The Board is remanding the case to gather additional evidence and review by a VA neurologist, including service records and post-service clinical assessments. The appellant must provide any relevant medical records she has.
The deciding factor: The appeal involves determining whether new and material evidence supports reopening the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death due to ALS.
- Claimed conditions
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 19, 2003
- Citation
- 0335889
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 0335889.
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 Veteran is granted a higher special monthly compensation (SMC) rate under 38 U.S.C. § 1114(r)(2) due to the need for regular aid and attendance.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for insomnia and remanded the claim for obstructive sleep apnea. All other claims for service connection were denied.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for Inclusion Body Myositis (IBM), finding that it is a variant of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The decision applies the presumptive service connection criteria due to the similarity in environmental components and pathogenesis.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of ALS was denied as there is no evidence of a prior formal or intent to file a claim.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.