Citation Nr: 21066168 Decision Date: 10/28/21 Archive Date: 10/28/21 DOCKET NO. 16-56 574 DATE: October 28, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to a rating higher than 30 percent for service-connected bilateral pes planus is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran had active military service from August 1996 to September 2007. He is the recipient of several medals, including an Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, and an Iraq Campaign Medal. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2014 rating decision by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge during a June 2021 virtual hearing. A copy of the transcript has been associated with the file. Entitlement to a rating higher than 30 percent for bilateral pes planus is remanded. The Veteran contends his service-connected pes planus warrants a higher rating than the currently assigned 30 percent. Based on the evidence, a remand is necessary. The Veteran was last afforded a VA examination for Foot Conditions in March 2020. Generally, a stale examination is not enough to require a remand for a new examination; however, the Veteran reported worsening of his bilateral pes planus. Specifically, during his June 2021 Board hearing, he testified that his pes planus affects him daily, with his feet sore when he wakes up in the morning, and that he experiences numbness and soreness on a continual basis, with tenderness and swelling at times. See Hearing Transcript, Page 3, 6. Additionally, he testified his pes planus affects his knees and ankles and he has rolled his ankles many times. See Hearing Transcript, Page 5. VA's duty to assist includes providing a new medical examination when a veteran asserts or provides evidence that a disability has worsened, and the available evidence is too old for an adequate evaluation of the current condition. Weggenmann v. Brown, 5 Vet. App. 281, 284 (1993); see also Caffrey v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 377, 381 (1994) (finding that VA should have ordered a contemporaneous examination of veteran because a 23-month-old examination was too remote in time to adequately support the decision in an appeal for an increased rating). Accordingly, a more contemporaneous VA examination is required to provide a current picture of the Veteran's service-connected bilateral pes planus. 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.326, 3.327. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Furnish the Veteran a letter requesting that he provide information and, if necessary, authorization to obtain any additional evidence pertinent to the claim on appeal that is not currently of record. Specifically, request that the Veteran furnish, or furnish appropriate authorization to obtain, all outstanding, pertinent private (non-VA) treatment records. The Veteran testified to receiving treatment from private physicians Dr. J and Dr. C. See Hearing Transcript. 2. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination to determine the current severity of his service-connected bilateral pes planus. The VA examiner must review the complete claims file and must note that review in the report. A copy of this Remand must also be provided to the examiner. A complete rationale for all opinions reached should be included. KRISTI L. GUNN Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Krista Johnson, 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.