The Board has determined that the VA examination and opinion are inadequate for rating purposes, and thus remands the case back to the AOJ with instructions to correct the error by providing an addendum opinion addressing the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed COPD with emphysema, including as due to asbestos exposure.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the January 2019 VA examination was inadequate for rating purposes and remanded the case back to the AOJ for an addendum opinion addressing the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed COPD with emphysema, including as due to asbestos exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), Emphysema
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 24, 2019
- Citation
- A19002201
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,642 · Granted: 19% (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 A19002201.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a TDIU with a September 19, 2024 effective date based on his PTSD, emphysema, and COPD symptoms. His diabetes, tinnitus, and left ear hearing loss were not found to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to March 19, 2024.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was listed as emphysema, but the Board found no causal connection to service or a service-connected disability. The Veteran did not meet the criteria for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's COPD is etiologically related to service exposure to herbicide agents, and thus grants service connection for COPD.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for a respiratory disorder, including claims related to asbestos exposure and claimed ionizing radiation exposure. The evidence did not support a link between any in-service exposures and the current diagnoses.
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