The Board previously denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus as secondary to his service-connected hypertension. The Court has remanded this issue due to a lack of adequate reasoning in the previous decision.
The deciding factor: The Court found that the Board’s determination regarding the adequacy of the December 2015 VA medical opinion was incorrect, and specifically noted that the examiner did not provide a clear supporting rationale for her conclusion that the Veteran's hypertension does not aggravate his diabetes mellitus.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, hypertension
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 19, 2018
- Citation
- 18136558
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 18136558.
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.
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The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
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The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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