The Veteran's petition to reopen his claim for service connection for COPD, including as due to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. The Veteran's entitlement to service connection for lupus, including as due to exposure to herbicides, is also remanded.
The deciding factor: The April 2015 rating decision was not final because a lay statement regarding the Veteran’s claimed exposure to herbicides was received before the notification letter informing the Veteran of the denial of his petition to reopen his claim for service connection for COPD. As such, the April 2017 notice of disagreement is timely.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), lupus
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19143219
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 cervical dysplasia, tension headaches, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), and denied increased ratings for right elbow flexion, supination and pronation, extension, and scars. The Board also remanded claims for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and irritable bowel syndrome.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), emphysema, and left shoulder degenerative arthritis to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error and to satisfy a regulatory or statutory duty that may aid in substantiating the Veteran's claims.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for breathing impairment to include COPD and emphysema, secondary to asbestos exposure, due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for lupus to correct a duty to assist error related to an inadequate VA addendum opinion.
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