The Board has ordered additional development to obtain the Veteran's terminal hospital records and a VA medical opinion regarding the cause of death. The Appellant seeks service connection for the cause of her husband's death due to Agent Orange exposure, but the evidence is insufficient to establish that any service-connected condition contributed substantially or materially to his death.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran's Parkinson's disease did not contribute substantially or materially to his death and was unlikely related to his presumed herbicide exposure. The Board ordered additional development to obtain terminal hospital records and a medical opinion on whether any service-connected conditions contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- C. difficile sepsis, acute respiratory failure, acute kidney injury, pancytopenia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 8, 2017
- Citation
- 1756936
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 1756936.
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 remanded the claims for service connection for the cause of death and burial benefits due to a lack of medical opinion regarding the Veteran's exposure at Camp Lejeune, which could impact his eligibility for these benefits.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for hypertension due to herbicide exposure in Guam. The cause of death and DIC claims are remanded as the Veteran's hypertension may have caused or aggravated his other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient information regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents and other environmental hazards during service, as well as a need for a toxic exposure risk activity (TERA) memorandum and opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to obtain a medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities contributed to his cause of death. The examiner is requested to address if the Veteran's service-connected disabilities were a principal or contributory cause of death and if they contributed substantially or materially to the Veteran's death.
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