Citation Nr: 21025440 Decision Date: 04/28/21 Archive Date: 04/28/21 DOCKET NO. 11-18 035 DATE: April 28, 2021 REMANDED 1. Entitlement to service connection for a recurrent skin rash, to include as a qualifying chronic disability under 38 C.F.R. § 3.317, is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection for headaches and associated hand tremors, to include as a qualifying chronic disability under 38 C.F.R. § 3.317, is remanded. REASONS AND BASES FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from November 1990 to April 1991, and from August 1994 to July 1995 including service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations from December 1990 to April 1991. This appeal comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a January 2010 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Muskogee, Oklahoma. In May 2014 and April 2015, the Board remanded the claims for further development. The claims were again remanded in a September 2018 Board decision for addendum VA medical opinions. In March and in July 2020 the Board remanded to obtain outstanding private medical records and the Veteran’s Social Security Administration (SSA) records. There has not been substantial compliance with Board remand directives. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998). After the Board’s July 2020 remand, additional development was performed. VA submitted an electronic system request for the Veteran’s SSA records in March 2020, but no response has been provided. See March 2020 Medical Treatment Records – Furnished by SSA. VA is obligated to obtain SSA records if there is a reasonable possibility that the records could help substantiate the Veteran’s claim. In the present case, the previous attempts to obtain the Veteran’s private treatment records have shown that many of his records are no longer available. As such, SSA records, if available, are relevant to Veteran’s medical history. Furthermore, as noted by the Board in its March 2020 remand, Social Security Administration medical records are considered federal records for duty to assist purposes. As no response has been received, the Board finds that the AOJ’s process of obtaining, if any, SSA medical records is ongoing. Therefore, the Board must defer consideration of the claims at this time. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Contact the Social Security Administration (SSA) and obtain a complete copy of any application and related records underlying any adjudication for SSA disability benefits regarding the Veteran. All efforts to obtain SSA records should be fully documented, and a negative response must be provided if such records are not available. J.W. FRANCIS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board P. Abels, Associate 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.