The Veteran's death was caused by acute mixed drug intoxication, and the Board finds that a remand is necessary to further develop both theories of entitlement regarding prescribed medications for service-connected disabilities and VA negligence.
The deciding factor: The Board requires additional medical opinions to evaluate whether the cause of death was due to prescribed medication for service-connected disabilities or if VA negligence contributed to it.
- Claimed conditions
- obstructive sleep apnea, generalized anxiety disorder, right knee residuals, left knee residuals, tinnitus, vertigo, left knee scarring, Graves' disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 7, 2018
- Citation
- 18156173
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 18156173.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for migraine headaches with an initial rating of 50 percent effective from August 10, 2022, and denied the claims for service connection for a right knee disability, obstructive sleep apnea, kidney disability, low back disability, and erectile dysfunction.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
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