The Veteran's claim of entitlement to an earlier effective date prior to August 18, 2011 for the grant of service connection for GERD with insomnia is denied.,The Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for hepatitis C remains pending and requires further development.,The Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for lumbar arthralgia with lumbar spondylosis, right shoulder arthralgia, left shoulder arthralgia, left leg pain, and right leg pain are remanded.,The Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for hypertension (high blood pressure) remains pending and requires further development.,The Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for dizziness, headaches, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (depression) remain pending and require further development.,The Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for a sleep disorder (claimed as a respiratory condition), including obstructive sleep apnea, remains pending and requires further development.
The deciding factor: There is no communication in the claims file that was received prior to August 18, 2011 that could be construed as a claim for service connection for GERD or insomnia. Therefore, the preponderance of the evidence weighs in favor of a finding that the Veteran’s claim for GERD and/or insomnia was received, at the earliest, on August 18, 2011.,The Veteran's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) have not yet been verified. The Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine the etiology of his hepatitis C.,Prior to its adjudication, the Veteran should be afforded another VA examination for the purpose of determining the etiology of the Veteran’s lumbar spine conditions.,The Veteran's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) have not yet been verified. The Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine whether his hypertension was incurred during a period of active military service, and whether it is at least as likely as not caused or aggravated by his GERD.,The Veteran's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) have not yet been verified. The Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any claimed dizziness, headaches, and acquired psychiatric disorder (depression).,The Veteran's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) have not yet been verified. The Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any claimed sleep disorder, including obstructive sleep apnea.
- Claimed conditions
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), insomnia, hepatitis C, lumbar arthralgia with lumbar spondylosis, right shoulder arthralgia, left shoulder arthralgia, left leg pain, right leg pain, hypertension (high blood pressure), dizziness, headaches, acquired psychiatric disorder (depression)
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19102587
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and pernicious anemia, and the Board dismissed both appeals.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) as the appellant does not have a documented history of recurrent or refractory esophageal stricture(s).
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