The Veteran's claims for service connection have been granted for diabetes mellitus, type II and coronary artery disease. The claims for bladder cancer, thyroid condition, and soft tissue sarcoma are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding exposure to herbicides during service.
The deciding factor: New evidence has established that the Veteran was exposed to herbicides during his service in Thailand, which is sufficient to presume service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II and coronary artery disease. However, further examination and opinion are needed to determine if these conditions are related to exposure to herbicides or other factors.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, type II, coronary artery disease, bladder cancer, thyroid condition, soft tissue sarcoma
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19182015
Veterans Law Judge
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19182015.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Granted
The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of service connection for a back disability, endometriosis, thyroid condition, and chronic fatigue syndrome due to new evidence submitted since the last final denial. The claims are now considered on their merits.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the claims for sleep apnea and an increased disability rating for diabetes mellitus, type II.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for coronary artery disease is being remanded due to the inadequacy of a previous VA examination.
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