The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the Veteran's cause of death and his exposure to burn pits during service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner’s opinion was inadequate as it did not consider the appellant's contention that pulmonary fibrosis may be a refractory disease that does not become active for 10 to 45 years post-exposure, nor did it discuss environmental exposures and their relation to respiratory diseases.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory failure, pneumonia, pulmonary fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19102952
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 pneumonia and remanded the claims for iodine allergy, pilonidal cyst, sulfa allergy, heart disability, acquired psychiatric disorder, and lower and upper extremity disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to an inadequate VA medical opinion and a need for additional evidence.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for pulmonary fibrosis, finding it to be related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents during his service in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical opinion on whether the Veteran's acute hypoxemia, respiratory failure, and pneumonia were related to service or toxic exposure under the PACT Act.
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