The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is being remanded for further development, including obtaining a medical opinion regarding his ability to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
The deciding factor: VA must obtain a medical opinion to determine whether the veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
- Claimed conditions
- mood disorder with major depressive like episodes, residuals of meningitis, chronic hepatitis C
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 8, 2008
- Citation
- 0842064
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 0842064.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the cause of the Veteran's death (hepatitic failure, cirrhosis, and chronic hepatitis C) is not directly related to his Marine Corps service or any verified in-service exposures. The VA examiner's opinion was found inadequate due to its reliance on the absence of medical literature without a discussion of specific facts.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection on multiple conditions are being remanded due to the need for further development and clarification of his military service records.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that chronic hepatitis C was incurred in service and contributed to his death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for chronic hepatitis C to obtain an adequate examination and/or addendum opinion.
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