Citation Nr: 18128751 Decision Date: 08/22/18 Archive Date: 08/22/18 DOCKET NO. 10-32 060 DATE: August 22, 2018 REMANDED The issue of whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for a right knee disability, to include as secondary to the service-connected left knee disability, is remanded. The issue of entitlement to service connection for a cervical spine disability is remanded. The issue of entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the left knee, traumatic, status post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty with the United States Air Force from March 1989 to November 1994. These matters come before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from an April 2008 decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Jackson, Mississippi. The Board notes that the Veteran was scheduled to appear at a travel board hearing before a Veterans Law Judge in April 2018 but failed to report without providing good cause. To date, the Veteran has not requested a new Board hearing. Under these circumstances, the Board considers the hearing request to have been withdrawn. 38 C.F.R. § 20.704 (e) (2018). With regard to the issues on appeal, additional action is required before the Board may proceed with adjudication. A Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC) is a document prepared by the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) to inform the Veteran of any material changes in, or additions to, the information included in the Statement of the Case or any prior SSOCs. 38 C.F.R. § 19.31. Further, when evidence is received prior to the transfer of a case to the Board, a SSOC must be furnished to the veteran, and his or her representative, if any, as provided in 38 C.F.R. § 19.31 unless the additional evidence is duplicative or not relevant to the issue on appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 19.37 (a). There is no legal authority for a claimant to waive, or the RO to suspend, this requirement. In this case, the most recent SSOC concerning the claims currently on appeal was promulgated in January 2013. Since that date, and prior to the Board’s certification and transfer of the issue to the Board, additional VA medical treatment records, as well as the Veteran’s Social Security Administration (SSA) disability records, have been associated with the claims file. Moreover, the Veteran underwent VA examinations concerning her knee disabilities in June 2017 and December 2017. However, no SSOC has been promulgated with regard to the issues on appeal. A letter in the file dated in April 2018 informed the Veteran that the appeal was placed on the Board’s docket; there are no other letters indicating certification and/or transfer of the appeal to the Board. Because the medical treatment records, SSA records, and VA examination reports are pertinent to these issues, and no waiver has been submitted, this evidence must be reviewed by the AOJ and an SSOC furnished if the issues on appeal remain denied. 38 C.F.R. § 19.31 (b)(1). Accordingly, the matters are REMANDED for the following action: Readjudicate the claims of whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for a right knee disability, to include as secondary to the service-connected left knee disability; entitlement to service connection for a cervical spine disability; and entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the left knee, traumatic, status post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction—to include consideration of all evidence added to the claims file since the most recent (January 2013) SSOC. If any benefit is not granted to the Veteran’s satisfaction, an SSOC should be provided to the Veteran and her representative, and after they have had an adequate opportunity to respond, this case should be returned to the Board in accordance with current appellate procedures. D. JOHNSON Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD G. T. Raftery, Associate Counsel