The Veteran's lung disorder and coronary artery disease disability are being remanded for further evaluation. The lung disorder may be related to an in-service pneumonia episode, while the coronary artery disease needs a new VA examination to determine its current severity.
The deciding factor: The examiner must opine whether the lung disorder is at least as likely as not related to an in-service injury or event, including an episode of pneumonia in December 1966.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disorder, pulmonary fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19147268
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 appeal was dismissed due to a claims processing error, as there was no adjudicative determination from which the Veteran could file a notice of disagreement.
- 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 service connection of a lung disability, claimed as pulmonary fibrosis, for further development and evidence review.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities, finding that the evidence did not support a conclusion that his service-connected conditions prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment.
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