Citation Nr: 21072048 Decision Date: 12/02/21 Archive Date: 12/02/21 DOCKET NO. 19-38 676 DATE: December 2, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for hypertension is remanded. Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities (TDIU) prior to July 28, 2015. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from January 1968 to January 1971, including combat service in the Republic of Vietnam; the Veteran's decorations include the Army Commendation Medal with "V" device. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a May 2018 rating decision from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). As will be further discussed below, the issue of entitlement to a TDIU is part and parcel of a claim for a higher rating, the Board has jurisdiction of this issue on appeal. See Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009). 1. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for hypertension is remanded. In an April 2018 Board decision, the Veteran was granted service connection for hypertension. The service connection grant was implemented in a May 2018 rating decision, in which the Veteran's hypertension was given a 10 percent evaluation, effective July 2, 2012, the date of claim. The Veteran was provided a VA examination for hypertension in January 2016, in which his blood pressure readings were noted at 160/93, 152/90 and 154/81, with an average reading of 155/88. The Veteran was not noted to have a history of diastolic blood pressure elevation to predominantly 100 or more. See January 2016 C&P Exam. Since that time, the Veteran has indicated that his hypertension disability has worsened. See May 2019 Notice of Disagreement & December 2019 Form 9. In his Form 9, the Veteran indicated that he is taking several prescribed medications daily for the condition and the hypertension affects his daily life to the point he is unable to function the same someone his age generally would. Additionally, the Veteran's private doctor stated in a May 2018 letter that the severity of Veteran's hypertension has led to other medical co-morbidities such as his coronary artery disease. See May 2018 Medical Treatment Record. An August 2021 VAMC Report of Hospitalization also noted that Veteran was hospitalized in August 2021 for a PMH stroke. As the Veteran's most recent VA examination for his hypertension was in January 2016 and the record indicates that the disability has worsened since that time, the Veteran should be scheduled for a contemporaneous VA examination to determine the current severity of his service-connected hypertension. See Green v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 121 (1991); see also Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400, 403 (1997). 2. Entitlement to a TDIU prior to July 28, 2015 Here, following the Board's grant of service connection in an April 2018 decision, in a May 2018 rating decision, the RO implemented the Board's grant and assigned a 10 percent rating for the Veteran's hypertension effective July 2, 2012. The record shows that the Veteran has not been employed since "mid-November 2012." See September 2015 VA Form 21-8940. A request for a TDIU (whether expressly raised or implied by the record) is not a separate claim for benefits. Rather, it is an attempt to obtain an appropriate rating, either as part of the initial adjudication of a claim or as part of a claim for an increased rating. Rice, 22 Vet. App. at 453-54. Once the issue of entitlement to a TDIU is raised, it is "part of the claim for benefits for the underlying disability." Id. Once entitlement to a TDIU is at issue as part of a claim for an increased rating, a claimant need not appeal a denial by the AOJ for the issue to remain in appellate status. Payne v. Wilkie, 31 Vet. App. 373 (2019); Harper v. Wilkie, 30 Vet. App. 356 (2018). Thus, when the AOJ fails to grant the benefit in full (i.e., entitlement to a TDIU for the entire period on appeal), that portion of the claim that remains unresolved is still on appeal. As such, on remand, the RO must adjudicate whether an award of a TDIU is warranted prior to July 28, 2015. This issue is inextricably intertwined with the increased rating on appeal. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain any outstanding VA or private treatment records. 2. Schedule the Veteran for a competent medical examination (or telehealth interview, review of the record, etc. if an in-person examination is not feasible) by an appropriately qualified examiner to assess the current severity of his service-connected hypertension. The examiner must review the entire record (including this remand) in conjunction with the examination and note such review was conducted. The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the disability under the rating criteria. STEVEN D. REISS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Zarar Ahmed, Attorney Advisor 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.