The Veteran's kidney disability is denied as not shown to be related to service or exposure at Camp Lejeune.,Service connection for the other specified trauma stressor related disorder (claimed as depression) is granted.,Service connection for rheumatoid arthritis and hypothyroidism, claimed as due to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, is remanded for further development.,The Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disability remains denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not establish a nexus between the current kidney disability and active service or exposure at Camp Lejeune.,Service connection granted based on established in-service stressors leading to diagnosed other specified trauma and stressor related disorder (claimed as depression).,Direct service connection is required for rheumatoid arthritis and hypothyroidism, given they are not listed under the presumptive diseases associated with exposure at Camp Lejeune.,Service connection remains denied due to lack of a current disability or established in-service event.
- Claimed conditions
- kidney disability, rheumatoid arthritis, hypothyroidism
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19169634
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 19169634.
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 a deviated septum and denied compensable ratings for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, hypothyroidism, and hypertension.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for right ankle, left ankle, back disability, and other conditions as there is no evidence of a current disability related to the Veteran's military service.
- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for hypertension, atherosclerosis, and diabetes mellitus; granted service connection for erectile dysfunction and skin cancer; and restored the 10 percent rating for hypertension.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hypothyroidism, as it is presumptively linked to herbicide agent exposure during the Veteran's service in Vietnam.
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