The Board has remanded the cases due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's respiratory disabilities and coronary artery disease. The VA will seek additional private records, arrange for a new VA examination, and provide further analysis.
The deciding factor: The VA needs to obtain updated medical evidence and conduct a thorough review of the Veteran's claims based on his exposure to asbestos during service.
- Claimed conditions
- Interstitial lung disease, Asbestosis, Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, Emphysema
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19151856
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19151856.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, ischemic heart disease (IHD), percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stent placement as secondary to IHD, hypertensive heart disease, and emphysema. The COPD claim was denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for COPD and emphysema as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.
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