbing pulse behind her right knee in June 2014. These statements and medical records were not considered at the time of the March 1996 rating decision. Accordingly, the Veteran’s claims of service connection for left leg shin splints and right leg shin splints is reopened. In her April 2014 application for benefits, the Veteran described her disabilities as “Bilateral Leg Condition”. A claim for service connection encompasses claims for all disorders that are reasonably raised by the record. Clemons v. Shinseki, 23 Vet. App. 1 (2009). In light of Clemons and the Veteran’s application, the Board has recharacterized the Veteran’s claims broadly as claims of service connection for right leg and left leg disabilities. REASONS FOR REMAND 1. Entitlement to service connection for back disability is remanded. Upon review of the evidence of record, the Board finds remand is warranted in order to ensure VA’s compliance with the duty to assist. In a May 2014 authorization to release medical records, the Veteran identified multiple federal facilities where she received post-service treatment for her back. The evidence of record does not reveal the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) has made any, let alone as many requests as are necessary, to obtain the identified relevant records or to determine whether further efforts to obtain those records would be futile. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c). 2. Entitlement to service connection for bilateral leg disabilities is remanded. The Board has herein granted the Veteran’s petitions to reopen the claims of service connection for shin splints. When the Board reopens a claim, after the AOJ has denied reopening that same claim, the matter generally must be returned to the AOJ for consideration of the merits. See Hickson v. Shinseki, 23 Vet. App. 394, 399 (2010). The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain the Veteran’s federal medical records identified in the May 2014 authorization and consent for release. Document all requests for information as well as all responses in the claims file. 2. After undertaking any additional development deemed appropriate, adjudicate the claims in light of any additional evidence added to the record. KRISTI L. GUNN Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Gregory T. Shannon, Associate Counsel