Citation Nr: 21008091 Decision Date: 02/11/21 Archive Date: 02/11/21 DOCKET NO. 17-42 770 DATE: February 11, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for bilateral ankle arthritis, to include as secondary to service-connected inflammatory arthritis is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for bilateral hip arthritis, to include as secondary to service-connected inflammatory arthritis is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for left knee degenerative arthritis, to include as secondary to service-connected inflammatory arthritis is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis, to include as secondary to service-connected inflammatory arthritis is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran had active service from May 1964 to May 1968. In a decision in May 2019 under the Legacy System, the Board denied the issues of entitlement to service connection for bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative joint disease, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis, to include as secondary to the service-connected inflammatory arthritis. The Veteran appealed this decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court), which issued an order in July 2020 granting a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR) filed by the Veteran’s representative and the VA Office of the General Counsel. Thus, these issues are back before the Board under the Legacy System. The Board also notes that subsequent to the May 2019 Board decision, the Veteran filed a Supplemental Claim, VA Form 20-0995, received in November 2019 regarding his service connection claims for right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, bilateral ankle arthritis, and left knee degenerative arthritis. The Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) addressed these issues in a December 2019 rating decision, and the Veteran timely appealed the decision to the Board. In a decision in April 2020, under the modernized review system, also known as the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA), the Board after determining that new and relevant evidence was received to readjudicate these claims, denied on the merits the Veteran’s claims of service connection for bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis. Issues 1-4: Entitlement to service connection for: bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis, to include as secondary to the service-connected inflammatory arthritis. In the July 2020 JMPR the parties determined that the April 2015 VA examination was not adequate because the examiner only addressed secondary service connection and not direct service connection. The parties also found that the opinion regarding aggravation was conclusory. They instructed that an adequate opinion needed to be obtained and noted that the Board needed to ensure that all relevant private treatment records were obtained. The parties pointed out that the Veteran had private medical treatment at Methodist Hospital in Jacksonville after he left service and transferred his care to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville in the 1990s.   Thus, to comply with the directives of the July 2020 JMPR the matters are remanded for the following actions: 1. Contact the Veteran and ask him to provide written authorization for VA to obtain any outstanding private treatment records including from Methodist Hospital in Jacksonville and Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. With any necessary assistance from the Veteran, obtain any outstanding VA medical records. All attempts associated therewith should be memorialized in the Veteran’s claims file. 2. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination by an appropriate examiner to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis. After reviewing the claims folder, conducting all necessary tests, and examining the Veteran the examiner is asked to do the following: a.) Provide an opinion whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or better probability) that the Veteran’s bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis is related to an in-service injury, event, or disease. b.) Provide an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability or more) that the Veteran’s bilateral ankle arthritis, bilateral hip arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and right hand/fingers degenerative arthritis was (a) caused or (b) aggravated by his service-connected inflammatory arthritis. For all opinions rendered, the examiner should explain the rationale. If the examiner is unable to provide an opinion, he or she should explain why. Thomas H. O'Shay Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Mac, 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.