Citation Nr: 18151129
Decision Date: 11/16/18	Archive Date: 11/16/18

DOCKET NO. 16-49 350
DATE:	November 16, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to a disability rating greater than 20 percent for residuals of a right shoulder dislocation is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran served on active duty from June 2004 to February 2008.  
This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2014 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Entitlement to a disability rating greater than 20 percent for residuals of a right shoulder dislocation is remanded
The Veteran has provided lay statements, including in his notice of disagreement (NOD) and his Form 9, that the residuals of his right shoulder dislocation have worsened since his last VA medical examination in February 2014.  In his NOD, he stated that his shoulder dislocates while he is asleep and during repetitive or stressful activities.  In his Form 9, he stated that since the examination, he began to have dislocation and guarding of his shoulder.  VA is required to afford the Veteran a contemporaneous VA examination to assess the current nature, extent, and severity of his service-connected disability. Palczewski v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 174, 181 (2007). VA’s duty to assist is triggered when a Veteran provides evidence that a disability has worsened and the available evidence is too old for an adequate evaluation of the current condition. Weggenmann v. Brown, 5 Vet. App. 281, 284 (1993). Therefore, a new examination is warranted in this case, to determine the current severity of the Veteran’s right shoulder disability. 
Accordingly, this matter is REMANDED for the following action:
1. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination with an appropriate clinician to determine the current severity of the service-connected residuals of his right shoulder dislocation. The claims file must be reviewed in conjunction with the examination.  
All pertinent symptomatology and findings must be reported in detail.
2. Then, readjudicate the claim. If any decision is unfavorable to the Veteran, issue a supplemental statement of the case and allow the applicable time for response. Then, return the case to the Board.
 
D. Martz Ames
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	N. Stevens, Associate Counsel