The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were dismissed. The Board granted service connection for OSA and hypothyroidism as secondary to his service-connected diabetes.
The deciding factor: The evidence was in equipoise regarding whether the Veteran’s current OSA and hypothyroidism are proximately due to or the result of his service-connected diabetes, thus granting service connection based on this finding.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, type 2, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), hypothyroidism
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 31, 2019
- Citation
- 19182369
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted a 70 percent initial disability rating for PTSD effective December 2, 2021, but the claim for an increased rating in excess of 70 percent was denied. The appeal also included claims for service connection and ratings for various conditions, some of which were granted while others were remanded.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) based on the Veteran's exposure to in-service chemical agents.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a deviated septum and denied compensable ratings for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, hypothyroidism, and hypertension.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as secondary to fibromyalgia due to a need for additional medical evidence.
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