The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding the service connection for thyroid disability. The Veteran's claim will be reviewed with an appropriate VA examiner.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on a failure to obtain a medical opinion regarding the continuity of the Veteran's thyroid disability from in-service findings.
- Claimed conditions
- Thyroid disability, Papillary thyroid cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 15, 2019
- Citation
- A19000909
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,738 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19000909.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a thyroid disability, finding that there is no evidence linking his current condition to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a thyroid disability and hypertension, as the Veteran's assertions regarding these conditions are not fully addressed in the current evidence.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for an initial disability rating in excess of 30 percent for PTSD with insomnia due to MST and service connection for a thyroid disability, which led to their dismissal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a thyroid disability and fatigue disability, including as secondary to a thyroid disability due to potential errors in pre-decisional duty to assist. The Veteran's exposure during service is unclear, and further development is needed.
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