The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional development and consideration of his claim for TDIU. The Board finds that separate ratings for asthma and obstructive sleep apnea are not warranted.
The deciding factor: Separate evaluations under Diagnostic Codes 6602 (Asthma) and 6847 (Obstructive Sleep Apnea) are prohibited by regulation due to overlapping manifestations of difficulty with breathing.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma, Obstructive Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- January 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19102688
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 service connection for asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorders, lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, and bilateral radiculopathy and neuropathy of the lower extremities.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated those associated with a 50 percent rating.
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