Citation Nr: 21022699
Decision Date: 04/19/21	Archive Date: 04/19/21

DOCKET NO. 16-19 550
DATE: April 19, 2021

REMANDED

Service connection for a back disorder is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran had active duty service from January 1966 to September 1969. 

The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge at a Board hearing in June 2019.

The Board has previously remanded this matter.

Back 

The Board finds that prior VA examinations are not adequate for adjudication purposes as the opinions failed to consider the Veteran’s credible reports of back pain since his in-service injury and his post-service treatment. A new examination opinion is warranted.

The matter is REMANDED for the following action:

Obtain an opinion from a qualified physician, preferably an orthopedist, to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran’s back disorder. The claims file should be made available to the physician for review. If the physician feels that an in-person examination is needed, one should be scheduled. 

The examiner must opine whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s back disorder was incurred in, or is due to, military service, including an April 1969 in-service injury to the left scapula region from a broken conveyor strap. 

The Veteran’s lay statements regarding onset and continuity of symptomology, specifically that he experienced back pain since his in-service injury, as well as his June 2019 hearing testimony should be recorded and considered.

A rationale for all opinions must be provided.

 

 

JOHN Z. JONES

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.