Citation Nr: 20021200 Decision Date: 03/24/20 Archive Date: 03/24/20 DOCKET NO. 13-28 509 DATE: March 24, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for intervertebral disc degeneration (claimed as back condition), including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition, including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability and/or right hip disability, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from January 1981 to May 1985. This matter again comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a December 2011 rating decision, issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Huntington, West Virginia. The Board previously remanded this matter in August 2018. 1. Entitlement to service connection for intervertebral disc degeneration (claimed as back condition), including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability, is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition, including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability, is remanded. 3. Entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to include PTSD, including as secondary to service-connected right knee disability and/or right hip disability, is remanded. Another remand is warranted in this case. The Board sincerely regrets the additional delay, but further evidentiary development is necessary before the Veteran’s claims can be adjudicated on the merits. In the August 2018 remand, the Board requested that the file be returned to examiners who previously evaluated the Veteran’s back condition, left hip condition, and psychiatric condition, for addendum opinions as to whether they were aggravated by his service-connected disabilities. Subsequently, the Veteran was scheduled for examinations in December 2019, to which he did not report. When he contacted the VA in January 2020, the Veteran stated that he was in jail and thus could not make the examinations at the time. He then requested to reschedule the examinations. See VA Form 21-0820 dated January 2, 2020. Because the Veteran has provided good cause for failing to report to the VA examinations and stated that he would attend the rescheduled examinations, the VA examinations shall be rescheduled in order to evaluate his back disorder, left hip disorder, and psychiatric disorder. Finally, as this matter is being remanded, the Veteran’s updated VA treatment records should be obtained and associated with the claims file. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain and associate with the claims file the Veteran’s VA treatment records, dated from December 2019 forward. 2. Subsequently, schedule the Veteran for appropriate examinations to determine the natures and etiologies of his back condition, left hip condition, and psychiatric condition. The entire claims file, including a copy of this remand, must be provided to the examiners, who must note its review. After a complete review of the record, the examiners are asked to answer the following: Back Condition (a) Please identify any and all back conditions currently attributable to the Veteran; (b) For each condition so identified, provide an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s back condition(s) is/are (i) caused or (ii) aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, to include his right knee disability. Left Hip Condition (a) Please identify any and all left hip conditions currently attributable to the Veteran; (b) For each condition so identified, provide an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s left hip condition(s) is/are (i) caused or (ii) aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, to include his right knee disability. Psychiatric Condition (a) Please identify any and all psychiatric conditions currently attributable to the Veteran; (b) For each condition so identified, provide an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s psychiatric condition(s) is/are (i) caused or (ii) aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, to include his right knee and right hip disabilities. NOTE: With respect to the questions concerning aggravation, the examiners are advised that aggravation under 38 C.F.R. § 3.310(b) does not require that there be “permanent worsening” of the nonservice-connected disabilities. If the examiners conclude that the Veteran’s above-mentioned conditions are less likely than not caused or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, the examiners should discuss what other factors caused them. Complete rationales for all opinions and conclusions reached must be provided. DELYVONNE M. WHITEHEAD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Seserman The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.