The Board is unable to determine if the claim of service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is well-grounded due to missing medical records. The case is being remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The Board has not been able to determine whether all available medical records have been associated with the claims folder, including terminal hospital clinical records and autopsy report.
- Claimed conditions
- Renal failure, Bronchopneumonia, Acute pulmonary edema, Advanced cirrhosis of the liver
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 9, 2000
- Citation
- 0015304
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0015304.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, finding that it was related to in-service symptoms indicating kidney disease caused by systemic lupus erythematosus.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for the Veteran's cause of death and entitlement to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation under 38 USC § 1151 due to inadequate medical opinions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for the Veteran's cause of death and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation under 38 USC 1318 due to a need for a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's causes of death, considering toxic exposure at Camp Lejeune.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, as there was no evidence that any of his service-connected disabilities contributed to or caused his death.
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