Citation Nr: 21004577
Decision Date: 01/27/21	Archive Date: 01/27/21

DOCKET NO. 14-14 254
DATE: January 27, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial disability rating in excess of 60 percent for renal insufficiency is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from August 1963 to September 1964. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from a rating decision by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ). This matter was remanded in September 2019 for further development. 

The Board notes Veteran perfected an appeal for his claims for entitlement to service connection for left shoulder impingement syndrome with arthritis and status post left knee arthroscopic medial/lateral meniscal tear repair with osteoarthritis. In the Veteran’s October 2019 Form 9 the Veteran stated he wanted a hearing. As the Veteran has not undergone his requested Board hearing, these matters will be addressed by the Board in a separate decision at a later date. 

1. Entitlement to an increased rating for renal insufficiency is remanded.

The Veteran contends that his renal insufficiency is more severe than initially rated. 

In December 2019, the Veteran underwent a VA kidney condition examination. The examiner diagnosed the Veteran with renal insufficiency associated with hypertension. In the September 2019 Board remand, the Board directed a VA examiner to address competent statements made by the Veteran concerning the severity of his kidney disorder based on his past laboratory results. The examiner addressed these statements. The December 2019 examiner’s opinions and rationale relied on laboratory results not in the record. Specifically, the examiner discussed September 2019 laboratory results and it is unclear whether there results are from VA medical records or from private medical records of the Veteran’s private provider, Dr. B. These laboratory results and/or more current medical records related to the Veteran’s kidney disease are not of record and thus, before the Board. Therefore, a remand is required to obtain these records. 

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1. Obtain all relevant VA medical records dated from June 2019 through present. The AOJ should ensure that all records referenced by the VA examiner in the December 2019 VA examination report that are not of record are obtained and added to the record.  See December 2019 Kidney Conditions VA examination report, pages 1-2. 

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2. Ask the Veteran to complete a VA Form 21-4142 for Dr. B., his private nephrologist, in order for the AOJ to obtain all relevant medical records including any records referenced by the December 2019 VA Kidney Conditions VA examiner. Make two requests for the authorized records from Dr. B., unless it is clear after the first request that a second request would be futile.

 

 

S. L. Kennedy

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	Robert Batten

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.