Citation Nr: 20028080
Decision Date: 04/27/20	Archive Date: 04/27/20

DOCKET NO. 17-51 638
DATE: April 27, 2020

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial rating, in excess of 30 percent, for sarcoidosis is remanded.

Entitlement to a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU), prior to February 15, 2017, is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from March 1981 to March 1985.  

This matter is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal of a November 2014 rating decision of a Regional Office (RO) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  In January 2020, the Veteran testified at a hearing before the undersigned.

1. Entitlement to an initial rating, in excess of 30 percent, for sarcoidosis is remanded.

At a January 2020 hearing, the Veteran testified his condition has worsened since he was last examined in March 2017.  The Veteran has difficulty breathing and walking.  He uses daily oral medications and receives an injection once each week.  The Veteran submitted a December 2019 letter from Dr. T. C., a VA primary care physician, who noted the Veteran’s use of medications to treat sarcoidosis may cause side effects, including muscle weakness and infections.   

Given that the Veteran’s testimony indicates the service-connected sarcoidosis may have worsened since his last VA examination in March 2017, a new VA examination is warranted on remand.  See Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400 (1997).

2. Entitlement to a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU), prior to February 15, 2017, is remanded.

The Veteran was granted TDIU effective from February 15, 2017.  However, on review of the file, including reports that the Veteran stopped working as of December 31, 2014 and the Veteran’s testimony that his sarcoidosis has affected his entire life, the Board finds that the issue of unemployability and entitlement to TDIU prior to February 15, 2017 has been raised by the record.  The issue is part and parcel of the increased rating claim now on appeal.  Per the holding in Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009), the Board takes jurisdiction over this claim.  The Board finds the TDIU issue, which is inextricably intertwined with the issue of entitlement to an increased rating for sarcoidosis, must be remanded as well.  See Harris v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 180, 183 (1991).

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

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1. Schedule the Veteran for an examination by an appropriate clinician to determine the current severity of his service-connected sarcoidosis, including any additional disability related to side effects from his use of medication to treat sarcoidosis.  The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran’s disability under the rating criteria.  

2. If necessary, complete any additional development warranted as to the issue of entitlement to TDIU prior to February 15, 2017.

 

 

M. HYLAND

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	Jeanne Celtnieks

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.