Citation Nr: 20048030 Decision Date: 07/17/20 Archive Date: 07/17/20 DOCKET NO. 14-33 764 DATE: July 17, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral elbow condition, to include tendonitis, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Marine Corps from October 1992 to October 2012. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2013 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In September 2018, the Board remanded this claim to afford the Veteran an addendum medical opinion. The case has since been returned to the Board for appellate review. While the Board regrets further delay, another remand is necessary to ensure substantial compliance with the September 2018 remand directives. See Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral elbow condition, to include tendonitis, is remanded. The Board previously remanded the Veteran’s claims in September 2018 to provide an addendum opinion to the Veteran’s May 2012 VA examination. The Board instructed the RO to provide an opinion as to whether the Veteran’s current right or left elbow disability, to include tendonitis, is due to his military service. Additionally, the Board directed that the VA medical examiner address the Veteran’s lay statements regarding his in-service repetitive activities involving his elbows, specifically to include pull-ups. However, the July 2019 VA medical opinion failed to address the Veteran’s lay statements, which claimed that 20 years of repetitive pull-ups during his active duty service strained his elbows. Although the VA examiner provided a complete rationale regarding the Veteran’s medical records, the examiner’s opinion relied on the absence of a diagnosis or treatment records for the Veteran’s elbow in service and lacked adequate analysis of the Veteran’s lay statement testimony. Thus, the VA medical opinion did not comply with the remand directives. A remand by the Board confers on the Veteran, as a matter of law, the right to compliance with the remand orders. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998). Where the remand orders of the Board are not complied with, the Board itself errs in failing to ensure compliance. Id. As such, the Board finds that this case is not ready for appellate review and must be remanded for compliance with the September 2018 remand instructions. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Obtain an addendum opinion from the examiner who provided the July 2019 VA opinion, or, if not available, another appropriately qualified VA medical professional. If the examiner deems it necessary, afford the Veteran a VA examination. Provide the claims file, including a copy of this REMAND, to the examiner for review. Following a review of the entire record, the Veteran’s competent lay statements, as well as the Veteran’s report regarding the onset and progression of his current symptomatology, the examiner should opine as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability or greater) that the Veteran’s current bilateral elbow condition, to include tendonitis, is due to his military service. The examiner must address the Veteran’s lay statements regarding in-service repetitive use or activities involving his elbows, to include pull-ups. A clearly stated rationale for any opinion offered should be provided and must not be based solely on the lack of any in-service records. JENNIFER HWA Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board A.V. Bona, Associate Counsel 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.