The Board has granted the appellant's application to reopen her claim for service connection for cause of death, but has remanded the case due to the need for a VA medical opinion regarding whether alcohol abuse was secondary to service-connected brain syndrome.
The deciding factor: The appeal is about determining if alcohol abuse (a contributory cause of death) was secondary to service-connected chronic brain syndrome.
- Claimed conditions
- Alcohol abuse, Brain syndrome (presumed service-connected)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 13, 2018
- Citation
- 18157639
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 18157639.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The appeal has been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder with alcohol abuse is at least as likely as not related to service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
Your appeal for a higher rating for PTSD has been dismissed because the maximum possible rating (100%) was already granted in a previous decision.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including an acquired psychiatric disability, alcohol abuse, a liver disability, and hand and eye disabilities, as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to service or secondary to any service-connected condition.
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