Citation Nr: 21071073
Decision Date: 11/29/21	Archive Date: 11/29/21

DOCKET NO. 18-22 885
DATE: November 29, 2021

REMANDED

A rating in excess of 30 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

REASONS FOR REMAND

Additional development is necessary prior to deciding the issue on appeal.  Pursuant to a November 2020 Veterans Claims Court memorandum decision, in August 2021 the Board remanded this issue for a new examination to determine the severity of the Veteran's service-connected PTSD.

In September 2021, the Veteran submitted a statement to the Regional Office (RO) requesting that any examinations be conducted as telehealth or audio examinations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He called to cancel a scheduled examination in September 2021.  In a subsequent September 2021 supplemental statement of the case (SSOC), the RO denied the claim for an increased rating in part for failure to attend a scheduled VA examination and to give good cause for cancelling.

In a November 2021 telephone call to the RO, the Veteran requested a new examination, with a different contractor, stating he was "very uncomfortable in going to see them there" given news stories he had heard about the contractor originally scheduled to conduct the examination.  A notification letter confirming the date and nature of the examination is not of record.  However, the Veteran specifically requested a telehealth or audio examination due to COVID-19, and the November 2021 telephone call suggested that he was scheduled for an in-person examination.  This provides sufficient good cause for the RO to provide a new examination in accordance with the August 2021 Board remand instructions.  See Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998).

The matter is REMANDED for the following actions:

1.  Identify and obtain any outstanding VA medical records and associate them with the claims file.

2.  Schedule the Veteran with an examination via telehealth or audio examination to determine the severity of his service-connected PTSD. 

 

 

L. HOWELL

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	Brendan Evans, 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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.