Citation Nr: 21008928 Decision Date: 02/18/21 Archive Date: 02/18/21 DOCKET NO. 15-12 197 DATE: February 18, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to an evaluation in excess of 30 percent for right knee chondromalacia of the patella is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran had active service with the Army from September 1972 to October 1980. This matter is on appeal to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (the Board) from an August 2013 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In June 2018, the Board granted the Veteran’s claim of entitlement for a 30 percent rating for right knee instability and dislocation of the patella as well as a separate 10 percent rating for an unstable scar for the service-connected right knee disability. The Board denied the Veteran’s claim of entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for the right knee chondromalacia of the patella. The Veteran appealed that decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (the Court). In an August 2019 Order, the Court granted a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR). In the JMPR, it was found that the Board relied on inadequate VA examinations to evaluate the Veteran’s right knee chondromalacia. Specifically, it was noted that the VA examinations in May 2012 and January 2015 did not contain findings consistent with the requirements outlined in Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016). In December 2019, the Board remanded this matter for further development and a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected right knee chondromalacia. Updated VA treatment records were associated with the claims file, and VA examinations related to his right knee chondromalacia were conducted in March 2020 and April 2020. In July 2020, the RO issued a Supplement Statement of the Case (SSOC). However, the Board notes that additional pertinent evidence was received and associated with the Veteran’s claims file since the RO’s issuance of the SSOC. Updated VA treatment records were associated with the claims file in August 2020. Records from the Social Security Administration (SSA) were also received in August 2020. The SSA records contained the following: a determination by Disability Determination Services (DDS) that the Veteran was disabled beginning March 13, 2018, due to disorders of the back and other an unspecified arthropathies; treatment records from PMG South Doctors Clinic from March 2017 to June 2018; the Veteran’s self-completed function and work history reports; a residual functional capacity assessment by DDS; and a consultative examination conducted by an independent medical examiner related the right knee and back condition. In November 2020, the Veteran was advised that additional evidence had been added to the claims file since the July 2020 SSOC. He was advised that he could waive Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) review of the records, or request his case be remanded to the AOJ for review of the additional evidence received. As neither the Veteran nor his representative waived initial review of that evidence by the AOJ, the Board must remand. See 38 §§ C.F.R. 19.31, 19.37. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: After completion of any additional development deemed necessary, the issues on appeal should be reviewed with consideration of all applicable laws and regulations. If any benefit sought remains denied, the Veteran and his representative should be furnished with a SSOC and be afforded the opportunity to respond. Thereafter, the case should be returned to the Board for further consideration. MICHAEL LANE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board K.L. Byers 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.